Quote:
Originally Posted by euromodder
Now you're joking Neil.
The top of the military establishment is just as political as Washington DC or our own Wetstraat / Rue de la Loi  |
Well, let's see... All officers start out as O-1 (Ensign for the Navy, or Second Lieutenant for the non-Navy services)
Officer promotions generally are decided by one of three methods.
A promotion board is convened yearly for the middle officer ranks (O-4 through O-6, Lieutenant Commander and Commander and Captain for the Navy, or Major and Lieutenant Colonel and Colonel for non-Navy services), where promotable officer fitness reports are primarily used. Each fitness report is scanned by the board (consisting of selected higher-ranking officers) for exemplary performance, as shown by taking on increased levels of responsibility with regard to their past performance, and by their ability to lead. Because of this, the selection board process is rather political in nature.
Promotion boards are generally convened for the lower ranks (O-2 and O-3, Lieutenant junior grade and Lieutenant for the Navy, or First Lieutenant and Captain for the non-Navy services), but they are primarily administrative in nature - if the officers being considered for promotion have kept their noses clean (no DUI, for instance), they are generally recommended for promotion. It's kind of a joke within the military to say that "they check to ensure O-2s are listed on the payroll, and they check to ensure O-3s are actually breathing."
It gets worse for senior officers (O-7 and above, the so-called flag ranks that consist of generals and admirals). Instead of a military promotion board that looks at promotable officers, senior officers selected for promotion are selected by the President of the United States.
Finally, all officer promotions must be approved by the Senate of the United States.
This brief summary of officer promotions comes from a commissioned officer veteran (myself). Neil, are you sure that the military is not influenced by politics?