Highest ranking of all Field Grade (O-4 to O-6) Officers in the Air Force, Colonels wear shoulder marks with the distinct silver eagle insignia. Because they carry a Field-Grade rank, Colonel’s shoulder marks feature a silver braid on the shoulder-end of the marks that immediately distinguishes them from Company-Grade (O-1 to O-3) Officers whose shoulder marks are bereft of braids and from General Officers, whose shoulder marks have a braid on both the shoulder and neck ends.
Shoulder marks are worn by Colonels on the long- and short-sleeve shirts/blouses of the Men’s and Women’s Service Dress, Blue Service, Semi-Formal Dress, and Maternity uniforms. While the more formal shoulder boards are worn on formal outfits such as Mess uniforms, shoulder marks are worn on the Maternity Mess Dress, with the shoulders of the Maternity Jumper tucked under the epaulets of blouse before the shoulder marks are placed over the epaulets.
Shoulder marks are also mandated for wear on the wool pullover sweater, blue and white cardigan sweaters, and on the topcoat.
More USAF Colonel Insignias and DevicesUse the drop-down selection boxes on the right to select the appropriate size and insignia material for your shoulder marks. While we are proud of the quality and appearance of both the embroidered and bullion insignias, we think you’ll agree that the fine detail and crisp outlines of insignias crafted with bullion is worth far more than the small difference in price.