Coast Guard Vice Admirals wear their insignia of rank on Hard shoulder boards on the Dinner Dress White Jacket (DDWJ) and the Service Dress White Coat, a single-breasted formfitting coat issued in male (stand-up collar, two breast pockets) and female xxxxxversions (rounded collar with overlying half-peaked lapels, one breast pocket) for wear with the Dinner, Full, and Service Dress uniforms.
The three silver stars on the Hard board indicating the O-9 rank of Vice Admiral are arranged in triangular fashion with a silver Coast Guard shield superimposed on a silver fouled anchor located between the stars and the board’s snap-button; the anchor fluke with overlapping chain points to the wearer’s front. Hard should boards are worn by inserting the hinged hasp through the shoulder loops found on authorized uniform components.
Issued in Large and Small (three-quarters) sizes, Vice Admiral Hard should boards may also be worn on the Bridge Coat (an optional clothing item authorized for all Dress uniforms) provided it has shoulder loops; the same caveat applies to the legacy Reefer coat. Board size is unrelated to Officer gender—male and female Vice Admirals choose the size that conforms best to their shoulder size.
Enhanced shoulder boards sport the same basic design as hard boards but do not have a snap-button because they are attached by being slid onto epaulets of shirts, sweaters, and coats. These include the Light Blue shirts (short- and long-sleeve) of the Service Dress Blue “Bravo” uniform; the short-sleeve Light Blue shirt or women’s overblouse of the Tropical Blue uniform; Bridge Coats with epaulets; and Cardigan and Wooly-Pully sweaters.
More Coast Guard Vice Admiral Insignia / DevicesGarrison Cap Rank Insignia
Coat Rank Insignia
Collar Rank Insignia
Sleeve Lacing
O-9 Tie Tack/Clasp
More Devices / Accouterments for Coast Guard Vice Admirals
Admiral Combination Cap
Officer Cap Device
USCG Sleeve Device
Officer Belt Buckle
Officer Cuff Links
Officer Tie Tack/Clasp