Regardless of branch of service in the United States Armed Forces, the ranks of Vice Admiral and Lieutenant General share the same insignia of three silver stars because they are in the same grade of O-9. Both ranks are temporary and are linked to specific positions within each branch, such as head of one of the Marine Expeditionary Forces or the Navy’s Submarine Command.
The Navy, Coast Guard, and Marine uniform regulations call for the wear of insignia of grade on their Garrison Caps, which were originally associated with working uniforms but now are worn with service uniforms and even some dress uniforms. Vice Admirals and USMC Major Generals wear the three stars in a point-to-point array on the right side of the cap; on the left side, Vice Admirals wear Officer cap devices and Major Generals wear the Marine Corps Eagle, Globe, and Anchor device.
The insignia is worn near the front of the cap, 2” from the front crease and 1.5” from the cap’s bottom in the Navy and Coast Guard.
Marine Corps uniform rules call for it to be placed so the fold that arcs downward from the front crease toward the back bisects the insignia and the insignia intersects the fold’s midpoint.
Both the Navy and Marine Corps offer two types of Garrison Caps, (
khaki or
black and
male or
female respectively, while the Coast Guard’s cap comes only in one style and color,
Coast Guard Blue.Customers purchasing this O-9 cap rank device may also be interested in the
collar grade insignia.