Officers Rank Question SA

[eclancy]

Gentlemen,
This is an odd one for you new guys.
We all know that Earl McFarland was the Commanding Officer at SA twice. Major Earl McFarland was in Command from Aug. 8, 1923 to June 17, 1924 and again as Colonel, from June 11, 1942 to July 31, 1943.
This one should give you some work to do.
Between the World Wars promotion in the Regular Army Officer Corps came very slowly and was used very correctly. If you were a “Light Bird” you were called, in orders or letters, Lt. Col. So if you received a letter from a Col., you knew he was a “Full Bird.” The same is true of the General Officer’s ranks. You just didn’t say General so—and—so, you stated his rank. One star was for a Brigadier General, two stars was a Major General, three stars was a Lt Gen., and four stars was a Full General, or just General. Many of these Officers knew each other. Those who didn’t had heard of these Officers. Now to the point of the question: An Ordnance file dated Oct. 4, 1938, shows that Earl McFarland is a Brigadier General in rank, and also is Acting Chief of Ordnance, At this point in time he is right there as the M1 Garand is in early production. The file doesn’t say acting Brigadier General, which could be correct, but just Brigadier General and Acting Chief of Ordnance. His second Commanding Officer at SA is in the RANK COLONEL. It’s not a brevet rank, one issued for gallantry on the battlefield. My Question is does anyone know why the drop in rank ? Just seeing what you guys think.
Without input from you guys no one learns anything Try to put in some info/question and we can learn more of the M1's History.



A Veteran, whether active duty, retired, national guard, or reserve, is someone who, at one point in his life, wrote a blank check made payable to “The United States of America” for an amount of “up to and including my life.”

Thanks again for taking the time and effort to read this data. I hope you have learned a little of the history of the M1 Garand.
Clancy
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[rr2241tx]

As was then common, an officer held rank in both the US Army Reserve and in the Regular Army. Promotions in the Reserve usually came faster than the so-called Permanent promotions in the active Regular Army. A lot of officers were released from active duty between the wars and continued to serve as Reserve Officers, some on active duty in exactly the same job but the accounting was separate to comply with Congress' desire to reduce the size of the "standing Army". Thus the apparent reduction in rank when he was recalled to the Regular Army in 1943. Is that confusing enough? I thought so.

 

[Cosmoline]

I suspect that allowed Congress to have them do the same work at a reduced pay grade.

 

[M203Sniper]

Was frocking a common practice then?

Frocking to LTC and COL are prioritized as follows:

a. International

b. Joint

c. Command, project managers, Army Command Designated List (CDL)

d. Army staff and Army non-CDL command which include ARSTAFF positions, division chief of staff, deputy commanders, BN S3, BN XO and instructors.

7. ALL requests must be signed by a Flag Officer (07 or above) or the civilian SES equivalent.

8. If the officer is being frocked for service in another command, appropriate coordination will be made to ensure that the request is not duplicated by the losing and gaining commands.



http://usmilitary.about.com/library/milinfo/blarmyfrock.htm

?

 

[SSN Vet]

don't know about the army, but in the Navy you can be spot promoted to a higher rank (with pay) so that you can perform a specific job, that traditionally is only done by some one at that higher rank. When you transition out of that job, if you haven't yet attained the higher level of rank via. the normal promotion process, then you return to the lower rank (and pay).

Common example is the Engineering Officer on nuclear subs. Because of the extremely high level of responsibility associated with this position, it is accorded the rank of Lt. Commander (O-4).

Yet this is a department head tour and is almost always filled by a senior LT (O-3). After demonstrating satisfactory performance for a specified number of months, he gets spot promoted (not frocked....he gets the money) to O-3.

After completing his tour, if the Eng. O. has not yet made O-4 via. normal promotion, he's knocked back down to O-3 and gives up the money and the oak leaf.

I've only heard of this happening when the LT was a super hot shot who got the Eng. O. job very early, and after his tour didn't yet meet the time in service requirement for regular promotion.