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Lieutenant Commander ('''Lieutenant-Commander''' in the Royal Navy )1 is a Commissioned Officer Rank in many Navies Superior to a Lieutenant and subordinate to a Commander . The corresponding rank in most Armies , (armed services) and Air Force s is Major , and in the Royal Air Force and other Commonwealth air forces is Squadron Leader also. A Lieutenant Commander is a senior Department officer on a large Ship or shore installation. They may also be Commanding Officer or Executive Officer ( Second-in-command ) of a smaller ship or installation. ORIGINS Lieutenants were commonly put in command of smaller vessels not warranting a Commander or , and a "Lieutenant in Command" or "Lieutenant and Commander" in the Royal Navy . The USN settled on "Lieutenant Commander" in 1862, and made it a distinct rank; the RN followed suit in March 1914. ROYAL NAVY The insignia worn by a Royal Navy Lieutenant-Commander ('''Lt Cdr''') is two medium Gold Braid stripes with one thin gold stripe running in between, placed upon a navy blue/black background. The top stripe has the ubiquitous loop used in all RN officer rank insignia. The RAF follows this pattern with its equivalent rank of Squadron Leader. Having fewer officer ranks than the army, the RN previously split some of its ranks by seniority (time in rank) to provide equivalence: hence a Lieutenant with fewer than eight years' seniority wore two stripes, and ranked with an army Captain; a Lieutenant of eight years or more wore two stripes with a thinner one in between, and ranked with a Major. This distinction was abolished when the rank of Lieutenant-Commander was introduced, the new rank taking the insignia and army equivalence of a senior Lieutenant. Similar insignia is worn by Lieutenant-Commanders in other Commonwealth navies, such as the Royal Australian Navy (which uses the abbreviation "LCDR"), the Royal New Zealand Navy and the Canadian Forces Maritime Command (formerly the Royal Canadian Navy ; which uses the abbreviation "LCdr"). UNITED STATES ARMED FORCES & UNIFORMED SERVICES The rank of Lieutenant Commander ('''LCDR''') is used in the United States Navy , the United States Coast Guard , the National Oceanic And Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Corps and the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps . The pay grade of this rank is O-4. While the gold oak leaf collar insignia worn by United States Air Force , Army , and Marine Corps Majors is also worn by USN Lieutenant Commanders, they also wear on various uniforms the two medium and one narrow sleeve and shoulder braid stripe insignia like their counterparts in the Royal Navy, though with a specialty insignia instead of a loop. In this illustration, the inverted star of a Line Officer is used. In both the US Navy and US Coast Guard, the three classes of commissioned officers: flag, mid-grade, and junior differ slightly from their Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force counterparts of General, Field Grade, and Company Grade. In the Navy and Coast Guard, the Lieutenant Commander is the most junior of the mid-grade officers.2 While a Lieutenant Commander is paid the same as a Major with the same years of service, he or she does not rate the same privileges. In the land and air forces, a Major rates better billeting, housing, or berthing than a Captain (O-3). The Major's accommodations and privileges are of the same class as a Lieutenant Colonel's and Colonel's. A Lieutenant Commander's is not the same as that of a Commander's or Captain's. The most visible sign is the lack of gold leaves on the brim of the combination cover (or peaked hat). In both the Coast Guard and Navy, the peak is plain patent leather. In the land and air forces, respectively, a Major's peak has gold leaves or silver clouds upon it. In US Naval Aviation, this difference shows up occasionally in two areas, onboard aircraft carriers and in flight training. On US Navy aircraft carriers, Marine Corps Majors with embarked aviation units are assigned senior officer single occupancy staterooms when they are available. Lieutenant Commanders will be assigned to either two or four man staterooms, but rarely to the 8 man "JO Jungles." In flight training, Air Force and Marine Majors on Navy bases rate senior officer housing. SEE ALSO
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