The rank of warrant
officer has a long history. For example, evidence suggests that
Napoleon used warrant officers as communications links between
his commissioned officers and the Soldiers.
The military grade of
“warrant officer” dates back two centuries before Columbus,
during the fledgling years of the British Navy. At that time,
nobles assumed command of the new Navy, adopting the Army ranks
of Lieutenant and Captain. These royal blood officers often had
no knowledge of life on board a ship, let alone how to navigate
such a vessel or operate the guns. They often relied on the
technical expertise and cooperation of a senior sailor who
tended to the technical aspects of running the ship and
operating the cannons. These sailors, sometimes referred to as
‘Boat Mates’ or ‘Boswans Mates’ became indispensable to less
experienced officers and were subsequently rewarded with a Royal
Warrant. This Royal Warrant was a special designation, designed
to set them apart from other sailors, yet not violate the strict
class system that was so prevalent during the time.
In the U.S. Navy, warrant
officers have traditionally been technical specialists whose
skills and knowledge were an essential part of the proper
operation of the ship. The Navy has had warrant officers among
its ranks, in some form or another, since its conception. For
the U.S. Army, we can trace the lineage of the warrant officer
back to 1896, specifically to the Headquarters Clerk (later
designated the Army Field Clerk).
The Act of August 1916
authorized the Army Field Clerk (formerly Headquarters Clerk)
and the Field Clerk, Quartermaster Corps (formerly Pay Clerk).
Although initially considered civilians, the Judge Advocate
General eventually determined that they held military status.
The Act of July 1918 introduced the rank and grade of warrant
officer. It established the Army Mine Planter Service in the
Coast Artillery Corps and directed that warrant officers serve
as masters, mates, chief engineers, and assistant engineers of
each vessel. There were three varying levels of pay authorized.
A group of the original mine planters.
In World War I, the Coast
Artillery Corps was responsible for mine defenses in major
ports. Vessels, ranging in size from small motorboats to
1,000-ton ocean-going ships, laid and maintained minefields.
Conflict between Soldiers and civilian employees who manned
these vessels revealed the need to ensure that military
personnel manned the vessels.
Officially, the birth date
of the Army Warrant Officer Corps is 9 July 1918, when Congress
established the Army Mine Planter Service as part of the Coast
Artillery. This action assured that exclusively Army personnel
manned the vessels. The Army opened a school to train their
mariners at Fort Monroe, Virginia, commanded by an officer who
had graduated from the Naval Academy.
The official color of the
warrant officer corps is brown, as warrant officers in the Mine
Planter Service wore simple bands of brown cloth on their
uniform sleeves as their insignia of rank. Warrant officers
served in four positions aboard the vessels: masters, mates,
chief engineers and assistant engineers. Masters wore four
bands. Deck officers also wore an embroidered brown fouled
anchor above the braid, while engineer officers wore an
embroidered brown three-bladed propeller in a similar position.
The Act of 1920 expanded
use of warrant officers, authorizing appointment of warrant
officers in clerical, administrative, and band leading
activities. This Act authorized 1,120 warrant officers, provided
for appointments in the Army-at-large rather than in specific
branches and established warrant officer assignments in various
headquarters and tactical units. Perhaps the most significant
motive for the expansion was
". . . a desire to reward enlisted men of
long service and also to reward former commissioned officers
of World War I who lacked either the educational or other
eligibility requirements necessary for continuance in the
commissioned status."
In 1921, warrant officers
were excluded from performance of summary court officer, defense
counsel, officer of the day, and assistant adjutant because
enlisted personnel were prohibited from performing those same
duties. During this time, only one pay grade existed except in
the army Mine Planter Service.
Warrant officers of the Tank Corps
first wore the distinctive insignia approved on 12 May 1921. It
consists of an eagle rising with wings displayed, standing on
two arrows and enclosed in a wreath. It was adapted from the
great seal of the United States, with the arrows symbolizing the
military arts and science.
"The Eagle Rising"
"An eagle rising with
wings displayed standing on a bundle of two arrows, all
enclosed in a wreath."
In 1922, the warrant
officer strength authorization dropped from 1,120 to 600,
exclusive of the number of Army Mine Planter Service warrant
officers and Army Bandmasters. Consequently, there were no
warrant officer appointments other than Bandmasters and Army
Mine Planter Service personnel between 1922 and 1935. Laws
subsequent to 1922 authorized the appointment of additional
classes of personnel with certain qualifications, above the 600
authorizations.
In 1936, the Army held
competitive examinations to replenish lists of eligibles for
Regular Army appointment. The Army appointed warrant officers
against vacancies from this 1936 list until the beginning of
World War II.
In 1939, warrant officers
who were qualified as pilots were declared eligible for
appointments as air corps lieutenants in the Regular Army.
In 1940, warrant officers
began serving as disbursing agents.
At this time, warrant officer appointments
began to occur in significant numbers for the first time since
1922. However, a large number of warrant officers transferred to
active duty as commissioned officers, causing a continuing
decrease in warrant officer strength until 1942
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The Act of 1941 created
two grades, chief Warrant Officer and Warrant Officer junior
grade, and authorized flight pay for Warrant Officers whose
duties involved aerial flight. The Act of August 1941 also
provided:
1) Appointments up to one
percent of the Regular Army enlisted strength.
2) Assignment of Warrant
Officers to duties as prescribed by the Secretary of the Army.
3) Warrant Officers with
duties normally performed by a commissioned officer are vested
with the power to perform those duties under regulations
prescribed by the President.
4) Warrant Officers
serving as assistant adjutant have the power to administer oaths
for the purposes of administration.
5) As a follow-up to the
provisions stated in paragraph 8-2a(2), Executive Order 8938, 10
November 1941, stated that
"Whenever the duties assigned to Warrant
Officers of the Army include the command of stations, units, or
detachments, the disbursement and administration of funds,
including the certification of vouchers and payrolls, the
issuance of travel orders, bills of lading, and transportation
requests, the receipt for, and accountability for, and
administration of property, the certification and verification
of official papers, or the performance of similar routine
administrative duties, they shall be vested with all the powers
usually exercised by commissioned officers in the performance of
such duties."
Now the Secretary of the
Army could prescribe the assignment of Warrant Officers.
After a competitive examination in
1942, the Army appointed temporary Warrant Officers in
approximately 40 occupational areas. For the first time, Warrant
Officers performed functions other than mine planting, band
leading, administration, and supply. These new functional areas
were not incorporated into the Military Occupational Specialty
(MOS) structure but were later identified by the number and
title of the examination. Later than same year, authority to
approve temporary Warrant Officer appointments was delegated to
major commanders.
  Distinguishing
bars of gold and brown were approved as Warrant Officer insignia
of grade on 11 January 1942. In September 1942, with the
adoption of the warrant grade of flight officer, an ultramarine
blue and golden-orange bar was approved as an insignia of grade.
In November 1942, the War Department defined
the position of the Warrant Officer in the rank order as being
above all enlisted ranks and immediately below all commissioned
officers.
During the remainder of
World War II, Warrant Officers were appointed by quota in a
decentralized fashion by major commanders. These decentralized
appointments were not competitive in an Army wide sense,
although generally, examinations were used as a screening
device. The selection process usually consisted of a board
appearance for those who met statutory requirements and
screening criteria.
The appointment of women
as Warrant Officers was authorized in January 1944, and the
first women were appointed in March of that year. At the
conclusion of World War II, there were 42 women Warrant Officers
on active duty. Today, over 1,300 women serve as Warrant
Officers in all branches except Special Forces.
Warrant Officer appointments virtually ceased
after World War II because of military downsizing,
dissatisfaction with the decentralized appointment process, and
confusion about the purpose of Warrant Officers. It had become
apparent that the decentralization of appointments, based onto
he premise that each commander best knew his or her own needs,
resulted in inconsistent selection practices and served to
confuse the Warrant Officer's role and function.
Warrant Officers were
filling 40 different occupational specialties by early 1946 and
approximately 60 specialties by 1951.
The Warrant Officer
strength of the Regular Army stood at 775 on 30 June 1939. When
peak personnel strength was reached during World War II, in May
1945, nearly 57,000 Warrant Officers (including flight officers
of the Air Force) were on active duty.
In 1946, the 40 Warrant Officer
functional areas were incorporated into the same MOS structure
as that used for commissioned officers. At about the same time,
the concept of using the Corps as an incentive rather than a
reward was instituted. It was determined that the rank of
Warrant Officer was to be a capstone rank into which enlisted
personnel could routinely expect to advance in connection with
the Enlisted Career Guidance Program. The use of Warrant Officer
grade as a reward before World War II and its use as an
incentive after World War II both resulted in Warrant Officers'
duties and responsibilities being largely interchangeable with
those of junior commissioned officers and senior enlisted
personnel.
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During 1948 and 1949,
competitive examinations were held to appoint or select for
appointment approximately 6,000 regular Army Warrant Officers.
Appointments were made in 47 MOSs and four special (classified)
occupational areas. Selections and appointments numbered
approximately 4,500 from the general Army examinations of 1948
and approximately 1,500 from the unit administrator examinations
of 1949. Approximately half of these 6,000 appointees and
selectees were Commissioned Officers on extended active duty
with Reserve commissions.
In late 1948, a
considerable number of term of enlistment (TOE) duty positions
were established for Warrant Officers. However, budgetary
limitations did not allow the additional appointments necessary
to fully implement this broadened concept of Warrant Officer
use.
The Career Compensation Act of 1949,
provided two new pay rates for Warrant Officers. The
designations of Warrant Officer Junior Grade and Chief Warrant
Officer were retained; however, the grade of Chief Warrant
Officer was provided with pay rates of W2, W3 and W4.
In 1950, approximately 900
Warrant Officer appointments were made using eligibility lists
established by the 1948 and 1949 competitive examinations.
In 1951, major commanders
were once again allowed to confer temporary Warrant Officer
appointments. As a result, they appointed approximately 1,400
Warrant Officers (temporary appointments) in 60 MOSs.
In March 1952, budgetary
limitations forced termination of Warrant Officer appointments.
In August 1953, the Army
force reduction plan following cessation of hostilities in Korea
called for the Warrant Officer corps to be reduced by one-third
to meet FY 1954 budget authorization of approximately 12,400.
But because of the inflationary impact of using the rank as an
incentive, there was both a surplus of total Warrant Officers as
well as a critical shortage of Warrant Officer positions and
personnel in the missile, electronics, and aviation specialties.
A concept consistent with Army requirements was needed if the
Warrant Officer Corps was to survive.
The inception of Warrant Officer
Flight Program in 1953, lead to the training of thousands who
later became helicopter pilots during the Vietnam War.
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In January 1957, a
completely new Warrant Officer concept was announced that:
1) Affirmed the need for
the Warrant Officer and the continuation of the Warrant Officer
Corps.
2) Stipulated that Warrant
Officer status would not be considered as a reward or incentive
for enlisted men or former Commissioned Officers.
3) Approved the following
Warrant Officer definition:
"The Warrant Officer is a highly skilled
technician who is provided to fill those positions above the
enlisted level which are too specialized in scope to permit
the effective development and continued utilization of
broadly-trained, branch-qualified Commissioned Officers."
Recent Warrant Officer Program
The present Warrant
Officer Program was announced in DA Circular 611-7 on 12 April
1960. In addition to stating the 1957 definition of the Warrant
Officer, this publication also outlined utilization policies,
criteria for selection of Warrant Officer positions, and
instructions for conversion to the current Warrant Officer MOS
system.
In 1966, a study group
formed at the Department of the Army to develop a formal Warrant
Officer Career Program that would be responsible to future Army
requirements while concurrently offering sufficient career
opportunities to attract high quality personnel. The study group
examined all aspects of the Warrant Officer Corps and made a
number of recommendations in areas such as pay, promotion,
utilization, and education. To implement these recommendations,
various actions were initiated to provide more career
opportunities for Warrant Officers.
In 1966 the
first Warrant Officer Professional Development Program was
published in Department of the Army Pamphlet 600-11.
During the 6 years
following its initial development, several significant
improvements were made into the Warrant Officer Career Program.
In 1967, below-the-zone
selection for promotion to grades CW3 and CW4 was implemented.
The initiation of early selection for promotion to the grades of
CW3 and CW4 was for a limited number of Warrant Officers with
exceptional performance records.
In 1968, the Regular Army
Program was reopened to Warrant Officer applicants after having
been closed for 20 years. Additional changes reduced service
eligibility criteria and simplified application procedures.
Since 1968, the military
education available to Warrant Officers has been remarkably
expanded. Before then, there was no formal progressive military
schooling program for Warrant Officers. A tri-level education
system was established by the end of 1972 that provided training
at the basic or entry level for Warrant Officers in 59
occupational specialties, at the intermediate or mid-career
level for 53 specialties, and at the advanced level for 27
specialties.
In 1973, the three levels
of training were redesignated from basic, intermediate, and
advanced to entry, advanced and senior, respectively.
Simultaneously, after successful testing of the concept, the
Warrant Officer Senior Course (WOSC) was established to provide
all Warrant Officers with access to the highest level of
professional education. In 1973, the Department of the Army a
plan to close the gaps in the Warrant Officer military education
system by expanding and modifying the existing advanced courses
to accommodate all Warrant Officer specialties.
Civil schooling
opportunities were also increased during this period. The
educational goal for Warrant Officers was upgraded from 2-year
college equivalency to an associate degree and Warrant Officers
were authorized entry into fully funded civil school programs.
To promote achieving this goal, cooperative degree programs
began to be established in the colleges and universities near
the installations conducting the Warrant Officer career courses.
In consonance with increased educational opportunities, duty
positions requiring Warrant Officers with master's degrees were
validated for the first time by the Army Education Requirements
Board.
To forecast and control
their assignment and training opportunities, Warrant Officers
were incorporated into the HQDA Projected Requisitioning
Authority (PRA), a management tool long used for Commissioned
Officers, but not applied to Warrant Officers until 1975.
1975 welcomed the
establishment of the Warrant Officer Division at the Army's
Personnel Command, providing a centralized career management
center for all Warrant Officers (excluding those working in
Staff Judge Advocate and Medical Corps specialties). 1975 also
saw the Warrant Officer civilian education program (degree
completion) authorized and funded by Department of the Army.
By the close of 1975, the
Army's capability for professionally developing the Warrant
Officer Corps had been significantly expanded and Warrant
Officers were being offered developmental opportunities not
available to their predecessors.
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In 1974, Warrant Officer
Division was created at MILPERCEN (Military Personnel Center),
now PERSCOM, to provide centralized career management for all
but Judge Advocate General and Medical Corps Warrant Officers,
who continued to be managed independently by their own
proponencies.
1978, Army
National Guard and U.S. Army Reserve Warrant Officers not on
active duty were integrated into the Army's professional
development program. This was necessary to satisfy the
recognized need for qualified, highly trained individuals
available to augment the active Warrant Officer corps rapidly in
time of emergencies.
In 1984, the Chief of
Staff chartered a Total Warrant Officer Study (TWOS) and the
Vice Chief of Staff directed that all direct appointments cease
and that a Warrant Officer Candidate Course be established at
Fort Sill.
Recommendations from the
TWOS study were eventually approved by the Army Chief of Staff
and resulted in a new definition of the Warrant Officer as:
"An officer appointed by warrant by the
Secretary of the Army based upon a sound level of technical
and tactical competence. The warrant officer is the highly
specialized expert and trainer who, by gaining progressive
levels of expertise and leadership, operates, maintains,
administers, and manages the Army's equipment, support
activities, or technical systems for an entire career."
More about
the current definition
A whole new
era for Warrant Officers began when the Chief of Staff, Army
chartered the Department of the Army Total Warrant Officer Study
Group in September 1984. This was the first Department of the
Army-level comprehensive study of Warrant Officer management
from preappointment to retirement. It spanned the entire Army,
both active and reserve components. Implemented recommendations
included coding of positions in authorization documents by rank
grouping and automatic Regular Army (RA) integration at the CW3
level.
The culmination of TWOS
was the passage of the Warrant Officer Management Act (WOMA) as
part of the FY 1992 and 1993 National Defense Authorization Act
and approval of the Warrant Officer Leader Development Action
Plan (WOLDAP) in 1992. On 5 December 1991, WOMA went into
effect. WOMA is a major revision of title 10, USC, and is the
current basis for management of the active duty Warrant Officer
Corps. Key provisions of the law include--
1) A single promotion
system for Warrant Officers.
2) Tenure requirements
based upon years of Warrant Officer service.
3) The grade of CW5.
4) Authorization for the
Secretary of the Army to convene boards to recommend Warrant
Officers for selective mandatory retirement.
WOLDAP was approved by the
Chief of Staff, U.S. Army, on 27 February 1992. WOLDAP is a
total Army plan designed to ensure both active and reserve
Warrant Officers are appointed, trained, and utilized to a
single standard. Key provisions of WOLDAP include:
1) An accession goal of 8
years or less time in service for Warrant Officer candidates.
2) Establishment of
a comprehensive
Warrant Officer education system.
3) Conditional appointment
to WO1 upon successful completion of Warrant Officer candidate
school.
4) Civilian education
goals of an associate degree before eligibility for promotion o
CW3 and a bachelors degree before eligibility for promotion to
CW4.
5) Establishment of the
Warrant Officer Career College (WOCC)
6) Pinpoint assignments
for CW5s.
The Army Training and Leader Development
Panel (ATLDP)
Released on August 22, 2002, focused on
training and leader development requirements for Warrant
Officers as the Army transforms to the Future Force. This study
(Phase III), the third conducted by the ATLDP, is part of the
largest self-assessment ever done by the Army
a. The Warrant Officer study concludes the Army must make
fundamental changes in the Warrant Officer cohort to support
full spectrum operations. At the heart of the change is a
complete integration of Warrant Officers into the larger officer
corps, a process begun in the 1980s but never completed.
Specifically, the study concludes that the Army needs to clarify
the roles of Warrant Officers, then make changes to their
professional development, training and education, and manning.
b. The study recommended 63 changes to improve the
training, manning and professional development of Warrant
Officers. If fully implemented, these recommendations
represent the most significant changes within the Army Warrant
Corps since its inception in July of 1918.
c. Implemented changes:
-
On 9 July 2004, the 86th anniversary of the Army Warrant
Officer Corps, all Warrant Officers will wear the insignia
appropriate to
their branch. They
will no longer wear the Eagle Rising.
-
Also on
9 July 2004, the rank insignia of CW5 will change to one
similar to other services, a silver bar with a single black
band in the center.
-
WO
Division and Officer Division merger
-
Consolidation of OES and WOES
-
Inclusion in DA Pam 600-3, Commissioned Officer Development
and Career Management
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