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Portugal Uniforms, Ranks, and Insignia
The official grade structure of the Portuguese armed
forces
showed nine officer ranks for the army and the air force
and nine
for the navy
(see
fig. 12). The rank of general was not
subdivided as in the United States armed forces. Officers
of the
highest rank, that of general, wore three stars, except
for the
chief of staff of the armed forces and the three service
chiefs
of staff, who wore four stars. The rank of marechal
(fleet
admiral in the navy) was honorary and, as of early 1992,
was held
by only two persons, both retired army generals. The army
and air
force each had nine enlisted ranks; the navy used only
seven
(see
fig. 13). Officer ranks were displayed by peak decorations
on the
headgear and chin cords. The peaked caps of all three
services
also bore the Portuguese coat of arms.
On the pale gray full dress uniform of the army, rank
designations were displayed in the form of gorget patches
for
general officers and cuff bars for other officers. On the
olive
green service uniform, usually worn with shirt and tie,
shoulder
board insignia denoted officer ranks. Shoulder boards or
sleeve
chevrons were worn by enlisted personnel and warrant
officers.
The highest NCO rank of first sergeant was denoted by four
upward-pointing chevrons.
Army fatigue uniforms were olive green, and combat
uniforms
were of camouflage material. The standard headgear for
enlisted
personnel was a brown beret bearing the national colors of
red
and green. Armored troops were distinguished by black
berets, and
paratroops wore green berets. Special forces wore
distinctive
camouflage uniforms with red berets.
The air force uniform was light blue with a peaked cap
as
standard headgear for both officers and NCOs and berets
for other
ranks. All ranks wore garrison caps with nondress
uniforms. Stars
and sleeve rings denoting ranks were worn on the sleeve
cuffs of
officer uniforms. Rank chevrons similar to those of the
army were
worn on the shoulder by enlisted personnel.
Navy personnel wore either blue wool or white cotton
uniforms
for shore or sea duty. In either case, pullover blouses
were
standard. Navy enlisted men's headgear was similar to
those of
other European navies--round caps with the name of the
ship sewn
on the headband. Peaked caps were worn by officers and
petty
officers, bearing the state arms and designating rank by
peak
decoration. Marines wore dark blue berets. Ranks displayed
on
uniforms consisted of sleeve rings for officers and rank
chevrons
for NCOs. As in the other services, warrant officers'
ranks were
denoted by a combination of chevrons and the coat of arms.
Data as of January 1993
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