Navy Rank Shoulderboards
of the Soviet Superpower
(1968-1991)

 

This section features the rank shoulder boards worn by warrant officers and enlisted sailors.  It will soon cover the boards of the Naval Infantry and Naval Aviation as well.

    

Warrant Officer (Michmen) Boards

The Soviet Navy faced a chronic shortage of senior enlisted personnel.  Reenlistment rates during this period averaged only 10 percent.  In an effort to reverse this trend the Soviet navy reintroduced the rank of Michman (Warrant Officer) in 1971.  It served as a way to upgrade the status of senior enlisted men who decided to reenlist.  Those who were selected as Michmen would be required to serve for an additional five years, two of which would be in the form of advanced technical training.

Warrant officers were seen as being an interface between the officers and enlisted men.  He would have greater responsibilities, but this would be expected due to his greater experience.  They were allowed to relieve officers of some duties and even become commissioned officers after a time.
 

Summer*

Winter

Senior Warrant Officer

Coming Soon!

Warrant Officer

Coming Soon!
* The Navy White boards were first established on 2 July 1973 by Order of the Ministry of Defense #144 and were to be worn with the white shirts and white jackets.

  

Warrant Officer (Michmen) Boards for duty shirt

These boards were worn by warrant officers when they were required to wear the white or yellow shirt uniforms.  The black warrant officer boards (trimmed in white) were only worn with the Summer Out of Formation uniform and the No. 3 Summer Out of Formation Uniform.
  
  White Boards* Yellow Boards Black Boards
Senior Warrant Officer Coming Soon! Coming Soon!
Warrant Officer Coming Soon! Coming Soon!
* The Navy White boards were first established on 2 July 1973 by Order of the Ministry of Defense #144 and were to be worn with the white shirts and white jackets.

  

Enlisted Men

Here are several enlisted sailor's shoulder boards.  In many ways they are similar to the ones used by the army.  It should be noted that the design of the Cyrillic letter 'F' varies from board to board.  The reason for this is that they came from different factories and were made at different times, but they are all authentic.

Originally the boards had the initials of the four Soviet fleets on them as well as the basic 'F' version.  This continued until 1980 when they were simplified by Order of the Ministry of Defense #85 which mandated that they all have only the Cyrillic letter 'F'.  The order also established light blue boards for Naval Aviation personnel.

Rank

Navy

Naval Infantry

Senior Chief Petty Officer

Coming Soon!

Senior Petty Officer

Coming Soon!

Petty Officer

Coming Soon!

Junior Petty Officer

Coming Soon!

Seaman

Coming Soon!

Apprentice Seaman

Coming Soon!

 

Enlisted Short Rank Boards

The color of the enlisted rank boards differed depending on the branch of the navy that the sailor served in and the time of year.  The ones below are for conscript sailors, other ratings would have rank stripes in place of the Cyrillic letter 'F'.  The naval infantry and navy Kursant boards are noteworthy for the colored borders around them.  The Kursant board below is for an apprentice seaman cadet.  Other Kursant ratings would also have yellow rank stripes to denote their rank at the time of their being selected as a cadet.
   
Navy (Summer) Navy (Winter) Naval Aviation*

Naval Infantry*

 Kursant

* These boards were first established on 15 March 1980 by Order of the Ministry of Defense #85.

   

Back to Navy Admiral and
Officer Shoulder Boards

Back to Awards Index for
The Soviet Superpower