The details: On the enlisted side, the ranks closely follow the structure of the Air Force. The exception comes in the first four categories, which will be called Specialist 1, Specialist 2, Specialist 3 and Specialist 4.
The rest are the same: sergeant, technical sergeant, chief sergeant, etc.
On the officer side, the ranks are identical to those found in the Air Force, Army, and Marine Corps, starting with the second lieutenant and going up to the general.
In choosing “expert” over “airman”, the Force follows the promise of Space Operations Chief, General Jay Raymond, to have a gender-neutral rating structure that does not include the word man.
At the Capitol: Last year, the House approved Crenshaw’s language in the annual defense policy bill requiring the service to use Navy posts, such as sailor, noncommissioned officer, ensign and admiral. Some see the Space Force’s mission to defend machinery and commerce in the vastness of space as analogous to the Navy’s mission to protect the high seas.
Others wanted the Force, which essentially split from the Air Force in 2019, to establish its own separate Air Force culture and identity, and saw different patents as a way to do that.
Take me to your leader: The effort had some high profile supporters. Shatner radiated into the debate last year, when he wrote an article in August, pushing for the military to adopt Navy posts, citing a variety of space icons in pop culture.
But the language was removed from the final compromise project, leaving the decision to the Space Force.
What is the next: The ratings are just the latest movement of the service, which in the last year has adopted a logo, flag and motto. Other items on the list include official music and gala uniforms.