Master Warrant Officer

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Master Warrant Officer is a military rank in the Canadian Forces and the Singapore Armed Forces.

1 Canadian Forces
2 Singapore
3 See also

Master Warrant Officer or MWO is an Army and Air Force non-commissioned member rank of the Canadian Forces. It is senior to the rank of Warrant Officer and its equivalents, and junior to Chief Warrant Officer and its equivalents. Its Naval equivalent is Chief Petty Officer 2nd Class (CPO2).

The French language form is Adjutant-maître (Adjum)..

The rank insignia of the MWO is a crown within a wreath of gold laurel, worn on both forearms of the Service Dress tunic; in gold metal and green enamel miniature pins on the collar of the Service Dress shirt and outerwear coats (Army only); on CADPAT slipons worn in the middle of the chest, embroidered in tan (Army) or dark blue (Air Force) thread; and in "old gold" thread on blue slip-ons on both shoulders of other uniforms (Air Force only).

MWOs are generally initially addressed as "Master Warrant Officer Bloggins", or "Sergeant-Major Bloggins" (if they hold that appointment), and thereafter as "Sir" or "Ma'am".

MWOs may hold a number of appointments, including the position of Sergeant-Major, the most senior NCM in a company-sized Army unit or sub-unit. Some of these appointments are listed below:

Battery Sergeant-Major (BSM) — the senior NCM of an artillery battery
Squadron Sergeant-Major (SSM) — the senior NCM of a cavalry, armoured, combat engineer, or communications squadron
Company Sergeant-Major — the senior NCM of any other company-sized unit
Regimental Quartermaster Sergeant

Due to the unified nature of the CF, it is not unheard-of for Air Force MWOs — especially those of the so-called "purple trades", such as logistics or military police — to find themselves filling the appointment of Squadron or Company Sergeant-Major in what are otherwise considered "hard" army units (such as Service Battalions or Communication Squadrons).

One of the senior appointments that a MWO may hold is that of the senior NCM on a CF station, titled Station Master Warrant Officer (SMWO); the insignia is a pair of crossed crusader swords worn below their rank insignia.

MWOs generally mess and billet with other Warrant Officers and with Sergeants, and their Naval equivalents, Chief Petty Officers and Petty Officers. Their mess on military bases or installations are generally named the "Warrant Officers and Sergeants Mess".

MWO Tamalingam, the Parade Sergeant Major for National Day Parade, 2006

Master Warrant Officer is a Warrant Officer rank in the Singapore Armed Forces.

Master Warrant Officers often hold senior leadership roles. The School Sergeant Major of Officer Cadet School is a Master Warrant Officer. He is in charge of the discipline of more than 800 officer cadets, in addition to the Specialists and more junior Warrant Officers there.