Chief master sergeant of the Air Force (E-9)

How to read it

The chevron has eight stripes, five below and three above like a chief master sergeant’s, with a laurel wreath around the star in the lower blue field and the Great Seal of the United States and two stars in the upper field (AFI 36-2109). The Enlisted Force Structure calls the post both a distinctive rank and a duty position, and the CMSAF represents all enlisted Airmen before Congress, government leaders and the American public. Special basic and retired pay rates for the post are set by law.

Also searched as: CMSAF.

How the insignia changed

The post’s first insignia, adopted on 3 March 1967, was a chief master sergeant’s chevron with a wreath around the star; Paul W. Airey was the first to wear it, in April 1967. On 1 November 2004 the Great Seal and two stars were added in the upper field, and the wreath stayed, to keep the legacy of the stripe worn by the first 14 chiefs to hold the post.

Command chief or CMSAF?

A command chief master sergeant’s chevron has a single silver star in the upper field; the CMSAF’s has the seal and two stars. The Army’s top enlisted insignia uses the seal too: the Air Force noted in 2004 that the Sergeant Major of the Army’s insignia contains it.