Major (O-4)
Major, pay grade O-4, US Air Force. The insignia is a gold oak leaf.
Easily confused with
How to read it
Major is the first field grade rank (O-4 to O-6), above Captain (O-3) and below lieutenant colonel, whose oak leaf is silver. The abbreviation is Maj, and the Navy’s equivalent grade is lieutenant commander. Worn on the shoulder, the leaf’s stem points away from the collar (DAFI 36-2903).
Also searched as: air force major, Maj.
Ranks and insignia as the Department of the Air Force’s own instructions and pages set them out. Pay grades are the Department of Defense’s.
Gold leaf or silver leaf?
The two leaves differ only in metal: gold for major, silver for lieutenant colonel. On the OCP camouflage uniform, major’s leaf is spice brown and lieutenant colonel’s is black.
Clouds and darts on the cap
From major up, the visor of the Air Force service cap carries clouds and darts: two on each side for field grade officers, three for general officers. Company grade officers’ visors are plain (the Airman handbook).
More air Force ranks
Browse symbols drawn with curves and waves.
Sources
- U.S. Military Rank Insignia, Resources: U.S. Military Rank Insignia (enlisted and officer insignia by paygrade), U.S. Department of Defense (defense.gov), Officer insignia table, Air Force; officer introduction
- 37 U.S.C. 201, Pay grades: assignment to; general rules, United States Code, 2023 edition, Title 37, § 201, U.S. Government Publishing Office, § 201(a)(1) table
- 10 U.S.C. 741, Rank: commissioned officers of the armed forces, United States Code, 2024 edition, Title 10, § 741, U.S. Government Publishing Office, § 741(a) and its table
- Insignia, Rank, Major, United States Air Force, National Air and Space Museum, object A19951084000, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Physical Description
- Insignia, Rank, Lieutenant Colonel, United States Air Force, National Air and Space Museum, object A19951080000, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Physical Description
- DAFI 36-2903, Dress and Personal Appearance of Air Force and Space Force Personnel, DAFI 36-2903, 29 February 2024, with guidance changes, Department of the Air Force, §4.5.1.1.4; §5.1.3
- AFH 1, Airman, Air Force Handbook 1, Airman, 15 February 2025, Department of the Air Force, Service Cap Rank Indicators and Insignia
Last reviewed September 29, 2026 by Rory Hansen. How we research