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Technician third grade

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Technician third grade
The T/3 insignia of a letter "T" below three chevrons and above an arc of one bar.
The T/3 insignia of a letter "T" below three chevrons and above an arc of one bar.
CountryUnited States
Service branchUnited States Army
AbbreviationT/3 or Tec 3
Rank groupEnlisted
Pay grade3rd Grade
Formation26 January 1942
Abolished1 August 1948
Next higher rankTechnical sergeant
Next lower rankTechnician fourth grade
Equivalent ranksStaff sergeant

Technician third grade (abbreviated T/3 or Tec 3) was a rank of the United States Army from 1942 to 1948.[1] The rank was created to recognize enlisted soldiers with special technical skills, but who were not trained as combat leaders.[2]

History

The rank of technician third grade was authorized on 26 January 1942, per Executive Order No. 9041,[3] and was adopted by the Army effective 1 June 1942.[2] The rank insignia was finalized on 4 September 1942, adding a block "T" between the existing three chevrons and one arc.[1][4] Those who held the rank of T/3 were addressed as "staff sergeant," the same as the corresponding non-commissioned officer at the same pay grade.[5]

Technicians represented a wide variety of soldiers with specialized technical skills, including medics, radio operators and repairmen, mail clerks, mechanics, cooks, and tank drivers.[6][7][8][9] Initially, the three technician ranks held non-commissioned officer status.[2] However, as technicians received no formal NCO leadership training or qualifications, their entrance into the NCO ranks resulted in organizational confusion, dilution of the NCO corps, and lowered morale among senior NCOs.[5] Consequently, the Army revoked NCO status from technicians in November 1943.[5]

The technician ranks were removed from the U.S. Army rank system on 1 August 1948,[2] though the concept was revived with the specialist ranks in 1955.[1][10]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "History of Enlisted Ranks". The Institute of Heraldry. United States Department of the Army. Archived from the original on 26 August 2017. Retrieved 5 July 2022. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 31 December 2006 suggested (help)
  2. ^ a b c d Hogan, David W.; Fisch, Arnold G.; Wright, Robert K., eds. (2009). The Story of the Noncommissoned Officer Corps. Washington, D.C.: United States Army Center of Military History. pp. 295–296. ISBN 978-0-16-067869-1.
  3. ^ Decisions of the Comptroller General of the United States. Vol. 23. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1944. p. 330.
  4. ^ Compilation of War Department General Orders, Bulletins, and Circulars. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. 1942. p. 184. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |agency= ignored (help)
  5. ^ a b c Fisher, Ernest F. (1994). Guardians of the Republic: A History of the Noncommissoned Officer Corps of the U.S. Army. New York: Ballantine. p. 260. ISBN 0-449-90923-9.
  6. ^ "U.S. Army Rifle Company (1942-43)". Battle Order. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  7. ^ "U.S. Army Medium Tank Company (1943-45)". Battle Order. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  8. ^ "Medical Detachment, U.S. Army Armored Inf Bn (1943-45)". Battle Order. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  9. ^ "U.S. Army Parachute Rifle Company (1941-1948)". Battle Order. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  10. ^ Elder, Daniel K. "Short History of the Specialist Rank" (PDF). The NCO Historical Society. Retrieved 5 July 2022.