Second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces . Israel . Since 1951 in the Israel Defense Forces ( סגן - משנה ( סג " מ " segen mishne " ( " sagam " ) has been equivalent to a second lieutenant ( NATO OF - 1 ) . From 1948 - 1951 the corresponding rank was that of a ( סגן ) " segen " , which since 1951 has been equivalent to lieutenant . " Segen mishne " means " junior lieutenant " and " segen " literally translates as " assistant " . Typically it is the rank of a platoon commander . Note that the IDF uses this rank across all three of its services . United Kingdom and Commonwealth . The rank second lieutenant ( abbr : 2LT ; coll : " one - pip " ) was introduced throughout the British Army in 1871 to replace the rank of ensign ( cornet in the cavalry ) , although it had long been used in the Royal Artillery , Royal Engineers , Fusilier and Rifle regiment s . At first the rank bore no distinct insignia . In 1902 a single Bath star ( now commonly referred to as a " pip " ) was introduced ; the ranks of lieutenant and captain had their number of stars increased by one to ( respectively ) two and three . The rank is also used by the Royal Marines . New British Army officers are normally commissioned as second lieutenants at the end of their commissioning course at RMA Sandhurst , and continue with specific training with their units , often with mentoring from senior NCOs . Progression to lieutenant rank usually occurs after about a year . In the Royal Air Force the comparable rank is pilot officer . The Royal Navy has no exact equivalent rank , and a second lieutenant is senior to a Royal Navy midshipman but junior to a sub - lieutenant . The Royal New Zealand Navy – breaking with Royal Navy tradition – uses the ensign grade for this rank equivalent . The Royal Australian Navy also breaks tradition in the sense that it has the equivalent rank of ensign , but it is titled " acting sub lieutenant . " The Canadian Forces adopted the rank with insignia of a single gold ring around the service dress uniform cuff for both army and air personnel upon unification in 1968 . For a time , naval personnel used this rank but reverted to the Royal Canadian Navy rank of acting sub - lieutenant , though the CF green uniform was retained until the mid - 1980s . United States . In the United States , second lieutenant is the normal entry - level rank for most commissioned officers in the Army , Air Force and Marine Corps and is equivalent to the rank of ensign in the Navy and Coast Guard . In the Army and Marine Corps , a second lieutenant typically commands a platoon - size element ( 16 to 44 soldiers or marines ) . In the army , until December 1917 the rank bore no insignia other than a brown sleeve braid on blouses and an officer ' s cap device and hat cord . In December 1917 , a gold bar similar to the silver bar of a first lieutenant was introduced . In the Air Force , depending upon the career field , a second lieutenant ( 2d Lt ) may supervise flights ( of varying sizes ) as a flight commander or deputy flight commander , or may work in a variety of administrative positions at the squadron , group , or wing level . A significant number of Air Force second lieutenants are full - time flight students in training for eventual designation as USAF Pilots , combat systems officer s or air battle managers . Norway . The equivalent rank in Norway ( O - 1 ) is " " fenrik " " , but the function of the rank differs drastically from other armies . Although it is an officer rank , it strongly resembles an NCO - rank in practice . The ranking system in Norway is quite different , while they do not have a professional army , " fenrik " s are usually former experienced sergeants but to become a sergeant one has to go through officer ' s training and education . Though they still fill such roles as squad leaders and platoon sergeants while at the rank of " fenrik " , in some cases " fenrik " s are executive officers . Most " fenrik " s have finished the War Academy as well , and are fully trained officers . This is due to the lack of an NCO - corps in the Norwegian army . Pakistan . Pakistan Army follows British pattern of ranks . A second lieutenant is represented by one metal pip on each shoulder in case of " khaki uniform " and one four quadric printed star on the chest in case of camouflage combat dress . However a second lieutenant in the Pakistan Army is usually promoted to lieutenant 6 months after commissioning . Insignia . The following are a selection of second lieutenant rank insignia , attempting to illustrate the range of variation ( and similarity ) between the insignia . Note that although many air forces use the rank of second lieutenant , in most Commonwealth air forces the equivalent rank of pilot officer is used . Very few navies use the rank " second lieutenant " .