Commander Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service . Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces , particularly in police and law enforcement . Commander as a naval rank . Commander is a rank used in many navies and some air force s but is very rarely used as a rank in armies , but is a common rank in special forces as it refers to a team leader . The title ( originally " master and commander " ) originated in the 18th century to describe naval officers who commanded ships of war too large to be commanded by a Lieutenant but too small to warrant the assignment of a post - captain . In practice , these were usually unrated sloops - of - war of no more than 20 guns . The Royal Navy shortened " master and commander " to " commander " in 1794 ; however , the term " master and commander " remained ( unofficially ) in common parlance for several years . A corresponding rank in some navies is frigate captain . In the 20th and 21st centuries , the rank has been assigned the NATO rank code of OF - 4 . Royal Navy . A commander in the Royal Navy is above the rank of lieutenant - commander , below the rank of captain , and is equivalent in rank to a lieutenant colonel in the army . A commander may command a frigate , destroyer , submarine , aviation squadron or shore installation , or may serve on a staff . Royal Australian Navy . A commander in the Royal Australian Navy ( RAN ) is identical in description to a commander in the British Royal Navy . RAN chaplains who are Division 1 , 2 and 3 ( of 5 divisions ) have the equivalent rank standing of commanders . This means that to officers and NCOs below the rank of commander , major or squadron leader , the chaplain is a commander . To those officers ranked higher than commander , the chaplain is subordinate . Although this equivalency exists , RAN chaplains who are Division 1 , 2 and 3 do not actually wear the rank of commander , and they hold no command privilege . Royal Air Force . Since the British Royal Air Force ' s middle - ranking officers ' designations are modelled after the Royal Navy ' s , the term wing commander is used as a rank and is equivalent to a lieutenant colonel in the army or commander in the navy . The rank is above squadron leader and below group captain . In the now defunct Royal Naval Air Service , which amalgamated with the Royal Flying Corps to form the Royal Air Force in 1918 , pilots held appointments as well as their normal Royal Navy ranks , and wore insignia appropriate to the appointment instead of the rank . Flight commander wore a star above a lieutenant ' s two rank stripes , squadron commander wore two stars above two rank stripes ( less than eight years ' seniority ) or two - and - a - half rank stripes ( over eight years seniority ) , and wing commander wore three rank stripes . The rank stripes had the usual Royal Navy curl , and were surmounted by an eagle . Polish Navy . The corresponding rank in the Polish Navy is " Komandor porucznik " . Commander as a military appointment . British Army . In the British Army , the term " commander " is officially applied to the non - commissioned officer in charge of a section ( section commander ) , vehicle ( vehicle commander ) or gun ( gun commander ) , to the subaltern or captain commanding a platoon ( platoon commander ) , or to the brigadier commanding a brigade ( brigade commander ) . Other officers commanding units are usually referred to as the officer commanding ( OC ) , commanding officer ( CO ) , general officer commanding ( GOC ) , or general officer commanding - in - chief ( GOC - C ) , depending on rank and position , although the term " commander " may be applied to them informally . In the First Aid Nursing Yeomanry commander is a rank equivalent to Major . New Zealand Army . The usage is similar to the United States Army , with the term " commander " usually applying to very senior officers only , typically at divisional level ( major general ) . Spanish Armed Forces and Guardia Civil . In the Spanish Army , the Spanish Air Force and the Marine Infantry , the term commander is the literal translation of " comandante " , the Spanish equivalent of a Commonwealth major . The Guardia Civil shares the Army ranks , and the officer commanding a house - garrison ( usually a NCO or a lieutenant , depending on the size ) is addressed as the " comandante de puesto " ( post commander ) . United States Army . In the United States Army , the term " commander " is officially applied to the commanding officer of army units ; hence , there are company commanders , battalion commanders , brigade commanders , and so forth . At the highest levels of U . S . military command structure , " commander " also refers to what used to be called commander - in - chief , or CINC , until October 24 , 2002 , although the term CINC is still used in casual speech . United States Air Force . In the Air Force , the term " commander " ( abbreviated " CC " in office symbols , i . e . " OG / CC " for " operations group commander " ) is officially applied to the commanding officer of an Air Force unit ; hence , there are flight commanders , squadron commanders , group commanders , wing commanders , and so forth . In rank , a flight commander is typically a lieutanant or captain , a squadron commander is typically a major or lieutenant colonel , a group commander is typically a colonel , and a wing commander is typically a senior colonel or a brigadier general . An " aircraft commander " is also designated for all flights of United States Air Force aircraft . This individual must be a pilot and an officer that has graduated from an formal aircraft commander course and is designated on flight orders by the unit commander for that particular flight . This individual is in command of all military personnel on the aircraft regardless of rank ( even individuals that out - rank the aircraft commander ) . Commander as a non - military rank or title . NASA rank . In NASA spacecraft missions since the beginning of Project Gemini , one crew member on each spacecraft is designated as mission commander . The commander is the captain of the ship , and makes all real - time critical decisions on behalf of the crew and in coordination with the Mission Control Center ( MCC ) . Aviation rank . In aviation the flight captain is also known as the commander . British police rank . Within the British police , commander is a chief officer rank in the two police forces responsible for law enforcement within London , the Metropolitan Police and City of London Police . In both forces , the rank is senior to chief superintendent , in the Metropolitan Police it is junior to Deputy Assistant Commissioner and in the City of London Police it is junior to assistant commissioner . In forces outside of London , the rank equates to assistant chief constable . The Metropolitan Police introduced the rank in 1946 , after they split the rank of deputy assistant commissioner with senior DACs keeping the rank and title with junior ones being regraded as commanders . The Metropolitan Police also had the rank of deputy commander , ranking just below that of commander , between 1946 and 1968 . In addition , officers in charge of policing each of the London ' s boroughs are given the title " borough commander " . However , such officers do not hold the actual rank of commander but instead hold the rank of chief superintendent . An exception to this is the Borough Commander of Westminster , who is actually a commander and not a chief superintendent due to the size , complexity and high - profile nature of the borough . Australian police rank . In Australia , commander is a rank used by the Victorian , Tasmanian , Western Australian , and South Australian police forces . The insignia consists of a crown over three Bath Stars in a triangular formation , equivalent to a brigadier in the army . In all four forces , it is junior to the rank of assistant commissioner , and senior to the rank of chief superintendent , with the exception of Western Australia where it is senior to the rank of superintendent . United States police rank . The Los Angeles Police Department and the San Francisco Police Department are two of the few American police departments which use this rank . A commander in the LAPD is equivalent to an inspector in other US departments ( such as the NYPD ) ; the LAPD rank was originally called inspector as well , but was changed in 1974 to commander after senior officers voiced a preference for the more military - sounding rank . Commander is also utilized by larger Sheriff ' s Departments in the United States . The rank usually falls between Chief Deputy and Captain , which is three positions removed from the sheriff . The Clark County Sheriff ' s Office in southwest Washington state uses the rank of Commander . It falls between the rank of sergeant and the rank of branch chief . The insignia worn by a Clark County Sheriff ' s Office commander is a gold oak leaf , the same insignia worn by a major in the Army , Air Force , or Marine Corps . The Washington , DC , Metropolitan Police Department ( MPDC ) also uses the rank of commander . The rank falls between those of inspector and assistant chief . The Rochester , NY , Police Department ( RPD ) uses the rank of commander . Higher than captain and below deputy chief , the rank is achieved by appointment . Commander is the rank held by the two patrol division heads and other commanders fill various administrative roles . The St Paul Police Department ( MN ) is another police force that uses the rank of commander . In the St Paul Police Department , commanders serve as the chief of the district / unit that they oversee . Many police departments in the midwest ( including the Chicago Police Department ) use the rank of commander . It is equivalent to a lieutenant in most other departments , being above a sergeant and below a deputy chief or captain . Commander is also used as a title in certain circumstances , such as the commander of a squad of detectives , who would usually be of the rank of lieutenant . Canadian police rank . The Montreal police force , Service de police de la Ville de Montréal , uses the rank of commander . Incident Command System . In the Incident Command System the incident commander is in charge of the response to an emergency . The title may pass from person to person as the incident develops . Military and chivalric orders . The title of commander is used in the military orders , such as the Knights Hospitaller , for a member senior to a knight . The title of knight commander is often used to denote an even higher rank . These conventions are also used by most of the continental orders of chivalry . The United Kingdom uses different classifications . In most of the British Orders of Knighthood , the grade of knight ( or dame ) commander is the lowest grade of knighthood , but is above the grade of companion ( which does not carry a knighthood ) . In the Royal Victorian Order and the Order of the British Empire , the grade of commander is senior to the grade of lieutenant or officer respectively , but junior to that of knight or dame commander . In the British Order of St John , a commander ranks below a knight . ( However , knights of the Order of St John are not called " Sir " . ) In common usage . " Commander " may sometimes be used by laymen , usually applied to the person who is accountable for and holds authority over a group or the attempts of a group to achieve a common goal .