Military ranks of Bolivia

The Armed Forces of Bolivia has four main branches: Army, Navy, Air Force and the National Police Force. Each of the four branches has a similar structure,^[1] each having four pay grades: non-commissioned officers, senior non-commissioned officers, commissioned officers and general staff. However, the SNCO roles vary depending on the branch; some of these hold specialisations.

Bolivian Military Flag

Army

The Army trains all its personnel in the following:

• Army NCO School, Sucre
• Military College of Bolivia, La Paz

Officer ranks

Rank group	General / flag officers										Senior officers						Junior officers								Officer cadet
Parade dress
Combat uniform
Bolivian Army^[2] v t e
			General de ejército		General de división		General de brigada				Coronel		Teniente coronel		Mayor		Captáin		Teniente			Subteniente

Enlisted ranks

Rank group	Senior NCOs																						Junior NCOs						Enlisted
Parade dress
Combat uniform
Bolivian Army^[3] v t e
	Sub-oficial maestre			Sub-oficial mayor			Sub-oficial 1°		Sub-oficial 2°		Sub-oficial inicial						Sargento 1°						Sargento 2°				Sargento inicial°		Cabo			Dragoneante			Soldado raso

Navy

Despite being a landlocked country, Bolivia has a large quantity of rivers and lakes which the majority of their naval operations take place on, one example of this is Lake Titicaca,^[4] which is shared between Bolivia and Peru.

The Navy, unlike the other three branches, has different specialisations for the NCOs and SNCOs once they reach the rank of 'seaman'. Once a specialisation has been achieved, the sailors' insignia will be adjusted slightly, to make his/her profession more visible. Those corps are as follows:

• Machinist Corps
• Medical Corps
• Divers Corps
• Logistics Corps
• Quartermasters Corps
• Signals Corps

Insignia
Paygrade	NCO	SNCO	Both	Both	Both	Both	Both
Corps	Machinist		Medical	Divers	Logistics	Quartermasters	Signals

Any rank between Seaman and Master Chief Petty Officer can have a specialisation as part of their regular rank insignia, the only corps where the insignia varies is within the Machinist Corps, where both NCO and SNCO have a different insignia, this also helps determine their qualifications and what they are responsible for.

The most Senior Non-Commissioned Officer, Fleet Master Chief Petty Officer, holds no specific specialisation. The SNCO would have been a specialist at a lower rank. This sailor would also be the overseer of each of the Corps, ensuring that this branch's members are fully trained and equipped.

Officer ranks

Rank group	General / flag officers										Senior officers						Junior officers								Officer cadet
Bolivian Naval Force^[5] v t e
			Almirante		Vicealmirante		Contraalmirante				Capitán de navío		Capitán de fragata		Capitán de corbeta		Teniente de navío		Teniente de fragata			Alférez			Cadete

Enlisted ranks

Rank group	Senior NCOs																						Junior NCOs						Enlisted
Bolivian Naval Force^[6] v t e																																			No insignia
	Sub-oficial maestre		Sub-oficial mayor		Sub-oficial primero		Sub-oficial segundo		Sub-oficial inicial		Sargento primero						Sargento segundo						Sargento inicial				Cabo conscripto		Marinero de primero						Marinero de segunda

Air Force

Officer ranks

Rank group	General / flag officers										Senior officers						Junior officers								Officer cadet
Bolivian Air Force^[7] v t e
			General de fuerza aeréa		General de división aeréa		General de brigada aeréa				Coronel aviador		Teniente coronel aviador		Mayor aviador		Captáin aviador		Teniente aviador			Subteniente aviador			Cadete

Enlisted ranks

Rank group	Senior NCOs																						Junior NCOs						Enlisted
Bolivian Air Force^[8] v t e
	Sub-oficial maestre		Sub-oficial mayor		Sub-oficial primero		Sub-oficial segundo		Sub-oficial inicial		Sergento primero						Sargento segundo						Sargento inicial				Cabo				Dragoneante		Soldado raso

Honorary ranks

In the Armed Forces, the title Marshal is a military distinction granted to generals for exceptional achievements and it is used to denote a senior military leader. Unlike other military titles named "marshal", it is not a military rank. Six individuals in the history of Bolivia have been assigned the rank: Antonio José de Sucre, Marshal of Ayacucho; Andrés de Santa Cruz, Marshal of Zepita; Otto Philipp Braun, Marshal of Montenegro; José Ballivián, Marshal of Ingavi; Bernardino Bilbao Rioja, Marshal of Kilometer 7 ;^[9] and Juana Azurduy de Padilla, Marshal of the Greath Fatherland (posthumous).^[10]

Historical ranks

The ranks were introduced in 1968, based on design by the Central American Defense Council (Spanish: Consejo de Defensa Centroamericano; CONDECO).^[11]

Officers

Rank group	General / flag officers										Senior officers						Junior officers								Officer cadet
Bolivian Army (1968–2019)^[12]
			General de ejercito		General de división		General de brigada				Coronel		Teniente coronel		Mayor		Captáin		Teniente			Subteniente
Bolivian Naval Force (1968–2019)^[12]
			Almirante		Vicealmirante		Contraalmirante				Capitán de navío		Capitán de fragata		Capitán de corbeta		Teniente de navio		Teniente de fragata		Teniente de corbeta		Alférez
Bolivian Air Force (1968–2019)^[12]
			General de fuerza aeréa		General de división aeréa		General de brigada aeréa				Coronel aviador		Teniente coronel aviador		Mayor aviador		Captáin aviador		Teniente aviador			Subteniente aviador

Enlisted

Rank group	Senior NCOs																						Junior NCOs						Enlisted
Bolivian Army (1968–2019)^[13]																													No insignia						No insignia
	Sub-oficial maestre			Sub-oficial mayor			Sub-oficial primero		Sub-oficial segundo		Sub-oficial inicial						Sargento primero						Sargento segundo				Cabo		Dragoneante						Soldado
Bolivian Naval Force (1968–2019)^[13]
	Sub-oficial maestre			Sub-oficial mayor			Sub-oficial primero		Sub-oficial segundo		Sub-oficial inicial						Sargento primero						Sargento segundo				Cabo		Marinero de primero						Marinero de segunda
Bolivian Air Force (1968–2019)^[13]																																			No insignia
	Sub-oficial maestre			Sub-oficial mayor			Sub-oficial primero		Sub-oficial segundo		Sub-oficial inicial						Sargento primero						Sargento segundo				Cabo		Dragoneante						Soldado

References

1. Pike, John. "Bolivian Uniforms and Insignia". www.globalsecurity.org. Retrieved 2016-08-20.
2. Ministry of Defense (Bolivia) [@mindefbolivia] (December 10, 2019). "Conoce la jerarquía de los grados del #Ejército" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 May 2021 – via Twitter.
3. Ministry of Defense (Bolivia) [@mindefbolivia] (December 16, 2019). "Hoy te invitamos a conocer la jerarquía de los grados de Suboficiales, Sargentos y Tropa" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 May 2021 – via Twitter.
4. "Bolivia04-05 - Picture Pages". www.steiner7.com. Retrieved 2016-08-20.
5. Ministry of Defense (Bolivia) [@mindefbolivia] (January 9, 2020). "Conoce la jerarquía de los grados de la #ArmadaBoliviana" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 May 2021 – via Twitter.
6. Ministry of Defense (Bolivia) [@mindefbolivia] (January 16, 2020). "Hoy les invitamos a conocer la jerarquía de los grados de Suboficiales, Sargentos y Tropa de la #ArmadaBoliviana" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 May 2021 – via Twitter.
7. Ministry of Defense (Bolivia) [@mindefbolivia] (December 18, 2019). "Conoce la jerarquía de los grados de la #FuerzaAéreaBoliviana" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 May 2021 – via Twitter.
8. Ministry of Defense (Bolivia) [@mindefbolivia] (January 6, 2020). "Hoy te invitamos a conocer la jerarquía de los grados de Suboficiales, Sargentos y Tropa" (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 May 2021 – via Twitter.
9. Bolivia, Opinión (2019-09-14). "Mariscales de Bolivia:museo resguarda su historia". Opinión Bolivia (in Spanish). Retrieved 2023-12-15.
10. "Bolivia tiene su primera Mariscala - ANF Agencia de Noticias Fides Bolivia". www.noticiasfides.com. Retrieved 2023-12-15.
11. Gamarra 1991, pp. 239–240.
12. Gamarra 1991, p. 242.
13. Gamarra 1991, p. 244.

• "6: Del Grado y Ascenso". LEY Nº 1405 DE 30 DE DICIEMBRE DE 1992 JAIME PAZ ZAMORA PRESIDENTE CONSTITUCIONAL DE LA REPÚBLICA (in Spanish). p. 31.
• Gamarra, Eduardo A. (1991). "National Security". In Hudson, Rex A.; Hanratty, Dennis Michael (eds.). Bolivia: a country study. Area Handbook (3rd ed.). Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. LCCN 90026427. Retrieved 20 December 2021.