The position for wearing the badges of warrant officer rank changed from the lower forearm to the mid-upper arm at the end of 1996. Photo llustration by Pte John Wellfare, Army newspaper

The three warrants

By Pte John Wellfare
WARRANT Officers bridge the gap between the enlisted and the commissioned ranks, an age-old concept of keeping the military rank system working.

In 1797, it was decided to post the senior soldier of units to the headquarters, thus the appointment of sergeant major was officially incorporated into the British Army and later passed to the Australian Army.

RSM-A WO Brian Boughton said it was important people understood the Army's three warrant ranks and their individual roles.

"Warrant officers are appointed by warrant, so they're not NCOs. The Chief of the Army personally signs each individual warrant, which is his way of ensuring warrant officers understand the very important role and responsibilities they have been charged with," he said.

"There are many people who rise to the rank of warrant officer who aren't RSMs and BSMs/CSMs and so on, warrant officers is a generic term for those who are the senior soldiers.

"Warrant officers are, if they're doing the job right, the best supporting actor, not the best actor, and they should support the commander by passing information from the soldiers and soldiers' views and the pulse of the organisation to the commander.

"It's that link between the officer corps and the soldiers, that's the vital link in the structure of the Army so that the soldiers' views can be put upwards, but equally the message from the top can be given to the soldiers and the NCOs."

WO2
In 1881 sergeant majors were given warrant rank, which was designated by a crown worn on the cuff. When the rank of WO1 was introduced, the original warrant officer rank was changed to WO2. BSM, CSM and SSM are all appointments held by a WO2.

WO1
Introduced in 1917 and designated by the Royal Coat-of-Arms, WO1 was established as a second warrant officer rank. In the Australian Army, the badge of rank was changed from the Royal Coat-of-Arms to the Australian Coat-of-Arms in 1976.

WO
Introduced in 1991 as a separate rank worn only by the RSM-A, Warrant Officer is denoted by the Australian Coat of Arms, surrounded by a wreath. RSM-A is the senior enlisted soldier in the Army and is addressed as "Sir" by all enlisted ranks.

The warrant contains the words in part: "you are, therefore, carefully and diligently to discharge your duty and so to conduct yourself that you ensure respect for lawful authority and uphold the honourable tradition of the rank to which you have been appointed".

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