Master chief petty officer

Master chief petty officer
Country United States
Service branch
AbbreviationMCPO
RankEnlisted rank
Petty officer
Next higher rankMaster Chief Petty Officer of the Navy
Next lower rank Senior Chief Petty Officer

Master chief petty officer (MCPO) is an enlisted rank in some navies. It is the ninth (just below the rank of MCPON) enlisted rank (with pay grade E-9) in the United States Navy and United States Coast Guard, just above Senior Chief Petty Officer (SCPO). Master chief petty officers are addressed as "Master Chief (last name)" in colloquial contexts. They constitute the top 1.25% of the enlisted members of the maritime forces.[1]

Prior to 1958, chief petty officer was the highest enlisted rate in both the U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard. This changed on 20 May 1958 with the passage of Public Law 85-422, the Military Pay Act of 1958, which established two new enlisted pay grades of E-8 and E-9 in all five branches of the U.S. Armed Forces. In the Navy and Coast Guard, the new E-8 pay grade was titled Senior Chief Petty Officer and the new E-9 pay grade as Master Chief Petty Officer, with the first selectees promoting to their respective grades in 1959 and 1960.[2]

  1. ^ "10 U.S.C. § 517". law.cornell.edu. Retrieved 2013-07-09.
  2. ^ Walsh, Brian (June 6, 2014). "NNS140605-24. Nineteen RTC CPOs Earn Senior Chief Stars". Navy News Service, US Navy. Archived from the original on 2016-06-01. Retrieved 30 April 2016. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.