Question about ranks post-WW2

[ShooterMcGavin]

I was talking to an old friend of mine who said his father enlisted in the U.S. Army at the age of 18 after Pearl Harbor was attacked in 1941. He was assigned to the Corps of Engineers and sent to the European Theater, rising to the rank of Master Sergeant in his unit by 1945, which would make him a senior enlisted man by the age of 22. My question about this has two parts:

 

1.) After the war ended, if an enlisted man like this chose to remain in the U.S. Army, was he able to serve for up to 26 more years as a senior enlisted man, or would his rank be reduced due to the reduction in size of the military in the post war period? It seems like if it was the former, the young man would have an easy ride due to high pay and rank at such an age and with so many years ahead of them.

 

2.) In today's military senior enlisted men with many years of service are a wealth of knowledge and expertise. In the WW2 era and immediately after, due to such rapid promotions in wartime, was this the case? Or were senior enlisted men a dime a dozen and replaceable? It seems like in some movies and written accounts being a Master Sergeant was nothing to really be revered for, as in today's Army. Different culture at the time, or simply less spoken of?

 

Thanks for your input and answers!!!

[Allan H.]

It is really difficult to compare rank structures in WWI to those of the modern military. In WWII, there were only so many NCO positions. If you were a sergeant and were transferred out of a unit, you lost your stripes unless your new unit had a vacancy and the first sergeant and company commander wanted to let you keep your chevrons.

 

In today's army, once you make rank, you keep it unless you are reduced for disciplinary reasons or for failing to finish educational requirements. In WWII, rank was earned for technical knowledge, leadership ability, or for longevity. I knew guys who were advanced to the upper ranks in their units rather quickly in WWII. Before 1945, a soldier could make master sergeant in a year if he was capable. Today, you wouldn't likely see a master sergeant with less than 14 years (which would be considered to be a meteoric rise in rank). One WWII vet that I knew made company first sergeant right out of basic training because he could beat any man in a fight. He used to laugh about taking the stripes off and heading back behind the barracks to dispense justice. He said he had never been beaten in a fight when he was in the army, but that a couple of guys came close. His remedy was to transfer these guys out of the unit before they figured out how to beat him. Although he was a first sergeant for almost all four years that he served in WWII, he came home to the states as a private because he shipped back with a different unit than the one he had served in combat with. He didn't do anything wrong, there was just one 1st Sergeant in the company (duh) and it wasn't his unit that he came back to the states with.

 

Hope this helps.

Allan

[ShooterMcGavin]

I was just curious if the men who reenlisted in the post-war Army (or any of the services) with the top enlisted rank would keep it or be reduced due to the manning levels changing. A 22 year old Navy CPO or Army Master Sergeant would seem to me (someone with no experience) to have it made serving from 1945 to 1971 in those ranks/rates thanks to rapid wartime advancing.