The President steps off Air Force One, and he gets a salute from the Air Force guys standing at the bottom of the stairs. Fine, he’s the Commander-in-Chief.
But does the Vice President get a salute when he steps into your line of sight? He’s not technically in the chain of command.
Does the Secretary of Defense get a salute? He IS in the chain of command, as I understand it (as part of the National Command Authority).
What about a U.S. Senator or Member of Congress?
Or how about a generic Cabinet secretary? Would it be any different for a subcabinet official in the Department of the Army (if you’re in the Army), or the Department of the Navy (if you’re in the Navy or Marines), etc.?
If the answers are written down anywhere, a cite would be much appreciated. Thanks.
My father’s old Bluejacket’s Manual (Korean War era) has this to say in the “Saluting Civilians and Officers in Civilian Dress” section:
"Since the salute is the military form of greeting and is equivalent to tipping one’s hat, and since naval personnel do not uncover when out of doors, it follows that you use the same salute when recognizing officers in civilian dress or when greeting civilian acquaintances and friends.
The same holds for meeting women. You do not tip your hat, but acknowledge their greeting with the hand salute. Keep your uniform cap on even when ladies are present.
When you are in civilian dress, you naturally follow the rules of civilian courtesy and tip your hat to other gentlemen, officers or not, and to women. While in the presence of women, you remove your hat unless you are walking some distance with them."
Also, in the section just before, the manual recommends saluting more than less, particularly when one is unsure.
I’m a relatively junior captain, and it’s been a long time since I was in ROTC and had to learn such things. I know that we salute the President, regardless, and I remember being told that the Vice-President was also on the list, but according to Army Regulation 600-25 (PDF) that’s not the case – the President is the only American civilian who gets a salute. Because other nations have different customs, there is a list of generals (ranking Army generals in Korea, Europe, etc.) who may add to the list foreign dignitaries, as appropriate.
State governors get salutes from Guardsmen since they are commanders-in-chief of their state’s National Guard. If I am in uniform and recognize LCDR John McCain, USN(ret), then I would salute him as I would salute any senior officer out of uniform – as a voluntary courtesy on my part. Any military member who has received the Medal of Honor gets precedence in a salute from me; that is, even if he is enlisted, I would initiate the salute (this is a courtesy, and is not regulated).
I took off my uniform 55 years ago and my memory tells me that any service man ,or civilian, who carries the emblem inidicating the Medal of Honor rates a full salute from any service man---------- from 5 star flag officers to slickarm grunts…
I am remembering back to 1985 Boot Camp:
The President and Sect of Defense were the only civilians in our chain of command and the only ones where a salute was “required”.
If the VP or Senator was a retired officer it would be a fitting courtesy to salute. If the civilian was a known hero or Bob Hope (yes he was specifically mentioned) it would be a fitting courtesy to salute.
Here it would be:- members of the Royal Family, Ministers of the Crown, superior officers in civilian dress. And if a funeral cortége passes by, you should salute the bier.
Canadian regulations tells us “Honours and salutes are accorded to the following dignitaries:”
[ul][li]Heads of state; [/li][li]The Queen’s representatives in Canada; [/li][li]Members of reigning royal families; [/li][li]Heads of governments; [/li][li]Ambassadors and high commissioners accredited to Canada; and [/li]Ministers of National Defence.[/ul]
[HUGE hijack]
Wow. At risk of sounding corny, I must say I think we’re extremely fortunate to have you and David Simmons here on the dope - first hand witnesses of such a significant period of global history. Do we have any other WWII vets on the boards?
And somewhat on topic, I salute the two of you for your service.