Fregattenkapitän

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title: "Fregattenkapitän" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["naval-ranks-of-germany"] description: "Germanic military rank in the navy" topic_path: "geography/germany" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fregattenkapitän" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Germanic military rank in the navy ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox military rank"]

Field	Value
name	Fregattenkapitän
image	[[File:MDS 52 Fregattenkapitän Trp.svg
country	Germany
service branch
abbreviation	FKpt
NATO rank	OF-4
formation	?
rank group	Senior officer
higher rank	Kapitän zur See
lower rank	Korvettenkapitän
equivalents	Oberstleutnant
::

::callout[type=note] the Germanic "Fregattenkapitän" ::

Fregattenkapitän () is the middle ranking senior officer in a number of Germanic-speaking navies.

Austro-Hungary

Belgium

Germany

| name = Fregattenkapitän | native_name = | image = [[File:MDS 52 Fregattenkapitän Trp.svg | image_size = | alt = | caption = | image2 = | image_size2 = | alt2 = | caption2 = | image3 = | image_size3 = | alt3 = | caption3 = | country = Germany | service branch = | abbreviation = FKpt | rank insignia = | rank = | NATO rank = OF-4 | Non-NATO rank = | formation = ? | abolished = | rank group = Senior officer | higher rank = Kapitän zur See | lower rank = Korvettenkapitän | equivalents = Oberstleutnant | history = ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Fregattenkapitaen_Mandau,_Joint_Base_Myer-Henderson_Hall,Virginia-German_Armed_Forces_Proficiency_Badge(GAFPB)_Assessment,,_Aug.29-30,2023(53153379149)(cropped).jpg" caption="A Fregattenkapitän at a shooting exercise"] ::

Fregattenkapitän, short: FKpt / in lists: FK, is the middle Senior officer rank () in the German Navy.

It is the equivalent of frigate captain or commander in other navies, and the equivalent of Oberstleutnant in the German army and air force.

Address

In line with ZDv 10/8, the official manner of formally addressing military personnel holding the rank of Fregattenkapitän (OF-4) is "Herr/Frau Fregattenkapitän". However, following German naval tradition the "Fregattenkapitän" is usually addressed as "Herr/Frau Kapitän" or in seamen's language as "Herr/Frau Kap'tän".

Rank Insignia and Rating

Rank insignia Fregattenkapitän, worn on the sleeves and shoulders, are one five-pointed star above three stripes and a half stripe between stripe two and one (or rings on sleeves; without the star when rank loops are worn).

The rank is rated OF-4 in NATO, and is equivalent to Oberstleutnant in Heer, and Luftwaffe. It is domiciled at the A14 and A15 pay scale of the Federal Ministry of Defence and is senior to the rank of Korvettenkapitän (NATO OF-3 - Commander Junior Grade).

Whereas the equivalent ranks (with the same insignia stripes) in Belgium and Denmark are NATO-translated as Commander Senior Grade, the German equivalent is simply termed Commander.

History

::data[format=table] | Insignia || Shoulder || Sleeve || Higher/lower rank | |---| | [[File:blank.svg|50px]] | | [[File:Kriegsmarine epaulette Fregattenkapitän vertical.svg|50px]] | | [[File:Kriegsmarine epaulette Fregattenkapitän vertical.svg|50px]] | | [[File:OF-4 Fregattenkapitän VM.png|50px]] | | [[File:MDS 52 Fregattenkapitän Trp.svg|50px]] | ::

References

References

1. [http://www.marine.de/portal/a/marine/kcxml/04_Sj9SPykssy0xPLMnMz0vM0Y_QjzKLNzKODwz1AcmB2d5mIfqRcNGglFR9X4_83FR9b_0A_YLciHJHR0VFACtBRwI!/delta/base64xml/L2dJQSEvUUt3QS80SVVFLzZfMjNfUVVM?yw_contentURL=%2F01DB070000000001%2FW26W7J52984INFODE%2Fcontent.jsp official rank table of the German Navy ]
2. "STANAG 2116 NATO Codes for Grades of Military Personnel".
3. "STANAG 2116 NATO Codes for Grades of Military Personnel".
4. "STANAG 2116 Details". NATO.
5. "Dienstgrade und Uniformen".
6. (1925). "Die Uniformen des Reichsheeres und der Reichsmarine nebst amtlichen Uniformtafeln; mit Genehmigung des Reichswehrministeriums". Verlag "Offene Worte, ".
7. (2001). "The Armed Forces of World War II: Uniforms, Insignia & Organisation". Silverdale books.
8. (1988). "East Germany: a country study". Library of Congress.
9. "Dienstgradabzeichen Marine". Bundeswehr.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::