АҚШ Әскеріндегі генерал-лейтенант шені

Military rank of the United States
a United States military rank

In the United States Armed Forces, a lieutenant general is a three star general officer in the United States Army, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Space Force. A lieutenant general ranks above a major general
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The United States Code explicitly limits the total number of generals that may be concurrently active to 231 for the Army, 62 for the Marine Corps, and 198 for the Air Force. For the Army and Air Force, no more than about 25% of the service's active duty general officers may have more than two stars. Some of these slots can be reserved by statute. Officers serving in certain intelligence positions are not counted against either limit, including the Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. The President may also add three star slots to one service if they are offset by removing an equivalent number from other services.

The three star grade goes hand in hand with the position of office to which it is linked, so the rank is temporary. Officers may only achieve three star grade if they are appointed to positions that require the officer to hold such a rank. Their rank expires with the expiration of their term of office, which is usually set by statute. Otherwise, all general officers must retire the month after their 64th birthday. However, the Secretary of Defense can defer a three star officer's retirement until the officer's 66th birthday and the president can defer it until the officer's 68th birthday. General officers typically retire well in advance of the statutory age and service limits, so as not to impede the upward career mobility of their juniors. Since there is a finite number of three star slots available to each service, typically one officer must leave office before another can be promoted. Maintaining a three star rank is a game of musical chairs; once an officer vacates a position bearing that rank, they have 60 days to be appointed or reappointed to a position of equal or higher importance or involuntarily retire. On February 28, 1855, President Franklin Pierce nominated Winfield Scott to be breveted lieutenant general, effective March 29, 1847, as an honor for his capture Veracruz and San Juan de Ulúa, during the Mexican–American War. The grade was re established by a vote in House of Representatives on 1 February 1864, with 96 for and 41 against. On June 1, 1888, the rank was merged with General of the Army and discontinued.

An Army or Marine Corps lieutenant general typically commands a corps sized unit (20,000 to 45,000 soldiers for an Army Corps and a similar number of Marines for a Marine Expeditionary Force), while an Air Force lieutenant general commands a large Numbered Air Force consisting of several wings or a smaller USAF Major Command (MAJCOM) such as the Air Force Special Operations Command or the Air Force Reserve Command. Additionally, lieutenant generals of all services serve as high level staff officers at various major command headquarters and The Pentagon, often as the heads of their departments. In 2014 five women were serving as lieutenant generals in the US Army. After the close of the Second World War, generals were normally promoted permanently to brigadier general and major general, with temporary promotions to lieutenant general and general to fill senior positions as needed. In theory, a general vacates their three or four star rank at the termination of their assignment unless placed in an equal ranking billet. Douglas MacArthur, who served as a four star general and Army Chief of Staff, reverted to two stars after his CoS tour ended but chose to stay on active duty in the United States Army. The practice of using lieutenant general and general grades as a temporary rank continues, with the President and the Department of Defense creating temporary or indefinite three and four star assignments, with a fixed term of office, with the approval of the Senate. Even with the temporary status, such officers are also almost always granted permanent retirement in the last grade they held with the satisfactory completion of at least two or three years in grade.