Although there is no official rank of Vice Admiral in the United States Merchant Marine, we offer the United States Maritime Service Vice Admiral sleeve-stripe insignia set in both gold and silver lace because of the close link between the two services, as well as the fact that companies that make up the Merchant Marine are free to name their own ranks as they please because they are not government-owned.
Established by law to utilize Coast Guard ranks and insignia, the Maritime Service rank of Vice Admiral is a single two-inch lace on both sleeves surmounted by two 1/2-inch stripes, with the larger stripe two inches from the end of the sleeve and 1/4-inch spacing between adjacent stripes.
Although the position of Superintendent of the United States Merchant Marine Academy—highest in the service—has often been held by two-star Rear Admirals, it has also been held by three-star Vice Admirals. The most recent example is Vice Admiral Joseph D. Stewart, who held the two-star rank of Major General in the United States Marine Corps before being appointed to Superintendent of the USMMA in 1998 and promoted to the rank of Vice Admiral. Stewart helmed the Academy for a decade before retiring in 2008.