Originally Posted by
icarusKiD
I've been flying to areas with a large military presence lately so if I interact with someone in uniform (domestic USA for me) I generally address them by their rank shown. Usually it's just excuse me "lieutenant" or the friendly good morning.
I don't want to be disrespectful so is this acceptable as a civilian to address someone by rank? Anyone in uniform care if people address you by rank?
I'm not in the armed forces, but as a civilian who has frequently lived and worked around military officers my experience is that if a soldier is in uniform and you know how to read their rank correctly, it is always polite to address them by rank. Just don't go overboard with formality.