Admiral

The rank and title of Admiral encompasses the highest level of commissioned officer in a navy, referred to as a Flag Officer. An Admiral often commands several vessels, and/or is responsible for an aspect within the navy or a realm of territory. The Admiral maintains a command staff, and may transfer it to wherever they deem most effective, whether it be from an office in an installation one day to the bridge (thenceforth flag bridge) of a prominent warship by the next. By most standards, an Admiral never commanded a warship directly, instead retaining and directing the ship's captain to do so.

There were several derivatives of the Admiral rank, based on seniority and capability. These included Rear Admiral and Vice Admiral beneath, and (in the Galactic Empire) Fleet Admiral and Grand Admiral above. The New Republic's only rank above Admiral was Admiral of the Fleet. Some armed forces never truly conformed to a naval system, and some Generals retained their rank while commanding multiple starships and forces. As such, they were equitible to Admirals.

Imperial Navy
In the Imperial Navy, an admiral normally commanded a systems force, or in certain cases, a specialized task force temporarily constructed to deal with an immediate or long-term objective. Holding the rank of admiral was considered a great accomplishment in the Imperial Navy, as life expectancy of Imperial officers (at least under the leadership of ) was never very high, and the power and authority that came with the rank was highly significant.

An admiral in control of a systems force generally reported to their sector's High Admiral or Moff, and in certain cases to a Fleet Admiral, if that admiral was attached to a Fleet.

An admiral was immediately above a Vice Admiral and immediately below a Fleet Admiral in the Imperial rank structure, and was equivalent to a General in the Imperial Army.

New Republic Starfleet
Under the New Republic, the rank of admiral was one of the most senior ranks in the New Republic Starfleet, second only to Admiral of the Fleet, and was immediately above Vice Admiral. It was immediately above Vice Admiral. An admiral was typically given command of one of the Starfleet's battle groups or served as the head of a department on Starfleet Command.