A Flying Officer's sleeve/shoulder insignia

Flying Officer (Fg Off in the RAF; FLGOFF in the RAAF; FGOFF in the RNZAF; F/O in the former RCAF and frequently in the RAF) is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force^[1] and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these cases a Flying Officer usually ranks above Pilot Officer and immediately immediately below Flight Lieutenant. Pilot Officer ( Plt Off officially in the RAF PLTOFF in the RAAF and RNZAF P/O in the former RCAF and frequently in the RAF is the lowest commissioned Flight Lieutenant ( Flt Lt in the RAF; FLTLT in the RAAF and RNZAF, F/L in the former RCAF) is a junior

It has a NATO ranking code of OF-1 and is equivalent to a Lieutenant in the British Army or the Royal Marines. The North Atlantic Treaty Lieutenant (abbreviated Lt or Lieut) is a Military, Naval, Paramilitary, Fire service, Emergency medical services The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. The Royal Marines ( RM) are the marine corps and amphibious Infantry of the United Kingdom and along with the Royal Navy However, it is considered superior to the nearest equivalent rank of Sub-Lieutenant in the Royal Navy. Sub-Lieutenant is a military rank It is normally a junior officer rank The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is the oldest of the British armed services (and is therefore known as the Senior Service)

The equivalent rank in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force (WAAF) was Section Officer.

Origins

The term "Flying Officer" was originally used in the Royal Flying Corps as a flying appointment for junior officers, not a rank.

On 1 April 1918, the newly created RAF adopted its officer rank titles from the British Army, with Royal Naval Air Service Sub-Lieutenants (titled Flight Sub-Lieutenants) and Royal Flying Corps Lieutenants becoming Lieutenants in the RAF. Events 527 - Byzantine Emperor Justin I names his nephew Justinian I as co-ruler and successor to the throne Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The British Army is the land armed forces branch of the British Armed Forces. The Royal Naval Air Service or RNAS was the air arm of the Royal Navy until near the end of the First World War, when it merged with the British The Royal Flying Corps (RFC was the over-land air arm of the British military during most of the First World War. However, with the creation of the RAF's own rank structure on 1 August 1919, RAF Lieutenants were re-titled as Flying Officers, a rank which has been in continuous use ever since. Events 30 BC - Octavian (later known as Augustus enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Year 1919 ( MCMXIX) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

Usage

In many cases the rank of flying officer is the first rank an air force officer holds after successful completion of his professional training. Military rank is a system of hierarchical relationships in Armed forces or civil institutions organized along military lines An Admiral of the Fleet or Fleet Admiral is a military Naval officer of the highest rank For other meanings see Field Marshal (disambiguation Field marshal is a military officer rank Marshal of the Air Force may be used as a generic term for a rank in some Air forces which use a similar title with their air force's name inserted as their most senior rank Admiral is the rank, or part of the name of the ranks of the highest Naval officers Air Chief Marshal ( Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a senior Air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force (RAF Vice Admiral is a naval rank equivalent to Lieutenant General in seniority Lieutenant General is a Military rank used in many countries The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the This article is about the air force rank Air marshal (or Sky marshal) is also the term given to federal security agents who travel undercover aboard commercial Rear admiral is a Naval Commissioned officer rank above that of a Commodore and Captain, and below that of a Vice Admiral. Major General or Major-General is a Military rank used in many countries Air Vice-Marshal ( AVM) is an Air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. Commodore is a Military rank used in many navies for officers whose position exceeds that of a navy captain, but is less than This article refers to the military rank For the Doctor Who character known as the Brigadier see Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. Air Commodore ( Air Cdre in the RAF, AIRCDRE in the RNZAF and RAAF, A/C in the former RCAF) is a rank in For information specifically on the Royal Navy rank of captain see Captain (Royal Navy. Colonel ( RP ˈkɜnəl GA ˈkɜrnəl is a Military rank of a Commissioned officer, with corresponding ranks existing in almost every country Group Captain ( Gp Capt in the RAF and Indian Air Force, GPCAPT in the RNZAF and RAAF, G/C in the former Commander is a Military rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service Lieutenant Colonel ( Lieutenant-Colonel in English from the French grade 's spelling is a rank of Commissioned officer in the armies Wing Commander ( Wg Cdr in the RAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, W/C in the former RCAF) is a commissioned Lieutenant Commander ( Lieutenant-Commander in the Royal Navy) is a Commissioned officer rank in many navies Superior Major is a Military rank the use of which varies according to country Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence Lieutenant (abbreviated Lt or Lieut) is a Military, Naval, Paramilitary, Fire service, Emergency medical services Flight Lieutenant ( Flt Lt in the RAF; FLTLT in the RAAF and RNZAF, F/L in the former RCAF) is a junior Sub-Lieutenant is a military rank It is normally a junior officer rank Lieutenant (abbreviated Lt or Lieut) is a Military, Naval, Paramilitary, Fire service, Emergency medical services A Warrant Officer ( WO) is a member of a military organization holding one of a specific group of ranks. A Sergeant Major is a rank or appointment in many militaries around the world A Warrant Officer ( WO) is a member of a military organization holding one of a specific group of ranks. A Petty Officer is a noncommissioned officer or equivalent in many navies. Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries police forces and other uniformed organizations around the world Sergeant is a rank used in some form by most militaries police forces and other uniformed organizations around the world Leading Rating (or Leading Rate) is the most senior of the junior rates in the British Royal Navy. Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and also by some police forces or other uniformed organizations Corporal is a rank in use in some form by most militaries and also by some police forces or other uniformed organizations Seaman as a rate refers to one of the lowest rates in a Navy. A Private is a Soldier of the lowest Military rank (equivalent to NATO Rank Grades OR-1 to OR-3 depending on the force served in Aircraftman ( AC) or Aircraftwoman ( ACW) is the lowest rank in the Royal Air Force and the Air forces of several other Commonwealth A flying officer might serve as a squadron pilot, an adjutant, a security officer or an adminstrative officer and is typically given charge of personnel and/or resources.

The rank title does not imply that an officer in the rank of Flying Officer flies an aircraft. Some Flying Officers are aircrew, but many are ground branch officers. Amongst the ground branches some flying officers have command of flights. A flight is a Military unit in an Air force, Naval air service or Army air corps

Insignia

The rank insignia consists of one narrow blue band on slightly wider black band. Insignia (the plural of Latin insigne: emblem symbol is a Symbol or Token of personal power, Status or Office This is worn on both the lower sleeves of the tunic or on the shoulders of the flying suit or the casual uniform. flight suit is a full body garment worn while flying a powered Aircraft such as Military airplanes and helicopters The rank insignia on the mess uniform is similar to the naval pattern, being one band of gold running around each cuff but without the Royal Navy's loop.

Other air forces

The rank of Flying Officer is also used in a number of the air forces in the Commonwealth, including the Bangladesh Air Force, Indian Air Force (IAF), Pakistan Air Force (PAF), Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). The Bangladesh Air Force (বাংলােদশ িবমান বািহনী Bangladesh Biman Bahini in Bangla) is the tactical and strategic air branch The Indian Air Force (Devanāgarī भारतीय वायु सेना IAST Bhartiya Vāyu Senā is the air arm of the Armed Forces of India and has the Pakistan Air Force ( Urdu: پاک فضائیہ, Pak Faza'ya) ( PAF) is the Aviation branch of the Pakistan armed forces The Royal Australian Air Force ( RAAF) is the Air Force branch of the Australian Defence Force. The Royal New Zealand Air Force ( RNZAF) is the air arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) used the rank until unification of the three armed services into the Canadian Forces in 1968 and army-type ranks were adopted. The Canadian Forces (CF ( French: Forces canadiennes) are the unified Armed forces of Canada, governed by the National Defence RCAF personnel holding this rank then switched to the rank of Lieutenant. Lieutenant (abbreviated Lt or Lieut) is a Military, Naval, Paramilitary, Fire service, Emergency medical services

The rank of Warrant Flying Officer was also used by the air service of the Imperial Japanese military. The Empire of Japan ( {{unicode|Kyūjitai}}: ja 大日本帝國 Shinjitai: ja 大日本帝国 pronounced Dai Nippon Teikoku

See also

• RAF officer ranks
• Comparative military ranks

References