Third officer is a lesser used
civil aviation
Civil aviation is one of two major categories of flying, representing all non-military and non-state aviation, both private and commercial. Most of the countries in the world are members of the International Civil Aviation Organization and work ...
rank. It was primarily used by
Pan Am
Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and commonly known as Pan Am, was an American airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States ...
, particularly on its
Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Clippers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Pacific Division in the league's Western Conference. The Clipper ...
flying boats during the infancy of extended range airline routes. The third officer would serve as a
relief pilot and
aircrew member, and could move between pilot,
co-pilot, radio officer, and
flight engineer positions to provide a rest period for the primary crews. Third officers in modern civil aviation are often not formally titled as such. Rather, these relief pilots take on a junior first officer rank or in some cases a
second officer rank.
Notable third officers
*
Gene Roddenberry (Pan Am)
See also
*
Pilot in command
The pilot in command (PIC) of an aircraft is the person aboard the aircraft who is ultimately responsible for its operation and safety during flight. This would be the captain in a typical two- or three- pilot aircrew, or "pilot" if there is on ...
*
Second Officer
*
Third mate
References
Citations
Bibliography
* Harris, Tom
How Airline Crews Work HowStuffWorks.com website, June 14, 2001. Retrieved September 2, 2014.
* Smith, Patrick
Patrick Smith's Ask The Pilot: When a Pilot Dies in Flight AskThePilot.com website, 2013, which in turn cites:
*Smith, Patrick
Cockpit Confidential: Everything You Need to Know About Air Travel: Questions, Answers, and Reflections Sourcebooks, 2013, , .
''Flying the World in Clipper Ships''at flightjournal.com, 2007.
{{commercial air travel, state=collapsed
Occupations in aviation