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The term used in the
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
(RAF) to refer to all ranks below
commissioned officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer (NCO), or a warrant officer. However, absent ...
level is other ranks (ORs). It includes
warrant officers Warrant officer (WO) is a Military rank, rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ...
(WOs),
non-commissioned officer A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is an enlisted rank, enlisted leader, petty officer, or in some cases warrant officer, who does not hold a Commission (document), commission. Non-commissioned officers usually earn their position of authority b ...
s (NCOs) and airmen. __TOC__


Ranks


Origins

Upon the formation of the Royal Air Force on 1 April 1918, rank titles and badges for ORs were adopted from the
British Army The British Army is the principal Army, land warfare force of the United Kingdom. the British Army comprises 73,847 regular full-time personnel, 4,127 Brigade of Gurkhas, Gurkhas, 25,742 Army Reserve (United Kingdom), volunteer reserve perso ...
, specifically the
Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC sup ...
(RFC). The RFC ranks of
Flight Sergeant Flight sergeant (commonly abbreviated to Flt Sgt, F/Sgt, FSGT or, currently correctly in the RAF, FS) is a senior non-commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and several other air forces which have adopted all or part of the RAF rank structur ...
(equivalent to
Staff Sergeant Staff sergeant is a Military rank, rank of non-commissioned officer used in the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. History of title In origin, certain senior sergeants were assigned to administr ...
),
Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...
,
Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...
and Air Mechanic were directly adopted. The RFC's four-bladed propeller trade classification badge above the Sergeants' and Flight Sergeants' chevrons was dropped. To distinguish them from Army personnel, RAF personnel wore the RAF eagle on a rectangular patch below the shoulder seam on the sleeve. The RAF Eagle is depicted with its beak turned to the rear rather than the front. RAF NCOs were fond of saying that represented that their eyes were everywhere. The trade classification of
Leading Aircraftman Leading aircraftman (LAC) or leading aircraftwoman (LACW) is an enlisted rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Leading air ...
was created on 5 April 1918 to fill a void in the Service ranks. It was granted the double-bladed propeller rank insignia of the RFC Air Mechanic 1st Class and was equivalent in rank and authority to the Army appointment of Lance-Corporal. On 1 January 1919 the rank of Aircraftman replaced the ranks of Private, Air Mechanic, and Clerk. Aircraftmen were nicknamed "Erks" (a corruption of the word 'Aircraft') by the senior ranks, which was preferred to 'other ranks' or 'troops'. The rank of Master Clerk was originally equivalent to Sergeant Major 1st Class. On 28 November 1918, the new rank of Chief Master Clerk was made equivalent to the rank of Sergeant Major 1st Class, and the old rank of Master Clerk was made equivalent to the rank of Sergeant Major 2nd Class. The original RAF ranks are vertically listed by seniority; the Technical ranks had precedence over the Administrative ranks, which in turn had precedence over the Service ranks. This was meant to keep non-technical NCOs from interfering with the efforts of technical and administrative NCOs. This was abolished in January 1919 and a streamlined single-column rank system was devised.


1930–1949


Warrant officers

In 1933, the ranks of ''Sergeant Major 1st Class'' and ''Sergeant Major 2nd Class'' were renamed Warrant Officer Class I and Warrant Officer Class II to put them in line with the Army. In 1939, the rank of Warrant Officer II was abolished and the rank of Warrant Officer I was renamed
Warrant Officer Warrant officer (WO) is a Military rank, rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ...
. RAF Warrant Officers were given equivalent status to the continuing Army rank of Warrant Officer Class I.


Aircrew

On 1 July 1946, NCOs serving as aircrew were assigned different rank badges which distinguished them from ORs in ground trades. The new ranks were:


1950s


Technicians and aircrew

In 1950, a new grading system for technicians was introduced. This involved the creation of the following ranks: Also in 1950, the unpopular NCO aircrew ranks were abolished, although Master Aircrew was retained as a rank. Aircrew I became Flight Sergeant Aircrew and Aircrew II, III and IV became Sergeant Aircrew. Both new ranks adopted a gold RAF Eagle between the chevrons to permit continuing distinction from ground trades. Aircrew cadets wore the RAF Eagle on its own as a trade classification badge.


Junior ranks

On 1 January 1951, two junior ranks were introduced: * Senior Aircraftman/Senior Aircraftwoman with a triple-bladed propeller. * Leading Aircraftman/Leading Aircraftwoman with a double-bladed propeller (this had previously been only a trade classification and not a rank)


1960s


Technicians

In 1964, the technician ranks were abolished, with the exception of Junior Technician and Chief Technician, the latter becoming an intermediate rank between Sergeant and Flight Sergeant for Technical Trades. Junior Technicians adopted the four-bladed propeller as their badge of rank and Chief Technicians adopted a treble chevron surmounted by a four-bladed propeller as their rank insignia. Master Technicians, Senior Technicians and Corporal Technicians became Warrant Officer, Sergeant and Corporal respectively. The ORs structure became: *
Warrant Officer Warrant officer (WO) is a Military rank, rank or category of ranks in the armed forces of many countries. Depending on the country, service, or historical context, warrant officers are sometimes classified as the most junior of the commissioned ...
(WO) / Master Aircrew (MAcr) *
Flight Sergeant Flight sergeant (commonly abbreviated to Flt Sgt, F/Sgt, FSGT or, currently correctly in the RAF, FS) is a senior non-commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and several other air forces which have adopted all or part of the RAF rank structur ...
(Flt Sgt, F/Sgt, or FS) / Flight Sergeant Aircrew (FSAcr) * Chief Technician (Chf Tech, C/T, or CT) *
Sergeant Sergeant (Sgt) is a Military rank, rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and in other units that draw their heritage f ...
(Sgt) / Sergeant Aircrew (SAcr) *
Corporal Corporal is a military rank in use by the armed forces of many countries. It is also a police rank in some police services. The rank is usually the lowest ranking non-commissioned officer. In some militaries, the rank of corporal nominally corr ...
(Cpl) * Junior Technician (Jnr Tech, J/T, or JT) * Senior Aircraftman (SAC) / Senior Aircraftwoman (SACW) *
Leading Aircraftman Leading aircraftman (LAC) or leading aircraftwoman (LACW) is an enlisted rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Leading air ...
(LAC) / Leading Aircraftwoman (LACW) * Aircraftman (AC) / Aircraftwoman (ACW)


Changes in the 2000s


Phasing out of Junior Technician

From 2005 onwards, no more airmen have been promoted to Junior Technician. Although there are currently personnel in the rank of Junior Technician, once they have all been promoted or discharged from the RAF, the rank will cease to be used. From March 2005, SACs in technical trades who had attained the Operational Performance Standard were promoted to ''Senior Aircraftman/Aircraftwoman (Technician)'' SAC(T) and given a new badge of rank, consisting of the three-bladed propeller inside a circle. This new rank was introduced to distinguish airmen trained to work unsupervised from those who were not, and is equivalent to the old Junior Technician rank.


Introduction of Lance Corporal

On 1 April 2010, the
RAF Regiment The Royal Air Force Regiment (RAF Regiment) is part of the Royal Air Force and functions as a specialist corps. Founded by Royal Warrant in 1942, the Corps carries-out security tasks relating to the protection of assets and personnel dedicated ...
introduced the rank of
lance corporal Lance corporal is a military rank, used by many English-speaking armed forces worldwide, and also by some police forces and other uniformed organisations. It is below the rank of corporal. Etymology The presumed origin of the rank of lance corp ...
for SACs at the time who undertook the role of
section Section, Sectioning, or Sectioned may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Section (music), a complete, but not independent, musical idea * Section (typography), a subdivision, especially of a chapter, in books and documents ** Section sig ...
second-in-command/fire team commander. This gave them more authority on the ground, as well as a better pay band. The rank has not moved to other trades, and is solely in the RAF Regiment.


Aviator replaces Airman/Airwoman

In November 2021 the official RAF magazine ''AirClues'' promulgated: "the term 'aviator' has now replaced the generic term of ‘airman’ to bring right up to date the way we should describe all of our personnel," since women now numbered a fifth of candidates applying to enlist in the RAF.


Air Specialist replaces Airman/Airwoman

In July 2022, the RAF officially introduced the ranks Air recruit, Air specialist class 2, Air specialist class 1 and Air specialist (class 1) technician to replace the ranks Aircraftman/woman, Leading Aircraftman/woman, Senior Aircraftman/woman and Senior Aircraftman/woman (Technician). This was an attempt to further promote gender neutrality and inclusion with the RAF.


Timeline of changes

;Aircrew


See also

*
Aircrew brevet An aircrew flying badge (unofficially and incorrectly known as an aircrew brevet – which is actually French for a diploma or certificate) is the badge worn on the left breast, above any medal ribbons, by qualified aircrew in the Royal Air For ...
* British Army Other Ranks rank insignia * Comparative military ranks of World War I * Comparative military ranks of World War II *
Comparative military ranks This article is a list of various nations' armed forces ranking designations. Comparisons are made between the different systems used by nations to categorize the hierarchy of an armed force compared to another. Several of these lists mention '' ...
* List of Royal Air Force ground trades * List of Royal Air Force members *
Military rank Military ranks is a system of hierarchy, hierarchical relationships within armed forces, police, Intelligence agency, intelligence agencies, paramilitary groups, and other institutions organized along military organisation , military lines, such ...
*
RAF officer ranks The officer ranks of the Royal Air Force, as they are today, were introduced in 1919. Prior to that Army ranks were used. Ranks Command flags Notes Origins Lieutenant General David Henderson (British Army officer), David Henderson origin ...
*
Ranks and insignia of NATO Air Forces Enlisted The following are the ranks and insignia of NATO Air Forces Enlisted personnel for each member nation. Other ranks (OR 1–9) See also * NATO * Ranks and insignia of NATO * Ranks and insignia of NATO armies enlisted * Ranks and insignia of ...
*
Ranks of the cadet forces of the United Kingdom The following table displays the ranks of the Community Cadet Forces (Army Cadet Force, the Sea Cadets (United Kingdom), Sea Cadet Corps, and the Air Training Corps), the Combined Cadet Force, the Volunteer Cadet Corps (RMVCC and RNVCC). This tabl ...
*
Royal Navy ratings rank insignia Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Ro ...
* Royal Observer Corps ranks * Women's Auxiliary Air Force ranks


Notes


References


External links


Ranks and Badges of the Royal Air Force
{{Military ranks by country British military insignia