Flight commander
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A flight commander is the leader of a constituent portion of an aerial squadron in aerial operations, often into combat.
Historically, the role of a flight commander in fighter aircraft has been that of principal attacker in air-to-air combat, with the other airplane or airplanes in a flight supporting and protecting him from counter-attack as a wingman or wingmen. This delineation of roles came into being very early in the history of aerial warfare, as Oswald Boelcke, Roderic Dallas, and Mick Mannock all derived the basic tactics of successful air-to-air combat from their flying experiences during World War I c. 1916.
The flight commander position has traditionally been held by a
In the Royal Naval Air Service of World War I, flight commander was the appointment for a lieutenant commanding a flight with its own rank insignia.
Flight commander is also the title of the officer commanding a ground-based flight, a platoon-sized unit in the United States Air Force, the Royal Air Force and other Commonwealth air forces.
References
- ISBN 9781517371142. Retrieved 13 February 2024.