A Sergeant Pilot was a non-commissioned officer who had undergone flight training and was a qualified pilot in the air forces of several Commonwealth countries and in the United States Army Air Forces before, during and after World War II where they were called Flying Sergeants. After World War II, non-commissioned pilots began to be phased out and today all air force pilots are commissioned officers. In the United States, the Flight Officer Act ended enlisted men's chances of undergoing flight training.
In Commonwealth air forces, a Sergeant Pilot (Pilot IV, III or II from 1946 to 1950) could be promoted to Flight Sergeant Pilot (Pilot I from 1946 to 1950) and Warrant Officer Pilot (renamed Master Pilot in 1946). Many went on to be commissioned. There were still Master Pilots flying helicopters with the Royal Air Force at least into the early 1970s.
Famous quotes containing the words sergeant and/or pilot:
“You know, there’s a cowboy movie where one joker says, “Mighty quiet out there. Too quiet,” he says. Same thing every time; it’s too quiet.”
—James Poe, U.S. screenwriter, and Based On Play. Robert Aldrich. Sergeant Costa (Jack Palance)
“With two sons born eighteen months apart, I operated mainly on automatic pilot through the ceaseless activity of their early childhood. I remember opening the refrigerator late one night and finding a roll of aluminum foil next to a pair of small red tennies. Certain that I was responsible for the refrigerated shoes, I quickly closed the door and ran upstairs to make sure I had put the babies in their cribs instead of the linen closet.”
—Mary Kay Blakely (20th century)