Naval aviator (United States)


A naval aviator is a commissioned officer or warrant officer qualified as a crewed aircraft pilot in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps. United States Coast Guard crewed aircraft pilots are officially designated as "Coast Guard aviators", although they complete the same undergraduate flight training as Navy and Marine Corps crewed aircraft pilots, and are awarded the same aviation breast insignia.

Naming conventions

In the U.S. Navy, most naval aviators are unrestricted line officers, eligible for command at sea, but a small number of former senior enlisted personnel subsequently commissioned as line limited duty officers and chief warrant officers in the aviation operations technician specialty have also been trained as naval aviators and naval flight officers.
A small number of URL officers trained as naval aviators and naval flight officers who hold technical degrees at the undergraduate and/or postgraduate level may also opt to laterally transfer to the restricted-line as aerospace engineering duty officers. AEDOs are frequently test pilot school graduates and retain their flying status, with most of their billets being in the Naval Air Systems Command.
An even smaller number of naval aviators are in the U.S. Navy Medical Corps, primarily as naval flight surgeons. These are either former URL officers previously designated as naval aviators who later attended medical school and transferred to the medical corps, or an even smaller percentage of "dual designator" naval flight surgeons who are selected to be student naval aviators and underwent pilot training as medical corps officers. The vast majority of naval flight surgeons, although they are on flight status, are not dual designated and are not naval aviators.
All U.S. Marine Corps officers are line officers, either unrestricted line, limited duty, or warrant officers, eligible to command MAGTF units commensurate with their grade, designation, and occupational specialty; the U.S. Marine Corps does not have restricted line officers or staff corps officers, as does the U.S. Navy. All current USMC naval aviators and naval flight officers are unrestricted line officers, analogous to the Navy's URLs.
The U.S. Coast Guard categorizes all of its officers generally, with its Coast Guard aviators also being considered "operational" officers in the same manner as its cutterman officers in the Coast Guard's surface cutter fleet.

Naval aviation pilot (NAP)

Until 1981, the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps also had a small number of senior enlisted personnel trained as pilots. The last U.S. Coast Guard aviation pilot retired in 1979. Such individuals were referred to as "naval aviation pilots", colloquially "NAPs" or "APs". The since retired NAPs also continue to have a professional organization known as the "Silver Eagles", which remains informally aligned with other naval aviation professional organizations such as the Association of Naval Aviation, the Tailhook Association, the Maritime Patrol Association, and the Naval Helicopter Association.

Naval aviation cadet (NAVCAD)

The U.S. Navy still has an unknown number of senior officers on active duty in the regular navy or serving in the navy reserve who were originally accessed as naval aviation cadets. These individuals entered service via the NAVCAD program during the mid-to-late 1980s and early 1990s when the program was reinstated following a hiatus of over 20 years. NAVCADs were non-commissioned cadets who were required to have a minimum of 60 college credit hours to enter flight training and were accessed only through the now-defunct Aviation Officer Candidate School program. Upon completion of AOCS, NAVCADS would enter into flight training and upon successful completion of training and designation as a naval aviator would be commissioned as officers with a reserve commission in an active-duty status. After completion of their initial operational flying tours, they would receive an assignment to complete their bachelor's degree. NAVCADs who failed to successfully complete flight training were contractually obligated to enter fleet service as undesignated enlisted personnel.
The last civilian applicants were accepted into the NAVCAD program in 1992, and the program was finally cancelled on October 1, 1993.

Prerequisites

Except for an extremely small number of enlisted personnel selected to attend flight school subsequent to completing the STA-21, OCS, USMMA, USNA, or USCGA programs, all student naval aviators must first obtain an officer commission. To become a naval aviator, non-prior service personnel must be between the ages of 19 and 32 when entering flight training. Adjustments can be made up to 24 months for those with prior service, and up to 48 months for those already in the military at the time of application or for Marine Corps platoon leader's course applicants with prior enlisted service.
Navy and Marine Corps officers are currently commissioned through five sources - the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Maryland; the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, New York; Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps at a number of colleges and universities across the country; Navy Officer Candidate School at Naval Station Newport, Rhode Island; Marine Corps Officer Candidates School at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia. A smaller number were previously commissioned via the Navy's limited duty officer or chief warrant officer programs, but this track has since been discontinued.
Coast Guard officers receive their commissions either from the United States Coast Guard Academy or Coast Guard Officer Candidate School, both located in New London, Connecticut; or via the United States Merchant Marine Academy in Kings Point, NY.
Graduates of these programs are commissioned as ensigns in the U.S. Navy or U.S. Coast Guard, or as second lieutenants in the Marine Corps. All individuals must pass an aeronautical screening, to include successful completion of the USN/USMC/USCG Aviation Selection Test Battery and be selected for pilot training prior to being designated as student naval aviators.
Student naval aviators progress through a significant training syllabus—typically 18 to 24 months for initial winging as naval aviators via either the advanced strike pipeline for those destined for fixed-wing aircraft such as fighter/bomber jets; the maritime pipeline for those en route to multi-engine, land and sea-based aircraft ; and the rotary wing pipeline for those who will fly helicopters or tilt rotor aircraft. The longest of these "pipelines" is the E-2 or C-2A pipeline, averaging over three years from initial pre-flight training to designation as a naval aviator. All pipelines include ground and flight training at numerous locations.
Following designation as a naval aviator, all newly designated aviators report to a designated Navy or Marine Corps fleet replacement squadron, the Coast Guard Aviation Training Center at Mobile, Alabama.

Introductory flight screening (IFS)

IFS is the first step to becoming a naval aviator. After passing a medical screening, all new flight school students are enrolled in one of five civilian flight schools near NAS Pensacola. For those students requiring IFS, they will complete 2 weeks of ground training and around 14 hours of flight training in single-engined general aviation aircraft. Coast Guard students complete 25 hours of flight training. A student must solo and pass the FAA private pilot knowledge test. IFS screens a student's flight aptitude prior to beginning the Navy training syllabus and is waived for students reporting to NAS Pensacola with a private pilot's certificate or better, or those United States Naval Academy midshipmen who have completed the powered flight program.

Aviation preflight indoctrination (API)

All SNAs start at the "Cradle of Naval Aviation", NAS Pensacola, Florida. API classes consist of Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard SNAs, student naval flight officers, flight surgeons, and foreign exchange military pilots. Students receive four weeks of classroom instruction in aerodynamics, aircraft engines and systems, meteorology, air navigation, and flight rules and regulations. Following academics, students spend two weeks learning land survival, first aid, physiology, and water survival and egress. Following the end of academic instruction, API students hold a social event known as Flight Suit Friday at the Mustin Beach officers club. From that point onward, the students are authorized the wear of flight suits as their daily uniform instead of Navy service khakis, Marine service Charlies or Coast Guard tropical blue.
Prior to its disestablishment, Aviation Officer Candidate School at NAS Pensacola incorporated the entire API syllabus into the nominally 15-week AOCS curriculum. AOCS students were commissioned only after they completed API requirements.

Naval Introductory Flight Evaluation (NIFE)

In November 2020, The Chief of Naval Air Training combined IFS and API into a singular program. As of today, NIFE is the new first step to becoming a naval aviator. All prospective SNAs begin the course with the API academic instruction, involving aerodynamics, flight rules and regulations, meteorology, navigation, and aircraft engines and systems. Following successful completion of the academic portion and Flight Suit Friday, SNAs will begin the IFS portion of the course, conducted with civilian flight schools at either Pensacola Regional Airport or Jack Edwards Airport in Orange Beach, Alabama. Students will complete approximately 10 hours of basic flying and will mimic the expectations needed to succeed in primary flight training. Upon completion of a check ride by a CFI, students will spend a week learning physiology and water survival and egress before graduating and heading to primary flight training.

Primary flight training

Following NIFE graduation, SNAs are assigned to Training Air Wing Five at NAS Whiting Field, Florida or Training Air Wing Four at NAS Corpus Christi, Texas, where they learn to fly the Beechcraft T-6B Texan II. Primary teaches the basics of flying in approximately six months and is divided into the following stages:
  • Ground school
  • Contact
  • Basic instruments
  • Precision aerobatics
  • Formation
  • Radio instrument navigation
  • Night familiarization
  • Visual navigation