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Air Commodore (Air Cdre) is a rank in the Royal Air Force. It ranks above Group Captain and immediately below Air Vice-Marshal, and also exists in some other Commonwealth air forces, including the Indian Air Force (IAF), Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF), and Pakistan Air Force (PAF).
It has a NATO ranking code of OF-6, equivalent to a Commodore in the Royal Navy or a Brigadier in the British Army or the Royal Marines. Unlike these two ranks, however, it has always been a substantive rank.
Origins
On 1 April 1918, the newly created RAF adopted its officer rank titles from the British Army, with officers at what is now Air Commodore holding the rank of Brigadier-General. In response to the proposal that the RAF should use its own rank titles, it was suggested that the RAF might use the Royal Navy's officer ranks, with the word "Air" inserted before the naval rank title. Although the Admiralty objected to this simple modification of their rank titles, it was agreed that the RAF might base many of its officer rank titles on Navy officer ranks with differing pre-modifying terms. It was also suggested that Air Officer ranks could be based on the term "Ardian", which was derived from a combination of the Gaelic words for "chief" (ard) and "bird" (eun), with the term "Flight Ardian" being used for the equivalent to Brigadier-General and Commodore. However, the rank title based on the Navy rank was preferred and Air Commodore was adopted on 1 August 1919.
Insignia
The rank insignia is a light blue band on a broad black band worn on the both the lower sleeves of the tunic or on the shoulders of the flying suit or the casual uniform. On the mess uniform, Air Commodores wear a broad gold ring on both lower sleeves.
Honorary Air Commodores
RAF flying squadrons and stations may appoint Honorary Air Commodores. For example, Prince Charles is RAF Valley's Honorary Air Commodore and Winston Churchill was 615 Squadron's Honorary Air Commodore.
Other air forces
The rank of Air Commodore is also used in a number of the air forces in the Commonwealth, including the Ghana Air Force, Indian Air Force (IAF), Pakistan Air Force (PAF), Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) used the rank until the unification of the Canadian Forces in 1968, when Army-type rank titles were adopted. An Air Commodore then became a Brigadier-General (following the U.S. title, rather than the British Brigadier, which had been held by equivalent officers in the former Canadian Army).
See also
Military ranks of the Commonwealth | Military ranks of Australia | Military ranks of Canada | Military ranks of India | Military ranks of the United Kingdom
"Air Commodore"