An
air observer
or
aerial observer
is an
aircrew
member whose duties are predominantly
reconnaissance
. The term originated in the
First World War
in the British
Royal Flying Corps
, and was maintained by its successor, the
Royal Air Force
. An air observer's
brevet
was a single wing with an O at the root. Although today sometimes a manned aircraft is still utilised for aerial observation, industry and the military use both
satellites
and
remotely piloted vehicles
for this function.
The term is also used in some non-military contexts, such as
police helicopter
units.
[1]
The first recorded RAF "kill" of the Second World War, on 20 September 1939, was by air observer
Sergeant
F. Letchford, aboard a
Fairey Battle
, flown by
Flying Officer
L.H. Baker.
[2]
Observers were also issued with weapons, and expected to engage with enemy
aircraft
in the early days of
military aviation
. Over time, the role changed and separate gunnery specialities emerged. By the Second World War the RAF commonly used the designation "air observer/navigator" in bomber crew.
Air observers were trained at the
Air Observer Schools
.
[3]
Vietnam
[
edit
]
In the
Vietnam War
, aerial observers also might be
Forward Air Controllers
(FACs). These
O-1 Bird Dog
,
O-2 Skymaster
and
OV-10 Bronco
pilots would slowly fly over an area and direct bombing by radio to fast-moving jet aircraft. In the
U.S. Army
, Aeroscout Observers were enlisted aircrew, often aircraft mechanics, who performed reconnaissance duties in
OH-13
,
OH-6
, and
OH-58
observation helicopters.
Fleet Air Arm
[
edit
]
Observer
is still the term used in the
Royal Navy
's
Fleet Air Arm
(FAA) for non-pilot aircrew officers. The term dates back to one of the original roles of aircraft at sea, in the big gun era, which was to observe fall of shot, and radio back gunnery correction to their ship. Thus the observer originally had to be a highly trained gunnery officer, often senior in rank to the pilot. Unusually, in the FAA, an observer could rise to squadron commander. Modern FAA anti-submarine and attack helicopters are still crewed by a pilot and observer, the observer being responsible for managing the detection and weapon systems - while the pilot does the flying, the observer "fights the aircraft" making the necessary tactical and navigational decisions.
[4]
See also
[
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]
References
[
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]
External links
[
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]
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