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{{Redirect|Wing Commander|the video game franchise|Wing Commander (franchise){{!}}''Wing Commander'' (franchise)|5=Wing Commander (disambiguation)}}{{short description|Commissioned rank in the RAF and air forces of other Commonwealth countries}}
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'''Wing commander''' ('''Wg Cdr''' or '''W/C''') is a [[senior officer]] rank used by some air forces, with origins from the [[Royal Air Force]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.raf.mod.uk/organisation/commissionedranks.cfm |title=Ranks and Badges of the Royal Air Force |access-date=2007-12-01 |year=2007 |publisher=[[Royal Air Force]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606185144/http://www.raf.mod.uk/organisation/commissionedranks.cfm |archive-date=6 June 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The rank is used by air forces of many [[Commonwealth of Nations|countries that have historical British influence]].

Wing commander is immediately senior to [[squadron leader]] and immediately below [[group captain]]. It is usually equivalent to the rank of [[commander]] in the navy and the rank of [[lieutenant colonel]] in other services.

The equivalent rank in the [[Women's Auxiliary Air Force]] and the [[Women's Royal Air Force]] (until 1968) and in [[Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service]] (until 1980) was wing officer. The equivalent rank in the [[Royal Observer Corps]] (until 1995) was observer commander, which had a similar rank insignia.

==Canada==
{{see also|Canadian Armed Forces ranks and insignia}}
The rank was used in the [[Royal Canadian Air Force]] until the 1968 [[Unification of the Canadian Armed Forces|unification of the Canadian Forces]], when army-type rank titles were adopted. Canadian wing commanders then became [[lieutenant colonel]]s. In official [[Canadian French]] usage, the rank title was {{lang|fr|lieutenant-colonel d'aviation}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.castlearchdale.net/id37.html |title=The RCAF |website=www.castlearchdale.net |access-date=22 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090603201652/http://www.castlearchdale.net/id37.html |archive-date=3 June 2009 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In the 1990s, the [[Canadian Forces Air Command]] (the post-1968 RCAF) altered the structure of those [[Canadian Forces Bases|bases]] under its control, redesignating them as wings. The commander of such an establishment was re-designated as the "wing commander" (or "Wg Comd"). Like the United States Air Force usage, the term "wing commander" (as used in the Canadian Forces and again in the RCAF) is an appointment, not a rank. A wing commander usually holds the rank of [[colonel]].

On 16 August 2011, the Government of Canada announced that the name "Air Command" was being changed to the air force's original historic name of [[Royal Canadian Air Force]].<ref>Galloway, Gloria. [https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/conservatives-to-restore-royal-moniker-to-canadas-navy-air-force/article590957/ "Conservatives to restore 'royal' monikers for navy, air force."] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170204231812/http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/conservatives-to-restore-royal-moniker-to-canadas-navy-air-force/article590957/ |date=2017-02-04 }} ''The Globe and Mail,'' 15 August 2011. Retrieved: 26 September 2011.</ref> Though traditional insignia for the RCAF was restored in 2015, there has been no restoration of the traditional RCAF officer rank structure that paralleled the RAF.<ref>Fitzpatrick, Meagan. [https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/peter-mackay-hails-royal-renaming-of-military-1.1059811 "Peter MacKay hails 'royal' renaming of military."]  ''CBC News,'' 16 August 2011. Retrieved: 26 September 2011.</ref>

== United Kingdom ==
{{see also|RAF officer ranks}}
{{Infobox military rank
| name           = Wing commander
| image          = UK-Air-OF4-Flag.svg
| image_size     = 100px
| caption        = Command pennant
| image2         = British RAF OF-4.svg
| image_size2    = 50px
| caption2       = Shoulder and sleeve insignia
| country        = {{flag|United Kingdom}}
| service branch = {{air force|United Kingdom}}
| abbreviation   = Wg Cdr / WGCDR / W/C
| formation      = {{start date|1919|08||df=y}}
| NATO rank      = [[OF-4]]
| Non-NATO rank  = 
| higher rank    = [[Group captain]]
| lower rank     = [[Squadron leader]]
| equivalents    = {{unbulleted list|{{nowrap|[[Lieutenant colonel (United Kingdom)|Lieutenant colonel]] ([[British Army|Army]]; [[Royal Marines|Marines]])}}|[[Commander (Royal Navy)|Commander]] ([[Royal Navy|Navy]])}}
| history        = [[Royal Naval Air Service]]
}}
===Origins===
[[File:RNAS Wg Cdr.png|thumbnail|right|100px|The rank insignia of a Royal Naval Air Service wing commander]]

On 1 April 1918, the newly created RAF adopted its officer rank titles from the British Army, with Royal Naval Air Service captains and Royal Flying Corps colonels officially becoming colonels in the RAF. In practice, there was some inconsistency, with some former naval officers using their former ranks unofficially.<ref>{{cite web |title=Fleet Air Arm, Naval Aviation, Royal Navy Air Service History- 1918 - 1 April: RNAS and RFC amalgamated to create RAF |url=https://www.fleetairarmoa.org/fleet-air-arm-history-timeline |website=www.fleetairarmoa.org |publisher=Fleet Air Arm Officers Association |access-date=27 February 2019}}</ref> 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. For example, the rank that later became wing commander would have been "air commander". Although the [[British Admiralty|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 naval officer ranks with differing pre-modifying terms. It was also suggested that RAF lieutenant colonels might be entitled [[Reeve (England)|reeves]] or wing-leaders. However, the rank title wing commander was chosen as [[Wing (air force unit)|wings]] were typically commanded by RAF lieutenant colonels, and the term wing commander had been used in the Royal Naval Air Service. The rank of wing commander was introduced in August 1919<ref>{{cite book |last=Hobart |first=Malcolm C |date=2000 |title=Badges and Uniforms of the Royal Air Force |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7ATMDwAAQBAJ&pg=PT29 |publisher=Leo Cooper |page=26 |isbn=0-85052-739-2}}</ref> and has been used continuously since then.

===Usage===
In the early years of the RAF, a wing commander commanded a flying wing, typically a group of three or four aircraft [[Squadron (aviation)|squadrons]]. In current usage a wing commander is more likely to command a wing which is an administrative sub-division of an [[RAF station]]. A flying squadron is normally commanded by a wing commander but is occasionally commanded by a squadron leader for small units. In the [[Air Training Corps]], a wing commander is usually the [[officer commanding]] of a wing.{{citation needed|date=April 2011}}

===Insignia and command flag===
{{Unreferenced section|date=September 2021}}
The rank insignia is based on the three gold bands of commanders in the Royal Navy and consists of three narrow light blue bands over slightly wider black bands. This is worn on both the lower sleeves of the tunic or on the shoulder of the [[flight suit]] or the casual uniform.

The command pennant is two triangular command pennants used in the RAF. Two thin red lines differentiate this one from the other.

During 1941-45 [[RAF Fighter Command]]'s wing leaders (of wing commander rank) were also allowed to use their own initials as aircraft identification letters on their personal aircraft, e.g., Wing Commander [[Roland Beamont]]'s personal [[Hawker Tempest]], ''JN751'', was coded "R-B", Wing Commander [[John Robert Baldwin]]'s personal [[Hawker Typhoon]] was coded "J-B".

<gallery>
File:UK-Air-OF4.svg|An RAF wing commander's sleeve/shoulder insignia
File:File-UK-Air-OF4-mess-insignia.svg|An RAF wing commander's sleeve mess insignia
File:RAF-Wg Cdr-OF-4.png|An RAF wing commander's sleeve on No. 1 service dress uniform
</gallery>

==United States==
===United States Air Force===
In the [[United States Air Force]] (USAF), a wing commander is a command billet, not a rank. The position is most often filled by a [[Colonel (United States)|colonel]] (some USAF wings are commanded by a [[Brigadier general (United States)|brigadier general]]) who typically has command of an air wing with several group commanders (also a position, not a USAF rank) reporting to him/her.

===United States Navy===
In the [[United States Navy]] (USN), a wing commander is also a command billet, not a rank.  The equivalent USN rank is a [[Captain (United States O-6)|captain]].  Navy wing commanders are either [[Naval Aviator]]s or [[Naval Flight Officer]]s who typically have command of a [[carrier air wing]] or a "functional" air wing or air group such as a strike fighter wing, a patrol and reconnaissance wing, a tactical air control group, or a training air wing, with several squadron commanding officers reporting to him/her.  Those officers commanding carrier air wings are called "CAG," dating back to when carrier air wings were called carrier air groups.  Those officers commanding functional air wings and air groups are called [[Commodore (United States)|"commodore."]]  Unlike USAF, "group" commands in USN are either equal to or senior to an air wing.

===Civil Air Patrol (United States Air Force Auxiliary)===
The [[Civil Air Patrol]], the volunteer auxiliary of the USAF, follows the USAF rank structure. The CAP divides the nation into 52 wings (each corresponding to a state, territory, and District of Columbia). Each wing is headed by a CAP colonel, who holds the position of wing commander.

== Gallery ==
<!-- In alphabetic order of country name please -->
<gallery class="center">
File:British RAF OF-4.svg|([[Royal Australian Air Force]])<ref name="Australia">{{cite web |title=Badges of rank |url=https://www.defence.gov.au/images/Badges_of_rank.pdf |website=defence.gov.au |publisher=[[Department of Defence (Australia)]] |access-date=31 May 2021}}</ref>
File:British RAF OF-4.svg|([[Bangladesh Air Force]])<ref>{{cite web |title=OFFICER'S RANKS |url=http://www.joinbangladeshairforce.mil.bd/index.php/main_controll/ranks_structure_baf?1=1&pagemenu=ranks_structure_baf&submenu=1&leafsub=0 |website=joinbangladeshairforce.mil.bd |access-date=11 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219212643/http://www.joinbangladeshairforce.mil.bd/index.php/main_controll/ranks_structure_baf?1=1&pagemenu=ranks_structure_baf&submenu=1&leafsub=0 |archive-date=19 February 2020}}</ref>
File:11.Ghana Air Force-LTC.svg|([[Ghana Air Force]])<ref name="Ghana_AirForce">{{cite web |title=Rank Structure |url=http://gafonline.mil.gh/airforce/index.php/subhome/rank-structure |website=gafonline.mil.gh |publisher=Ghana Air Force |access-date=3 March 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180121080703/http://gafonline.mil.gh/airforce/index.php/subhome/rank-structure |archive-date=21 January 2018 |date=2018 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
File:British RAF OF-4.svg|([[Indian Air Force]])<ref>{{cite web |title=For Officers |url=http://www.careerairforce.nic.in/life_airforce/lifeair_cargraph_officers.html |website=careerairforce.nic.in |publisher=Indian Air Force |access-date=23 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120225210317/http://www.careerairforce.nic.in/life_airforce/lifeair_cargraph_officers.html |archive-date=25 February 2012}}</ref>
File:11-Namibia Air Force-WGCDR.svg|([[Namibian Air Force]])<ref name="Namibia">{{cite magazine |title=Government Notice |magazine=Government Gazette of the Republic of Namibia |date=20 August 2010 |volume=4547 |pages=99–102 |url=http://www.lac.org.na/laws/2010/4547.pdf |access-date=20 December 2021}}</ref>
File:Nigeria-AirForce-OF-4.svg|([[Nigerian Air Force]])<ref name="Nigeria">{{cite book |last1=Smaldone |first1=Joseph P. |editor1-last=Metz |editor1-first=Helen Chapin |editor-link=Helen Chapin Metz |title=Nigeria: a country study |series=Area Handbook |date=1992 |publisher=Library of Congress |location=Washington, D.C. |lccn=92009026 |pages=296–297 |edition=5th |url=https://www.loc.gov/resource/frdcstdy.nigeriacountryst00metz_0/?sp=340 |access-date=21 October 2021 |chapter=National Security}}</ref>
File:Pak-air-force-OF-4.svg|([[Pakistan Air Force]])
File:British RAF OF-4.svg|([[Sri Lanka Air Force]])<ref>{{cite web |title=Commissioned Officers |url=http://www.airforce.lk/ranks.php |website=airforce.lk |publisher=Sri Lanka Air Force |access-date=24 September 2021}}</ref><br />
File:British RAF OF-4.svg|([[Royal Air Force]])<ref name="UK_AirForce">{{cite web |title=RAF Ranks |url=https://www.raf.mod.uk/our-organisation/raf-ranks/ |website=raf.mod.uk/ |publisher=[[Royal Air Force]] |access-date=21 September 2021}}</ref>
File:TaT-Air Guard-OF-4.png|([[Trinidad and Tobago Air Guard]])<ref name="Trinidad&Tobago_Officer">{{cite web |title=Rank Chart (Commissioned Officers) |url=http://69.0.195.188/HQ/Our-Organisation/Ranks-Chart-(Commissioned-Officers).aspx |website=69.0.195.188 |publisher=Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force |access-date=27 May 2021 }}{{Dead link|date=April 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>
File:Canadian Air Command (1984-2014) OF-4.svg|([[Air Force of Zimbabwe]])<ref name="Zimbabwe_AirForce">{{cite web |title=Ranks and Badges in the AFZ |url=http://www.afz.gov.zw/?page_id=1115 |website=afz.gov.zw |publisher=[[Air Force of Zimbabwe]] |access-date=29 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220609134525/http://www.afz.gov.zw/?page_id=1115 |archive-date=9 June 2022}}</ref>
</gallery>

==Notable wing commanders==

{{More citations needed|section|date=September 2021}}
{{Excessive examples|section|date=February 2024}}
<!--PLEASE MAINTAIN IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER, BY FAMILY NAME AND USE {{t|post-nominals}} WHEN APPROPRIATE. THANKS -->
* [[Douglas Bader]]{{spaced endash}}World War II fighter pilot and double amputee, was the first commander to lead formations of three or more squadrons during the Battle of Britain.
* [[Roland Beamont]]{{spaced endash}}World War II [[fighter pilot]] and post-war test pilot
* [[Abdel Latif Boghdadi (politician)|Abdel Latif Boghdadi]]{{spaced endash}}pilot in the [[Egyptian Air Force]] turned politician
* [[Pierre Clostermann]]{{spaced endash}}World War II fighter pilot and author of ''The Big Show''
* [[Linda Corbould]]{{spaced endash}}first woman to command a [[List of Royal Australian Air Force aircraft squadrons|RAAF flying squadron]]
* [[Roald Dahl]]{{spaced endash}}World War II fighter pilot, and famous novelist. His record of five aerial victories has been confirmed by post-war research and cross-referenced in Axis records. (He ended the war with the temporary rank of wing commander; substantive rank was [[squadron leader]].)
* [[Roly Falk]]{{spaced endash}}test pilot on the maiden flight of the [[Avro Vulcan]]
* [[Brendan Finucane|Brendan "Paddy" Finucane]]{{spaced endash}}top ranking RAF World War II ace with 32 kills. A native of [[Rathmines]], [[Dublin]], [[Ireland]] (who [[Emigration|emigrated]] to Britain with his family in 1936), he was the youngest wing commander in the history of the RAF. He was promoted to the rank in 1942 at age 21 and was shot down and killed soon afterwards.
* [[Preller Geldenhuys]]{{spaced endash}}combat pilot in the [[Rhodesian Air Force]], survivor of the [[Rhodesian Bush War]] and author of ''[[Rhodesian Air Force Operations]]''<ref name=airstrikelog>{{Cite book|title = Rhodesian Air Force Operations with Air Strike Log|last1 = Geldenhuys|first1 = Preller|author-link1 = Preller Geldenhuys|publisher = Just Done Productions Publishing|year = 2007|isbn = 978-1-920169-61-9|location = Durban, South Africa|url = http://www.justdone.co.za/shop/index.php?id_product=29&controller=product|publication-date = 13 July 2007|access-date = 10 October 2014|archive-date = 24 December 2014|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20141224180106/http://www.justdone.co.za/shop/index.php?id_product=29&controller=product|url-status = dead}}</ref>
* [[Guy Gibson]]{{spaced endash}}commanding officer of 617 Squadron and leader of the "Dam Busters" raid
* [[Andy Green (RAF officer)|Andy Green]]{{spaced endash}}current holder of the [[land speed record]] and first person to break the sound barrier on land
* [[M. Hamidullah Khan]] TJ, SH, BP{{spaced endash}} Fought two wars in South Asia, 1965 Indo Pak War, Bangladesh War of Independence 1971. First and third [[provost marshal]] and commander of Ground Defense Command of the [[Bangladesh Air Force]].
* [[Walter "Taffy" Holden]] ([[Holden%27s Lightning flight]]) {{spaced endash}} Commander of [[No. 33 Maintenance Unit RAF]]; inadvertently took off in an [[English Electric Lightning]] during ground testing; landed safely despite his only prior experience being with light training aircraft.
* [[Humphrey de Verd Leigh]]{{spaced endash}}inventor of the [[Leigh light]] which was developed to spotlight U-boats as they surfaced at night. The Leigh light is reputed{{Who|date=December 2011}} to have changed the course of the Battle of the Atlantic in World War II
* [[Norman Macmillan (RAF officer)|Norman Macmillan]]{{spaced endash}}Aviation author and pilot of the first attempt to fly around the world in 1922.
* [[Mervyn Middlecoat]]{{spaced endash}}fighter pilot who served in the [[Pakistan Air Force]].
* Nouman Ali Khan{{spaced endash}}Wing Commander of the [[Pakistan Air Force]] who downed an [[Indian Air Force]] [[MiG-21]] piloted by Abhinandan Varthamanand and crashed in Pakistan administered Kashmir on 27 February 2019. He was conferred with [[Sitar-e-Jurat]] for his bravery<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/world/story/pakistan-military-awards-pilots-downing-indian-jet-1581034-2019-08-15|title=Pakistan to give top military awards to two pilots for downing Indian jet |website=indiatoday.in|date=15 August 2019 }}</ref>
* [[Peter Overton]]{{spaced endash}}A news presenter & journalist for the 9 Network Australia and 60 Minutes Australia. He is a Wing Commander in the [[Royal Australian Air Force]] as a specialist reserve public affairs officer.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.defence.gov.au/people/wing-commander-wears-many-hats|title=Wing Commander wears many hats|language=en|author=Defence News|access-date=31 March 2021}}</ref>
* [[Michael Sutton (aviator)|Michael Sutton]] OBE - led the first Typhoon deployment on operations over Iraq and Syria. The only typhoon pilot to have used the aircraft's gun in combat. Author of bestselling memoir ''Typhoon''.
*[[Charlotte Thompson-Edgar|Charlotte Joanne Thompson-Edgar]] [[Royal Red Cross|ARRC]] is a British nurse. She served as the United Kingdom's Officer Commanding Medical Emergency Response Teams in Afghanistan and in 2015, while holding the rank of [[Squadron Leader]], was awarded an [[Associate of the Royal Red Cross]] (ARRC) for her services to the [[Princess Mary's Royal Air Force Nursing Service]]. 
* [[Abhinandan Varthaman]]{{spaced endash}}Wing Commander of the [[Indian Air Force]]. His aircraft was shot down after he reportedly shot down an F-16 of PAF in an aerial dogfight and he was held captive for 60 hours in Pakistan.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/f16-shot-down-varthamans-mig21-locked-in-pakistans-f16/articleshow/68193757.cms|title=Abhinandan Varthaman's MiG21 locked in Pakistan's F16|language=en|author=Manu Pubby|newspaper=The Economic Times |date=28 February 2019 |access-date=15 January 2020}}</ref>
* [[Ken Wallis]]{{spaced endash}}World War II fighter pilot, aircraft engineer, and multiple world record holder in autogyro aircraft flight
* [[Adrian Warburton]]{{spaced endash}}legendary for his role as a reconnaissance aviator in the defence of [[Siege of Malta (1940)|Malta]]; shot down over Germany on 12 April 1944, aged 26. It was only in 2002 that his remains were found in the wreckage of his plane.
* [[Dennis Wheatley]]{{spaced endash}}the popular historical novelist and thriller writer was granted a commission and brought into Whitehall's World War II Joint Planning Staff.
* [[Russell Williams (criminal)|Russell Williams]]{{spaced endash}} British-born Canadian convicted rapist and murderer and former Colonel in the Canadian Forces

==See also==
{{stack|{{Portal|United Kingdom|Aviation}}}}
* [[Air force officer rank insignia]]
* [[British and U.S. military ranks compared]]
* [[Comparative military ranks]]
* [[RAF officer ranks]]
* [[Ranks of the RAAF]]
* ''[[Wing Commander (computer game)|Wing Commander]]'', a popular computer game series

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{UK officer ranks}}

<!--Categories-->
[[Category:Military ranks of the Commonwealth]]
[[Category:Military ranks of Australia]]
[[Category:Former military ranks of Canada]]
[[Category:Military ranks of the Royal Air Force]]
[[Category:Air force ranks]]
[[Category:Pakistan Air Force ranks]]
[[Category:Military ranks of Bangladesh]]
[[Category:Military ranks of Sri Lanka]]
[[Category:Military ranks of the Indian Air Force]]