Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist insignia

Last updated
Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist Navy air warfare.jpg
Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist

The Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist (EAWS) insignia is a military badge of the United States Navy which was created in March 1980. The insignia recognizes those members of the Navy's enlisted force who have acquired the specific professional skills, knowledge, and military experience that result in qualification for service in the aviation activities of the Navy. This includes most personnel who are trained flight deck personnel onboard aircraft carriers, or maintenance personnel at an Aircraft Intermediate Maintenance Detachment or Department (AIMD) or aircraft squadron.

Contents

Prerequisite for EAWS

The basic prerequisite for the EAWS insignia is that a service member be assigned in a sea-duty status to a deployable naval aviation unit or aviation capable ship. Most service members earning this insignia hold an enlisted rating designated in aviation (though a non-aviation rating is still eligible), or a support rating; in the 21st century Navy the ratings that are eligible include:

The non-designated striker rates[ jargon ] of Airman, Airman Apprentice, and Airman Recruit are also eligible to receive the EAWS insignia. However, due to the time involved in the qualification procedure, most service members obtain at least a Petty Officer Third Class rating before earning the EAWS insignia. Sailors outside the aviation community are eligible to attain EAWS designation; however they must first complete the warfare specialist qualification for their community.

Qualification process

The qualification process to obtain the insignia begins with the Enlisted Aviation Personal Qualification Standards, also known as PQS. There are two PQS for the Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist insignia. The first is the Common Core which consists of concepts, policies, and tasks that are common throughout Naval aviation and provide a foundation for the Sailor's knowledge. The second is a platform-specific PQS which consists of several training tasks and other practical experience on-the-job exercises relevant to the particular aviation community the sailor is currently serving in, for example an F/A-18 squadron or an aircraft carrier (CVN). The entire Enlisted Aviation PQS normally takes approximately one year to complete from the point of entering the enlisted aviation community though it can be completed much earlier with much dedication and effort.

Those completing the Enlisted Aviation PQS must then pass a written examination and a review board conducted by senior enlisted aviation personnel, normally the rank of Chief Petty Officer or above. Upon passing both the examination and the oral board, the EAWS insignia may be presented. The Sailor is then authorized to add the Enlisted Aviation Warfare Specialist designator (AW) after his or her rate.

Upon transfer to the Sailor's next aviation command, he or she is required to complete an abbreviated re-qualification process to familiarize the Sailor with the differences between various aviation platforms. This process must be completed within 12 months of reporting aboard or the Sailor loses the right to wear the EAWS insignia.

The EAWS insignia is not required for continued advancement in the Navy, however for those in aviation rates the insignia must be obtained by three years as a Petty Officer Second Class. Those failing to obtain the insignia may be ineligible for advancement to Petty Officer First Class, reenlistment in their current rate or may be restricted to shore assignments.

The EAWS insignia is considered one of three primary warfare badges available to the Navy's enlisted force. The other two aforementioned badges are the Enlisted Submarine Warfare Badge and the Enlisted Surface Warfare Specialist Badge. The gold Aircrew Badge or Naval Aircrew Wings (NAC) are a similar badge available to select enlisted personnel of the U.S. Navy aviation community. NAC is authorized for personnel who have undergone extensive training in flight operations of naval aircraft. Such training includes weapons management, electronic warfare, and water survival. Contrary to most other services, naval aircrewmen do not receive their wings after aircrew school. Rather, they receive their wings only after completing their platform respective Personnel Qualification Standards (PQS) (roughly 1 year past the completion of training).

The Aircrew Badge is a separate badge from the EAWS Badge, and qualified service members are eligible to wear both badges simultaneously. Additionally the Fleet Marine Force (FMF) Insignia is reserved for Hospital Corpsmen, Religious Program Specialists, Logistics Specialists and Operations Specialists assigned to Fleet Marine Corps units. Sailors receiving this designator are authorized to wear it above any other designator while assigned to FMF units.

OPNAVINST 1414.9B is the Navy instruction that governs the Enlisted Warfare Qualification Programs.

See also

Related Research Articles

Seaman recruit

Seaman recruit (SR) is the lowest enlisted rate in the United States Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, and the U.S. Naval Sea Cadet Corps just below seaman apprentice; this rank was formerly known as seaman third class. Two separate pay grades exist within this rank — one for those with service of less than four months, with a higher pay scale for those in service for more than four months, even if they have not yet advanced to seaman apprentice.

A Petty Officer (PO) is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotion OR-5 or OR-6. In many nations, they are typically equal to a sergeant in comparison to other military branches. Often they may be superior to a seaman, generally they are lower ranks in a navy, and subordinate to a more senior non-commissioned officer, such as a Chief Petty Officer.

Seaman (rank) Military rank

Seaman is a military rank used in many navies around the world. It is considered a junior enlisted rank and, depending on the navy, it may be a single rank on its own or a name shared by several similarly-junior ranks.

Petty officer second class

Petty officer second class is the fifth enlisted rank in the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard, just above petty officer third class and below petty officer first class, and is a non-commissioned officer. It is equivalent to the rank of sergeant in the Army and Marine Corps, and staff sergeant in the Air Force.

Fleet Marine Force Ribbon Award

The Fleet Marine Force Ribbon, officially the Navy Fleet Marine Force Service Ribbon, was a military award of the United States Navy established in 1984 by Secretary of the Navy, John F. Lehman, Jr. The service ribbon was awarded to eligible Navy personnel serving with the Marine Corps between 1984 and 2006. The award signified the acquisition of specific professional skills, knowledge and military experience that resulted in qualifications above those normally required of Navy personnel serving with the Fleet Marine Force (FMF). The FMF Ribbon was discontinued in the mid-2000s due to the promulgation of the FMF badges.

Surface warfare insignia

The surface warfare insignia is a military badge of the United States Navy which is issued to U.S. Navy personnel who are trained and qualified to perform duties aboard United States surface warships. There are presently four classes of the surface warfare pin, being that of line, staff, special operations, and enlisted. The line and enlisted surface warfare badges may be earned by United States Coast Guard personnel assigned to Navy commands. The various badge types are as follows:

Uniform Service Diver Insignia (United States) Qualification badges of the uniformed services of the United States which are awarded to servicemen qualified as divers

The diver insignia are qualification badges of the uniformed services of the United States which are awarded to servicemen qualified as divers. Originally, the diver insignia was a cloth patch decoration worn by United States Navy divers in the upper-portion of the enlisted service uniform's left sleeve during the first part of World War II, when the rating insignia was worn on the right sleeve. When enlisted rating insignia were shifted to the left sleeve in late World War II, the patch shifted to the upper right sleeve. The diving patch was created during World War II, and became a breast insignia in the late 1960s.

The Observer Badge is a military badge of the United States armed forces dating from the First World War. The badge was issued to co-pilots, navigators, and flight support personnel who had received a variation in the training required for the standard Pilot's Badge. The Observer Badge survived through the Second World War and into the 1950s, at which time the concept of an Observer Badge was phased out in favor of the modern Aircrew Badge and Navigator-Observer Badges. In addition to wings for Naval Aviators and Naval Flight Officers, the United States Navy still maintains an "Observer Badge" which is issued to flight-qualified mission specialists, such as a select number of meteorologists and intelligence officers in both the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. The U.S. Air Force awards its USAF Observer Badge, which is identical to the USAF Navigator Badge, to Air Force officers who have qualified as NASA Space Shuttle Mission Specialists, have flown an actual mission aboard the shuttle and/or the International Space Station and who are otherwise not previously aeronautically rated as an Air Force pilot or navigator.

Seabee combat warfare specialist insignia Warfare qualification of the United States Navy

The Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist (SCWS) insignia is a warfare qualification of the United States Navy.

Badges of the United States Navy Military badges of the US Navy

Insignias and badges of the United States Navy are military badges issued by the United States Department of the Navy to naval service members who achieve certain qualifications and accomplishments while serving on both active and reserve duty in the United States Navy. Most naval aviation insignia are also permitted for wear on uniforms of the United States Marine Corps.

The Aircrew Badge, commonly known as Wings, is a qualification badge of the United States military that is awarded by all five branches of armed services to personnel who serve as aircrew members on board military aircraft. The badge is intended to recognize the training and qualifications required by aircrew of military aircraft. In order to qualify as an aircrew member and receive the Aircrew Badge, such personnel typically undergo advanced training in aircraft in-flight support roles.

Royal Navy other rank insignia

This is a list of British Royal Navy ratings rank insignia.

Aviation electronics technician (United States Navy)

Aviation electronics technician (AT) is a US Navy enlisted rating or job specialty. At the paygrade of E-9 ATs merge with the aviation electrician's mate (AE) rating to become avionics technicians (AV). There has been talk of completely merging the two ratings, but as yet no definite plans have been announced. Aviation electronics technicians wear the specialty mark of a winged Helium atom.

Aviation machinists mate

Aviation Machinist's Mates are United States Navy aircraft engine mechanics that inspect, adjust, test, repair, and overhaul aircraft engines and propellers. More specifically, ADs install, maintain, and service various aircraft engine types as well as various accessories, gear boxes, related fuel systems, and lubrication systems; determine reasons for engine degradation using various test equipment; perform propeller repairs; handle and service aircraft ashore or aboard ship; and can also serve as aircrewman in various types of aircraft.

Personnel of the United States Navy

The United States Navy has nearly 500,000 personnel, approximately a quarter of whom are in ready reserve. Of those on active duty, more than eighty percent are enlisted sailors, and around fifteen percent are commissioned officers; the rest are midshipmen of the United States Naval Academy and midshipmen of the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps at over 180 universities around the country and officer candidates at the navy's Officer Candidate School.

The Enlisted Information Warfare Specialist Insignia (EIWS) is a military badge of the United States Navy which was created in 2010. The insignia recognizes those members of the Navy's enlisted force who have acquired the specific professional skills, knowledge, and military experience that result in qualification for service in the information warfare activities of the Navy.

References