What does the stripes on Pilot uniform in India mean
You may have noticed pilots walking through the airport and wondered what the stripes on Pilot Uniform means to them. Pilot’s uniforms around the world are standardize, they consist of professional suit-and-tie looks in addition with some badges on them.
Above all, One thing which is common element of all the pilot uniforms around the world is the stripes on the shoulder and wings on the shirt pocket. For instance have you ever wondered what’s their meaning and significance? and thus, we’ve broken down the rhyme and reason behind stripes on the pilot shoulders; In conclusion a useful guide for all the aviation enthusiast to understand What does the stripes on pilot uniform means to know your pilot of the next flight better
Epaulettes are the badges worn by the pilot The word epaulette is French, meaning little shoulder. The history of epaulettes can be traced as far back as Roman times but in more recent history they were worn by military personnel in the 17th century. However as time went on they were used to signify a soldier’s rank. For instance on a pilot uniform, the number of bars on their epaulettes equates to their rank
Although, the color and rank of the stripes on pilot shoulder vary a little from company to company, depending on preferred color, size and width to match the uniform theme but the core meaning remains the same
How to rank
One. Two. Three. Or four stripes.
Not five. Not six. One to four.
Single Stripe (one stripe)
The single stripe epaulets used by Student Pilot at the flight school when they are under training
Two Stripes
Two stripes epaulets are used by Private Pilot in general or by a trainee pilot (Junior first officer) Of the commercial airline in India
Three Stripes
Three stripes epaulets can be used by Commercial Pilot Licence holder in general or by a First officer of the commercial airline in India
Four Stripes (The Boss)
Four stripes epaulets are used by a Commander of the commercial airline in India or holder of Airline Transport Pilot Licence in general
WINGS
Apart from the epaulettes “Wings” Also play an important role in Pilots life
A Pilot uniform will be incomplete without a set of wings
Which Pilots get to wear a wing ?
A Students Pilot who have flown the aircraft solo for once at least (i.e. being the sole occupant of the aircraft) you will officially get your ‘wings,’ and are able to wear a pin or badge as a pride for the rest of the life featuring, A double wings that are sometimes plain, or if you are flying with a company, their logo or mascot will feature in the middle of the wings
Most passengers do not realize but these cool wings are also symbolic of the difference between cabin crew and cockpit crew. The cabin crew get to wear half wings with the company logo where as the cockpit crew adorn full wings.
If you found this post interesting, you may enjoy reading our post on How to become Commercial Pilot in India
And If you’d like to get your wings and epaulettes, why not find out more about getting your Commercial Pilot Licence!