Weapon systems officer
Encyclopedia
A Weapon Systems Officer ("WSO", pronounced "wizzo") is an air Flight Officer
Flight officer
The title flight officer was a military rank used by the United States Armed Forces where it was an air force warrant officer rank. It was also an air force rank in several Commonwealth nations where it was used for female officers and was equivalent to the rank of flight lieutenant...

 directly involved in all air operations and weapon systems of the fighter
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...

 in the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...

. (In the U.S. Air Force and Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

, "WSO" also refers to the aft crew member in the F-15E Strike Eagle
F-15E Strike Eagle
The McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle is an all-weather multirole fighter, derived from the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. The F-15E was designed in the 1980s for long-range, high speed interdiction without relying on escort or electronic warfare aircraft. United States Air Force F-15E Strike...

, B-1 Lancer
B-1 Lancer
The Rockwell B-1 LancerThe name "Lancer" is only applied to the B-1B version, after the program was revived. is a four-engine variable-sweep wing strategic bomber used by the United States Air Force...

 and F/A-18D Hornet
F/A-18 Hornet
The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is a supersonic, all-weather carrier-capable multirole fighter jet, designed to dogfight and attack ground targets . Designed by McDonnell Douglas and Northrop, the F/A-18 was derived from the latter's YF-17 in the 1970s for use by the United States Navy and...

.) The WSO integrates with the pilot
Aviator
An aviator is a person who flies an aircraft. The first recorded use of the term was in 1887, as a variation of 'aviation', from the Latin avis , coined in 1863 by G. de la Landelle in Aviation Ou Navigation Aérienne...

 to collectively achieve and maintain crew efficiency, situational awareness and mission effectiveness. In the U.S. Air Force fighter aircraft such as the F-15E Strike Eagle
F-15E Strike Eagle
The McDonnell Douglas F-15E Strike Eagle is an all-weather multirole fighter, derived from the McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle. The F-15E was designed in the 1980s for long-range, high speed interdiction without relying on escort or electronic warfare aircraft. United States Air Force F-15E Strike...

, the WSO can pilot the aircraft when required although this is typically during non-tactical portions of the mission (e.g., returning to base). When designated mission commander (MC), the WSO is also responsible for all phases of the assigned mission.

Overview

WSO mission duties in fighter aircraft were historically rigid because of the displays and controls in the front and aft seats of fighter cockpit
Cockpit
A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft, from which a pilot controls the aircraft. Most modern cockpits are enclosed, except on some small aircraft, and cockpits on large airliners are also physically separated from the cabin...

s. However modern fighter cockpits using programmable multi-function displays allow assigned roles to be more flexible than previous generation aircraft such as the F-4 Phantom II
F-4 Phantom II
The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is a tandem two-seat, twin-engined, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor fighter/fighter-bomber originally developed for the United States Navy by McDonnell Aircraft. It first entered service in 1960 with the U.S. Navy. Proving highly adaptable,...

, A-6 Intruder
A-6 Intruder
The Grumman A-6 Intruder was an American, twin jet-engine, mid-wing attack aircraft built by Grumman Aerospace. In service with the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps between 1963 and 1997, the Intruder was designed as an all-weather medium attack aircraft to replace the piston-engined A-1 Skyraider...

, or F-14 Tomcat
F-14 Tomcat
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experimental program following the collapse of the F-111B project...

. In the latest fighters either aircrew can be responsible for detecting, targeting and engaging air-to-air targets or ground targets, performing communications, operating data-link or defensive systems based on the tactical situation. This provides the flexibility for pilot and WSO roles to be customized based on experience, expertise, workload, tactics, and weapons being employed. The pilot remains responsible for flying the aircraft in tactical situations. WSOs assigned to bomber aircraft typically have more rigidly defined roles.

Training

Currently all USN WSOs are trained at various locations in the country but all SNFOs (Student Naval Flight Officers) start training at NAS Pensacola
Naval Air Station Pensacola
Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola , "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United States Navy base located next to Warrington, Florida, a community southwest of the Pensacola city limits...

, Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

. Training begins with Introductory Flight Screening where the WSO flies a Cessna 172
Cessna 172
The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is a four-seat, single-engine, high-wing fixed-wing aircraft. First flown in 1955 and still in production, more Cessna 172s have been built than any other aircraft.-Design and development:...

 to show he/she is competent enough in aviation to continue the rigorous training ahead. Then the SNFO starts the U.S. Navy indoctrination course called Aviation Preflight Indoctrination (API). This and culminates with the winging ceremony at the National Museum of Naval Aviation
National Museum of Naval Aviation
The National Museum of Naval Aviation is a military and aerospace museum located at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. The museum opened in 1962....

 next to Sherman Field. After six weeks of ground school and basic water survival training during API, SWSOs (Student WSOs) check in to the Training Squadron, VT-10
VT-10
VT-10 may refer to:* Training Squadron 10* Vermont Route 10...

 Wildcats for Primary and Intermediate training.

Primary

Training begins with several weeks of ground school followed by remnants of the "super-fo" program from the U.S. Navy where the SWSO takes front seat of the new T-6 Texan II
T-6 Texan II
The Beechcraft T-6 Texan II is a single-engined turboprop aircraft built by the Raytheon Aircraft Company . Based on the Pilatus PC-9, the T-6 is used by the United States Air Force for basic pilot training and by the United States Navy for Primary and Intermediate Joint Naval Flight Officer and...

 for six "contact" flights where the student will become familiar with the T-6 and general aviation. The SWSO is treated like a pilot training student for these six flights. After Contacts, the SWSO goes back to academics to learn instrument flying rules
Instrument flight rules
Instrument flight rules are one of two sets of regulations governing all aspects of civil aviation aircraft operations; the other are visual flight rules ....

. Primary ends with a final instrument checkride. After primary the SWSO is compared to his shipmates and selected for tail hook (Aircraft carrier based platforms that have WSOs which are; the E-2, E/A-6B, E/A-18G or F/A-18F).

Intermediate

Intermediate picks up where Primary ends for USAF SWSOs. After the instrument phase of training, students move to visual navigation (VNAV) "low levels" at 2000'AGL, and finish in the T-6 with a final training block called "forms" (formation flying). Forms consist of four flights of learning the basics of close in formation flying. After forms, SWSOs head back to ground school to learn an entirely new aircraft, the USAF T-1 Jayhawk. The T-1s are on loan from the USAF to the USN and are technically based out of Randolph Air Force Base
Randolph Air Force Base
Randolph Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located east-northeast of San Antonio, Texas. The base is under the jurisdiction of the 902d Mission Support Group, Air Education and Training Command ....

, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

. The T-1 is used as an intermediate instrument and low-level trainer for SWSOs, where they receive a total of eight flights. Students are required to learn the aircraft in a two-week ground school period before they go flight side. In contrast, T-6 ground school is six weeks. Training ends at either VT-10 or VT-4 with the "i-grad" ceremony and top graduate award.

Advanced

VT-86 is where all the training comes together to culminate in the SWSO receiving his or her wings of gold. In the T-39, a USN twin-engine jet trainer, SWSOs learn advanced instrument flying, radar navigation (consisting of navigating using an A/G radar from early F-16s), and composite visual/radar navigation. Training takes place on both VR and IR routes that criss-cross the south east United States. After A/G training, track selection takes place. SWSOs select either the F/A-18 Superhornet, or the E/A-18 Growler. The final three months of some of the hardest training at Pensacola will leave the SWSO F/A-18 selectee with their wings of gold. Air force WSO's no longer train at VT-86.

Graduate Training

Following the winging ceremony, WSOs complete several training courses to prepare them for the combat Air Force.

Parachuting Water Survival

All USAF aviators with parachutes on the aircraft attend this three-day course at NAS Pensacola, Florida. During the course, WSOs learn the basics of surviving an aircraft ejection over water, obtaining food and drinkable water when stranded at sea, combat evasion at sea, and how to be successfully rescued by boat or helicopter.

Centrifuge Training

This one-day course located at Holloman Air Force Base
Holloman Air Force Base
Holloman Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located six miles southwest of the central business district of Alamogordo, a city in Otero County, New Mexico, United States. The base was named in honor of Col. George V. Holloman, a pioneer in guided missile research...

, New Mexico tests WSOs selected for the F-15E in their ability to withstand the g-force
G-force
The g-force associated with an object is its acceleration relative to free-fall. This acceleration experienced by an object is due to the vector sum of non-gravitational forces acting on an object free to move. The accelerations that are not produced by gravity are termed proper accelerations, and...

s routinely experienced by fighter aircrew.

SERE

The Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) training course trains all USAF aircrew basic survival skills, combat evasion, and techniques to resist exploitation if captured. WSOs also learn how to survive an aircraft ejection over land. The three-week course is taught at Fairchild Air Force Base
Fairchild Air Force Base
Fairchild Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately southwest of Spokane, Washington.The host unit at Fairchild is the 92d Air Refueling Wing assigned to the Air Mobility Command's 15th Expeditionary Mobility Task Force...

, Washington and the surrounding areas.

IFF

WSOs selected for the F-15E learn basic fighter maneuvers
Basic fighter maneuvers
Basic fighter maneuvers are tactical movements performed by fighter aircraft during air combat maneuvering , in order to gain a positional advantage over the opponent. BFM combines the fundamentals of aerodynamic flight and the geometry of pursuit with the physics of managing the aircraft's...

 (BFM) and surface attack in the T-38C at Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals (IFF). WSOs complete this training at either the 435th Fighter Training Squadron
435th Fighter Training Squadron
The 435th Fighter Training Squadron is part of the 12th Flying Training Wing based at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. It operates AT-38 Talon aircraft conducting flight training.-Mission:...

 at Randolph Air Force Base
Randolph Air Force Base
Randolph Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located east-northeast of San Antonio, Texas. The base is under the jurisdiction of the 902d Mission Support Group, Air Education and Training Command ....

, Texas or the 49th Fighter Training Squadron
49th Fighter Training Squadron
The 49th Fighter Training Squadron is part of the 14th Flying Training Wing based at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi. It operates T-38 Talon aircraft conducting flight training.-World War II:...

 at Columbus Air Force Base
Columbus Air Force Base
Columbus Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located approximately north of Columbus, Mississippi.The host unit at Columbus is the 14th Flying Training Wing assigned to the Air Education and Training Command Nineteenth Air Force. The 14 FTW's mission is to provide specialized...

, Mississippi. WSOs also learn about the culture of being a young aircrew member in a USAF fighter squadron. The course lasts approximately eight weeks.

EWO

SWSOs selected for the B-1B, EA-6B Prowler, B-52H, and some F-15E selectees will become electronic warfare officers
Electronic Warfare Officer
In the U.S. Air Force, an Electronic Warfare Officer is a trained aerial navigator in the Air Force who has received training in enemy threat systems, electronic warfare principles and overcoming enemy air defense systems...

 (EWOs) by attending this 12-week training program at the 563rd Flying Training Squadron at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. Students learn the basics of radar theory, electronic attack, and electronic defense.
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