Navy recruits who begin their careers in the general rate of Airman (AN) will eventually find themselves performing some type of work involving the nearly 2500 planes, helicopters, and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) that are currently operational afloat and ashore in the U.S. Navy. Upon completion of their apprenticeships as Airmen, they might specialize in the ordnance carried by fixed- or rotary-wing aircraft; they could be assigned to deploy electronic countermeasures to thwart enemy efforts to locate Navy ships or aircraft; they might even become the Navy’s “weathermen,” and develop forecasts used for plotting the navigational tracks used by Navy battle groups.
The ratings that a Sailor who complete an Airman apprenticeship can pursue fall into five of the Occupational Fields listed in the Manual of Navy Enlisted Manpower and Personnel Classifications and Occupational Standards: Air Traffic Control, Aviation Ground Support, Aviation Maintenance/Weapons, Aviation Sensor Operations, and Meteorology. In all, these comprise 19 different rating, but eight of these are what are known as Service Ratings, subdivisions of more generalized ratings created because of the need for highly specialized training and qualification.
Airmen who wind up seeking a career in the Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (AB) rating, for instance, will work in one of three service ratings: Launching and Recovery (ABE), Fuels (ABF), or Aircraft Handling (ABH). All three service ratings fall under the Aviation Boatswain’s Mate rating, so the rating badge worn by an ABE Sailor is identical to the one worn by another in the ABH service rating.
The tasks performed by Sailors during their Airmen apprenticeship fall into seven categories: Aviation Support Operations, Corrosion Control and Material Preservation, Aircraft Maintenance, Safety, Watchstanding, Naval Orientation and Organization, and “General.” Much of the training involves simply becoming acquainted with the equipment, procedures, and nomenclature they will eventually be using as they advance toward a job in a particular rating. For instance, under Naval Orientation and Organization, Airmen apprentices are required to define common Naval aviation terms and nomenclature and known the organizational structure of Nava aviation—foundational knowledge that forms the bedrock for future learning.
Airmen Recruits do not wear insignias of any type and are in the lowest paygrade of E1. Advancement to Apprentice status and the E2 paygrade is signified by two stripes worn on the sleeve, and full Airman status is displayed with three stripes and a raise to a paygrade of E3.