United States aviator badges

The United States aviator badges (commonly referred to as "wings") refers to the various aviator badges and insignia issued by the uniformed services of the United States; the United States Army, United States Air Force (USAF), United States Navy (USN), United States Marine Corps (USMC), United States Coast Guard (USCG), and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps (NOAA Corps) to qualified aircraft pilots. The United States Space Force (USSF) and the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps (USPHSCC) are the only uniformed services which do not issue their own aviator badges; however, USSF and USPHSCC personnel are authorized to wear most badges earned from another uniformed service, to include aviator badges.

The NOAA Corps, USN, USMC, and USCG all issue an aviator badge in a single degree, with the latter three branches sharing the same design. The Army and USAF each issue distinct badges to their aviators, with each badge authorized in three degrees to recognize skill and experience levels. All U.S. armed services (excluding the USSF) issue aircrew badges to personnel that are not pilots but are regularly engaged in flight as part of their official duties. The Army, USAF, USN (USMC medical personnel are provided by the USN), and USCG also all issue various "wings" to aviation medical personnel, such as the Army Flight Surgeon Badge, the USAF Flight Nurse Badge, the USN Aerospace Experimental Psychologist Badge, and the USCG Flight Surgeon Badge, among others. The USAF additionally issues a variety of "aeronautical" insignia to flying personnel that are neither "aviator" nor "aircrew" badges, such as the USAF Combat Systems Officer Badge or the USAF Air Battle Manager Badge.

The USAF's civilian auxiliary, the Civil Air Patrol; and the USCG's civilian auxiliary, the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary, both issue unique aviator badges, while also permitting wear of military badges, to include aviator badges. Civilian airlines in the U.S. (and globally) generally issue aviator badges to pilots, and may also issue modified variants of the same badges to other crew members (flight engineers, flight stewards, loadmasters, etc), though some entities utilize dedicated aircrew badges to recognize non-pilots. Other, non-military, non-airline U.S. entities may also issue or award aviator badges; The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) offers badges in varying degrees to recognize completion of various stages of the FAA's WINGS Pilot Proficiency Program. U.S. federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies may issue aviator and aircrew badges to personnel that qualify as law enforcement pilots or aircrew, respectively. U.S. civilian flight schools, aviation clubs and organizations (e.g. Seaplane Pilots Association or the Experimental Aircraft Association), and youth programs (e.g. Boy Scouts of America or Aviation Career Exploring) also issue a variety of aviator badges (usually but not always modeled as "wings").