Station Warrant Officer
Encyclopedia
The Station Warrant Officer (SWO, often pronounced as a word) is the senior Warrant Officer
on a British
Royal Air Force
station
. The SWO is responsible for discipline and is therefore comparable to the Garrison Sergeant Major
in a British Army
unit. He is the station commander's link to the other ranks and his eyes and ears on the ground for all issues that may effect the smooth running of the station.
Once a member of the Royal Air Force has reached the rank of Warrant Officer or Master Aircrew
, they are eligible to apply to be a SWO. There are a few cases of Flight Sergeants acting in the position of SWO.
Warrant Officer
A warrant officer is an officer in a military organization who is designated an officer by a warrant, as distinguished from a commissioned officer who is designated an officer by a commission, or from non-commissioned officer who is designated an officer by virtue of seniority.The rank was first...
on a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
station
RAF station
A Royal Air Force station is a permanent Royal Air Force operations location. Many RAF stations are aerodromes, or airbases, being the home to one or more flying squadrons. Other RAF stations are training units, administrative units, headquarters , or carry out ground-based operational tasks...
. The SWO is responsible for discipline and is therefore comparable to the Garrison Sergeant Major
Garrison Sergeant Major
A Garrison Sergeant Major in the British Army is the senior warrant officer of a garrison and holds the rank of Warrant Officer Class 1. The GSM London District, always a guardsman, holds one of the four most senior WO1 appointments in the British Army, and has military ceremonial responsibility...
in a British Army
British Army
The British Army is the land warfare branch of Her Majesty's Armed Forces in the United Kingdom. It came into being with the unification of the Kingdom of England and Scotland into the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707. The new British Army incorporated Regiments that had already existed in England...
unit. He is the station commander's link to the other ranks and his eyes and ears on the ground for all issues that may effect the smooth running of the station.
Once a member of the Royal Air Force has reached the rank of Warrant Officer or Master Aircrew
Master Aircrew
Master aircrew is the warrant-officer rank held by aircrew in the Royal Air Force. It is equivalent to warrant officer in other trades, and is effectively the highest non-commissioned aircrew rank...
, they are eligible to apply to be a SWO. There are a few cases of Flight Sergeants acting in the position of SWO.