Commander Air Force's mid-rank officers' ranks are modelled on those of the Royal Navy, the term wing commander is used as a rank, and this is the equivalent of a lieutenant colonel in the army or a commander in the navy. The rank of wing commander is above that of squadron leader and below that of group captain. In the former Royal Naval Air Service, which was merged with the Royal Flying Corps to form the Royal Air Force in 1918, the pilots held appointments as well as their normal ranks in the Royal Navy, and they wore insignia appropriate to
Royal Australian Air Force Band Royal Australian Air Force Band The Royal Australian Air Force Band (Air Force Band) is the Royal Australian Air Force's official musical branch. The current commanding officer is Squadron Leader Mark Pentreath, CSM. The director of music is Flight Lieutenant Daniel Phillips. On 16 March 1916, Number One Squadron of the Australian Flying Corps (AFC) sailed from Port Melbourne onboard the Liner Orsova, arriving in Egypt in April of that year. The contingent included musically talented airmen who went to war with their instruments. In the Egyptian desert, a concert party and camp orchestra were formed for the Squadron’s entertainment.