Third officer (aviation)

{{Short description|Civil aviation rank}}

{{no footnotes|date=September 2016}}

Third officer is a rarely used civil aviation rank. It was primarily used by Pan Am,{{cite web |last=Lowery|first=John|url=http://www.flightjournal.com/articles/clipperships/flyingclippers.asp|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070209170846/http://www.flightjournal.com/articles/clipperships/flyingclippers.asp |title=Flying the World in Clipper Ships|website=FlightJournal.com|archive-date=9 February 2007}} particularly on its Clippers flying boats during the infancy of extended range airline routes. The third officer would serve as a relief pilot and aircrew member, and could move between pilot, co-pilot, radio officer, and flight engineer positions to provide a rest period for the primary crews.

The position of third officer is rare in modern civil aviation. Modern airliners only require two pilots, the captain and the first officer.{{cite web |title=First-Hand:Evolution of the 2-Person Crew Jet Transport Flight Deck |url=https://ethw.org/First-Hand:Evolution_of_the_2-Person_Crew_Jet_Transport_Flight_Deck |website=ETHW |access-date=24 February 2023 |language=en |date=30 July 2014}} Where relief crew are required for long haul flights, additional captains and first officers will be carried. Junior first officers undergoing training are sometimes known as second officers.