The Rated Force Goes Down

Despite an uptick in the middle 1980s, the number of active duty Air Force aircraft and the number of officers with aeronautical ratings--pilots and navigators--have been falling steadily for many years.

At the peak of World War II, almost 46 percent of the officer force wore wings. Today, it's about 24 percent.

In the 1950s, pilots accounted for more than 40 percent of the total officers. Today, they are 17 percent.

The number of active duty pilots has fallen by 91 percent since World War II-but the drop in the number of active duty aircraft has been even steeper, down more than 92 percent.

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Sources: Army Air Forces Statistical Digest, World War II, 1945; A History of the United States Air Force, 1907-1957 ©1957, The Air Force Association; Air Force Magazine Almanac issues, 1987-2001.