Editing Aviator call sign (section)

{{Short description|Alternate name used by aircraft operators}}
{{Other uses|Aviation call signs{{!}}Aviation call signs}}

An '''aviator call sign''' or '''aviator callsign''' is a [[call sign]] given to a military pilot, flight officer, and even some enlisted aviators.  The call sign is a specialized form of [[nickname]] that is used as a substitute for the aviator's given name. It is used on flight suit and flight jacket name tags, painted/displayed beneath the officer's or enlisted aircrewman's name on aircraft fuselages or [[Aircraft canopy|canopy]] rails, and in [[radio]] conversations.  They are most commonly used in tactical jet aircraft communities (i.e., fighter, bomber, attack) than in other aircraft communities (i.e., airlift, mobility, maritime patrol), but their use is not totally exclusive to the former. Many [[NASA Astronaut Groups|NASA Astronauts]] with military aviator backgrounds are referred to during spaceflights by their call signs rather than their first names.

The origins of aviator call signs are varied. Most call signs [[word play|play on]] or reference on variants of the aviator's [[firstname]] or [[surname]]. Other inspirations for call signs may include personality traits, middle name, references to historical figures, or past exploits during the pilot's career. Aviator call signs nearly always must come from a member or members of the aviator's squadron, training class, or other cohort.

It is considered bad form to try to give oneself a call sign and it is also common for aviators to be given a fairly derogatory call sign, and the more they complain about it, the more likely it is to stick.{{citation needed|date=November 2018}}

Some aviators use the same call sign throughout their careers; in other cases an aviator might have a series of call signs. For example, U.S. Navy Lieutenant [[Kara Hultgreen]] was originally given the call sign "Hulk" because of her ability to bench-press 200 pounds.<ref name=Time>{{cite magazine |last1=Thompson |first1=Mark |title=Navy Man Claims Aviator Call Signs Get Too Personal |url=http://content.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2011189,00.html |accessdate=August 2, 2017 |magazine=Time |date=August 17, 2010}}</ref> Later, after a television appearance in which she wore noticeable makeup, she received the call sign "Revlon",<ref name=Time/> and a 1998 biography was entitled ''Call Sign Revlon''.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Spears |first1=Sally |title=Call sign Revlon: the life and death of Navy fighter pilot Kara Hultgreen |date=1998 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, Maryland |isbn=9781557508096}}</ref>