I was wondering if there was a way, perhaps a specific file I could tweak, that would effect what ranks are generated when starting a career? My goal is to greatly diminish the amount of sergeants (RFC career) that will make up the squadron. I assume that there is a file somewhere that would determine what is generated for the squadron upon creating the character.

I thought the pilots filling the squadrons in WOFF were historical and I assume their ranks are too.

I always believed that in WW1 Sergeant pilots were not that common, however more were Observers.

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The number of NCO pilots in the RFC currently in WOFF is fully unrealistic. I am on the road at the moment so I don't have access to my books, but if memory serves the total number of NCO pilots in the RFC at any given time throughout the war never exceeded 3% of all active pilots in the service. Also, many of those NCO pilots were not stationed with front line squadrons but rather were in the back serving as ferry pilots and such. Of further note, the total number of NCO pilots who actually claimed victories was about seventy or so for the entire war. Honestly, in WOFF you should never see more than one Sergeant Pilot assigned to a front line squadron, and more often than not none at all. The class prejudice at the time was just too strong. There was a quote from one of the British RFC commanders during WWI, can't recall which one, who said something to the effect that if a man was good enough and of the right caliber to have earned his pilot's certificate he should be commissioned.

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Eh.
I believe depending on the time period or squadron things could vary a bit more.
I've seen squadrons with none and some with 3 or 4 historically.
Believe it was more common early war than late?

But yes the Sgt pilot was not common with most seeming to "second" to the RFC at a officers rank looking about 90% Lieutenant or 2nd Lt.

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That hasn't been my experience as of late Duke. I am typically seeing from a third to nearly half the pilots in an RFC unit as Sergeants. Never happened that way in RL.

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Oh sorry I was talking "RL" above.
Game-wise, on average, yes there are too many Sergeants in a squadron.
Too many Captains and Majors for that matter.

Hmmm, actually, I think there are far too many Leftenants. Realistically, only one in ten should be, the ratio really should be 90% Rightenant to only 10% Leftenant...I'm sorry, did someone say we had to recertify monthly for our Barmy commission?

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You forgot about the Ambidextroustenants Rick. About one in every hundred should be an Ambidextroustenant.

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Right you are, sir!

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Duke, I find Captains and Majors extremely rare. Mostly Sergreants and 2nd Lieutenants. I was just seeing if this was something I could mod on my own and not bother wish listing it. Thanks to some talented folks on here, I've learned that this is not something I can fix on my own.

I think rank should be "polished"a bit,at least any RFC Squadron would need a CO,and at least it should be Major or Captain,too often there are only a bunch of Sergeants,just like in my actual career in RFC 54,Winter 1917,Leutenant is the higher rank (two exactly) one being me, so i have to lead a Flight,that's not correct at all,since it's been like this for months now.I hear the word "historically" spread too much in WOFF threads,I am afraid it's abused a bit after all.

Well if you want to see some brass enlist and fly with an elite squadron for a while.

That's not a solution,even "poor" squadrons had Majors and Captains.

Well, at least half of the German navy's Oberleutnants are currently serving in MFJ I. The Staffel does have one Oberflugmeister though. Poor fellow! Still, at least he's got an Ober in his title too.

Oh good lord.
What I was saying is that if you WANT to see a lot of Captains and Majors fly a while with an elite squadron.
It wasn't meant to be a "solution."
As a practical matter the WOFF rank system within a squadron, certainly as a campaign progresses, could use some work obviously.
Historically, for a RFC squadron you will have 1 Major (Squadron Commander), 3 Captains (Flight Commanders), and the rest Lieutenants, 2nd Lieutenants, and maybe a Sgt or two. Of course with a war on, and people getting killed, you will see temporary aberrations but the above is the ideal.

I served in the Royal Air Force as a commissioned officer. I remember during one of my early training classes having it explained that the reason historically the Royal Air Force and indeed the Royal Flying Corp preferred aircrew to be commissioned was that if shot down and captured an officer received better treatment in captivity, also as an officer it is ones duty to try and escape or otherwise cause disruption to the enemy.

Class certainly played apart in WW1. But having said that my Grandfather volunteered in the early years of WW1 and served as a Gunner in the Royal Horse Artillery. By 1918 he was a Captain. So promotion from the ranks certainly happened.

As a small bit of interest, when I was a small child, I am not sure of my age my Grandfather use to take me for walks, with me in my little pedal car. When I got tired he would hook his walking stick onto my car and pull me along. I remember clearly one afternoon we walked past a man trimming his hedge. My Grandfather raised his hat and bid the man Good afternoon. The man returned the greeting. After we passed the man called after us "Excuse me sir, are you by any chance Captain Bannister?".
My Grandfather stopped, turned raised his hat and replied his name was indeed Bannister and he had ended the Great War as a Captain.
The man then became quite excited and I remember him saying, "It's me Sir, Sergeant Banks, B Battery, I thought it was you Sir!"

My Grandfather who never swore or Blasphemed in anyway shocked me by exclaiming "Jesus Christ so it is!" Even more shocking to me was my rather proper Grandfather then hugged this chap!
We were invited in and I remember most eating strawberries and ice cream while they talked.

Funny but this episode has stayed in my memory for must be around 53 years!

I'm here to say that Grandfathers are so cool. I can't wait to be one.

Way to many Sergeants, Captains and Majors. It's the one thing that annoys me slightly for such and excellently researched sim. I have a pilot in a Squadron which has about six Captains and four Majors! Though it does have only one sergeant.

Germany was totally different I believe. For instance in two seater's the higher rank was the Observer.

Well it's not a research question I assure you. OBD is fully up on their WW1 history.
It's a game engine/implementation issue that needs a tweak.