The RAAF has announced it will replace the term ‘Airmen’ with ‘Aviators’.

Speaking to the RAAF Centenary dinner on March 31, Chief of Air Force AIRMSHL Mel Hupfeld said he wants to instil a stronger sense of identity as the service enters its second century.

“Of all the work that has been done in developing our Air Force culture, the most challenging dilemma has been fully explaining who we are,” he said. “We understand well enough what we are and what we do – but have never quite managed to successfully articulate WHO we are. We are ALL aviators.

“As an Air Force, we are born of the air and space,” he added. “It is our home, and the place from which we serve our nation. Our trade is aviation. “In everything that we do, we are aviators first and foremost. All of us, by virtue of what we do and what we believe. It is what binds us together.”

The change coincides with the announcement to revamp Air Force culture through the ‘Our Air Force, Our Culture’ program, and closely aligns with the update to the Air Force Strategy launched in 2020.