What is "first officer"

First \First\ (f[~e]rst), a. [OE. first, furst, AS. fyrst; akin to Icel. fyrstr, Sw. & Dan. f["o]rste, OHG. furist, G. f["u]rst prince; a superlatiye form of E. for, fore. See For, Fore, and cf. Formeer, Foremost.]

1. Preceding all others of a series or kind; the ordinal of one; earliest; as, the first day of a month; the first year of a reign.

2. Foremost; in front of, or in advance of, all others.

3. Most eminent or exalted; most excellent; chief; highest; as, Demosthenes was the first orator of Greece. At first blush. See under Blush. At first hand, from the first or original source; without the intervention of any agent. It is the intention of the person to reveal it at first hand, by way of mouth, to yourself. --Dickens. First coat (Plastering), the solid foundation of coarse stuff, on which the rest is placed; it is thick, and crossed with lines, so as to give a bond for the next coat. First day, Sunday; -- so called by the Friends. First floor.

   1. The ground floor. [U.S.]

   2. The floor next above the ground floor. [Eng.] First fruit or First fruits.

      1. The fruits of the season earliest gathered.

      2. (Feudal Law) One year's profits of lands belonging to the king on the death of a tenant who held directly from him.

   3. (Eng. Eccl. Law) The first year's whole profits of a benefice or spiritual living.

   4. The earliest effects or results.

      See, Father, what first fruits on earth are sprung From thy implanted grace in man!
      --Milton.

      First mate, an officer in a merchant vessel next in rank to the captain.

      First name, same as Christian name. See under Name, n.

      First officer (Naut.), in the merchant service, same as First mate (above).

      First sergeant (Mil.), the ranking non-commissioned officer in a company; the orderly sergeant.
      --Farrow.

      First watch (Naut.), the watch from eight to twelve at midnight; also, the men on duty during that time.

      First water, the highest quality or purest luster; -- said of gems, especially of diamond and pearls.

      Syn: Primary; primordial; primitive; primeval; pristine; highest; chief; principal; foremost.

n. 1 The copilot of an aircraft. 2 The chief mate of a merchant ship. 3 The executive officer, second in command of a naval vessel. 4 The most senior civil servant in the United States Foreign Service, with responsibility for running an embassy under the authority of and reporting to the ambassador. 5 Air Transport Auxiliary rank corresponding to Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force. 6 Women's Royal Naval Service rank corresponding to Lieutenant-Commander in the Royal Navy.

First officer may refer to:

• Chief mate, the second-in-command (usually) of a merchant ship
• First officer (civil aviation), the second pilot of a civil aircraft
• Executive officer (military), the second-in-command of a naval vessel
• The most senior civil service position in the United States Foreign Service, with responsibility for running an embassy under the authority of and reporting to the ambassador
• Air Transport Auxiliary rank corresponding to Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force
• Women's Royal Naval Service rank corresponding to Lieutenant-Commander in the Royal Navy

In commercial aviation, the first officer is the second pilot (also referred to as the co-pilot) of an aircraft. The first officer is second-in-command of the aircraft to the captain, who is the legal commander. In the event of incapacitation of the captain, the first officer will assume command of the aircraft.

Control of the aircraft is normally shared equally between the first officer and the captain, with one pilot normally designated the "pilot flying" (PF) and the other the "pilot not flying" (PNF), or "pilot monitoring" (PM), for each flight. Even when the first officer is the flying pilot, however, the captain remains ultimately responsible for the aircraft, its passengers, and the crew. In typical day-to-day operations, the essential job tasks remain fairly equal.

Many airlines promote by seniority only within their own company. As a consequence, an airline first officer may be older and/or have more flight experience than a captain, by virtue of having experience from other airlines or the military. Traditionally, the first officer sits on the right-hand side of a fixed-wing aircraft (" right seat") and the left-hand side of a helicopter (the reason for this difference is related to the fact that in many cases the pilot flying is unable to release his right hand from the cyclic control to operate the instruments, thus he sits on the right side and does that with his left hand). Other airlines may designate the more senior of two first officers operating a long-haul sector together with a captain in an enlarged crew as the senior first officer. He will then sit in the left seat when the captain takes his rest.

In the rank of senior first officer the pilot will also sit in the right hand seat. Often the senior first officer position is used within airlines to mean someone who has passed all the requirements for captain, but there are no empty captain's positions within the company as yet, and therefore they are "on hold" until a position as captain becomes available when they will receive their command line check.