wing commander

American  

noun

1. British. an officer in the Royal Air Force equivalent in rank to a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force.

2. an officer of the U.S. Navy or Air Force who commands a wing.

---

wing commander British  

noun

1. an officer holding commissioned rank in certain air forces, such as the Royal Air Force: junior to a group captain and senior to a squadron leader

---

Etymology

Origin of wing commander

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

The organisation's chief executive, wing commander Ian Cumming, said he would never forget Lamond's "cheeky patter".

From BBC • Feb. 9, 2026

Sean D. Riley, the wing commander, was relieved of his command, it added.

From New York Times • Dec. 11, 2023

With the rank of wing commander, Mr. Edwards shot down a confirmed 19 Luftwaffe fighter planes and scored many more “probables,” the aircraft he put out of action but did not see hit the ground.

From Washington Post • May 21, 2022

Safi was a wing commander in Mazar-e-Sharif, overseeing operations in north and northeast Afghanistan.

From Reuters • Dec. 29, 2021

General Dreedle, the wing commander, was a blunt, chunky, barrel-chested man in his early fifties.

From "Catch-22" by Joseph Heller