OHL -

Hauptquartier

HQ is comprised of the commanding officer, the assistant commander, and senior advising officers who command.

Senior Officers may or may not be staff officers, and are involved in the most important decisions made by command.

Officers

Loyalty.
Leadership.
Service.
Skill.

Officers are leaders who have accepted the obligation to serve the Jasta in a variety of unique and important ways including assuring that sufficient financial resources are available to keep the unit operational at a level that assures success in carrying out its mission.   

Officers usually start as enlisted men, who at some point during their first year of service with the Jasta, are identified by senior officers as a good potential officer candidate.  

Once an officer, further promotions usually occur after another 18 and 24 months more or less, depending upon an individual's service record, personal interest in additional responsibilities, and organizational need. 

Officers contribute to the formulation and discussion involving important decisions involving the Jasta.

The lowest commissioned rank in many armed forces. Generally earned following at least one year of service to the Jasta.

Senior Pilots and Officer Candidates

Oberfähnrich are the senior pilots of the unit.  They are the best and most capable pilots in the air.  However the rank is not bound to a command position, 

A Fähnrich is a pilot who served in the regular ranks, first as a junior NCO then in subsequent grades.  The rank is not bound to a command position, but pilots in this rank may be considered for officer candidacy.

Officer candidates are expected to begin to serve the unit in a variety of important ways, including  monthly contributions to the operational expenses of the unit, in the unlikely event that they are not already doing so.

Promotion into the officer ranks generally occurs after 12-18 months or adequate demonstrated service to the unit and completion of an officer training program.  Refer to officers description in section above.

(officer candidate) is a German and Austrian military rank in armed forces which has no direct comparison in the English speaking world (though the French Army has a similar position called an Aspirant).

for Officer Training and/or Instructor Roles

Staff have positions and not ranks. A pilot filling a staff position may or may not have the rank of an officer, and so these positions are listed here beneath the higher ranked  sections. Staff are involved in day to day operational functioning of the Jasta and so serve a vital role to our success.  Staff are to be respected and appreciated by all pilots. 

Appointed

Appointed

Non

Commissioned

Officers

Hauptfeldwebel begin to take responsibilities on similar to those that officers have - to lead through service to the Jasta.

Feldwebel play an important role in the unit  as they are relied upon as instructor pilots. 

Unteroffiziere are  eligible to contribute to the unit success by flying in campaign missions.

Upon reaching the NCO ranks, each pilot should begin to consider their personal responsibility to financially support the monthly operational needs of the unit, which they are benefiting from, in the event that they have not already begun to do so.

Hauptfeldwebel (HFw)

In the German military, the appointment of Hauptfeldwebel was the German equivalent of a Commonwealth Company Sergeant Major or American Company First Sergeant. Duties are largely administrative. He was the senior NCO of his subunit, and had many nicknames including 'der Spiess' ("the Spear") and 'die Mutter der Kompanie' ("company mother").

Translated literally as “Under Officer”, this is perhaps misleading as an Unteroffizier is in actuality a junior enlisted rank. The rank of Unteroffizier was first created to "bridge the gap" between career professional soldiers and enlisted conscripts. 

When a pilot finishes their Pilot School (intermediate certification), they earn priority in being assigned missions during campaign missions. 

Refer to the Unteroffizer training forum for metrics used to guide in the  determination of eligibility for promotion to Feldwebel,

Pilot Training Completed (Intermediate Certification)

Enlisted Personnel

Enlisted personnel are largely made up of conscripts serving their nine months of mandatory service. 

The most important distinction between NCOs and enlisted men is that the latter cannot give orders to lower-ranked soldiers unless under very specific circumstances (e.g. while on guard duty).

Gefreiter is the German equivalent for Private in the armed services. Gefreiter was the lowest rank to which an ordinary soldier could be promoted. Soldiers holding the rank of Gefreiter or Obergefreiter were equal in status only to private soldiers; they had no powers of command or authority, and the rank represented little more than a pay raise. They were not non-commissioned officers (in German, Unteroffiziere mit Portepee (Senior NCO) or Unteroffiziere ohne Portepee (Junior NCO).

Gefreiter are called upon to begin contributing to missions in campaigns, often initially in the capacity of flight support or as reserve pilots or during times of urgent need, as an active pilot on the flight line.

Flieger (Flg.) - 

are primarily in a learning capacity, adapting to the requirements of the military profession, acquiring knowledge of Jasta 5 customs, courtesies, and standards, as well as striving to attain technical proficiency. Flieger operate at the tactical level. 

Flieger have the privilege, and are expected to fly "in uniform", by using the designation J5 in front of their names while flying in servers.  e.g. J5_Voss.

(first official training flight)

are hopeful pilots to be who have recently applied to fly at the Western Front with  Jasta 5.  

Recruits go through their "Induction" - getting their game installed, getting communications set up and making sure that they have all the basic tools necessary to begin their training and otherwise be an  active member of the Jagdstaffel.

Recruits do not bear any uniform rank insignia, which would normally be worn on the sleeves, which accounts for the nickname of "slick sleeve".