Fighter Ace

Ace

Military Jargon for pilot killing 10 or more enemy craft

A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The actual number of air victories required to officially qualify as an "ace" has varied, but is usually considered to be five or more. The few aces among combat pilots have historically accounted for the majority of air to air victories in military history.

The United Stars of the Galaxies Space Fleet is one of the few civilizations known that uses small fast space craft called fighters.

Union forces make extensive use of this class of space craft and while there are fully automated non manned robotic versions, the Union still relies on manned fighter craft.

It had been determined that even the most sophisticated computronics cannot completely replace living beings and that well trained fighter pilots outperform any machine solution ( The exception being X101 Pilots)

The beings trained as fighter pilots form a special elite division even among the highly trained professionals of the fleet and have many traditions. Of all Union member species only the Terrans (until the Dai Thaan and the Nul join the Union) used fighter crafts in space and so it comes that most Union fleet fighter related traditions have their roots in pre astro Earth traditions.

A Union Fighter pilot becomes ACE after killing/ destroying 10 or more enemy craft. That pilot earns the right to wear the Ace Ribbon and is allowed to customize their fighters paint jobs.

The highest scoring Ace to this day is retired Admiral Har Hi. He managed to kill 76 enemy fighters during the Battle of Kishar rising his life time score to 323 space fighter kills (not counting the kills he scored as a young man before he joined the fleet with his Dai Clan)

(*) Har Hi and Eric Olafson were the youngest pilots in Fleet history who made Ace in a Day.