Pilot ranks in mechcommander 2

[Jondor_Battlehammer]

I recently dug out MC2 from my closet, and I have been playing through the story line. The game has five ranks for its pilots, from green to elite. In the game manual there is a footnote that says there are rumors of even higher ranks. I did the standard Google search and found absolutely nothing. Was this a throw away statement that may have gone somewhere in an expansion, or is there a way to get a higher pilot rank?

 

[Croesus]

I recently dug out MC2 from my closet, and I have been playing through the story line. The game has five ranks for its pilots, from green to elite. In the game manual there is a footnote that says there are rumors of even higher ranks. I did the standard Google search and found absolutely nothing. Was this a throw away statement that may have gone somewhere in an expansion, or is there a way to get a higher pilot rank?

There are five ranks:
Green
Regular
Veteran
Elite
Ace

MC2 is one of my favorite games. I think I've played through the entire campaign at least 3 times. If you're looking for a good site with walkthroughs and tips, try out:

http://www.the-spoiler.com/OTHER/Microsoft/mechcommander.2.2/index.htm

BTW, Sharpshooter, an Ace-only skill, is the pre-eminent skill in the game.