William Dickson (RAF officer)

William Dickson (1944)

Sir William Forster Dickson , GCB , KBE , DSO , AFC (born September 24, 1898 in Northwood , Middlesex ; † September 12, 1987 at RAF Wroughton Air Force Base ) was a British Marshal of the Royal Air Force who served between 1946 and 1947 Vice-chief of the air Staff ( Vice chief of the air Staff ) , 1953-1956 chief of the air Staff ( chief of the air Staff ) , 1956-1959 Chairman of the chief of the rods (Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee) and most recently 1959 the first holder of that emerged from the Office of the Chief of defense Staff ( Chief of the defense Staff ) was.

Life

Military training, World War I and transfer to the RAF

Dickson completed his schooling at the Bowden House in Seaford and at Haileybury and Imperial Service College in Hertford and then stepped on 8 October 1916 in the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS) one in which he as a pilot candidate (probationary Flight Officer) flight training completed. After completing his training, he took part in various missions from the naval aviation base on the Isle of Grain and was transferred as a pilot to the HMS Furious , which was converted into an aircraft carrier , on August 2, 1917 , where he dealt with landing attempts. He was mentioned for the first time in the war report on October 1, 1917 ( Mentioned in dispatches ) .

After its adoption as a lieutenant in the newly formed Royal Air Force April 1, 1918 he was on 19 July 1918 a group of seven pilots of Sopwith Camel - fighters that the so-called Tondern Raid took part. This was the first air raid launched from an aircraft carrier and directed against the positions of the German Imperial Navy in Tønder . The airships LZ 54 and LZ 60 were destroyed . For his services during this time he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) on September 21, 1918 . In addition, he was mentioned for the second time in the war report on January 1, 1919.

After the end of the war he was on April 8, 1919 as a pilot on the battleship Queen Elizabeth , where he was also taken on August 1, 1919 as a professional soldier (Permanent Commission) with the rank of First Lieutenant (Flying Officer) in the RAF. After a brief period between March 25 and May 15, 1920 in the staff at the RAF Gosport military airfield , he became a pilot of the No. 210 Squadron RAF and then on April 4, 1921 a pilot on the aircraft carrier HMS Argus .

Time until World War II

Dickson was then from January 1, 1922 to March 20, 1923 test pilot at the Air Force Research Facility ( Royal Aircraft Establishment ) at RAF Farnborough base . For his services there he was awarded the Air Force Cross (AFC) on June 3, 1922 . He was also promoted to captain (Flight Lieutenant) on June 30, 1922 , which was dated back to April 1, 1918. On 20 March 1923 he switched to the Air Ministry ( Air Ministry ) , where he first staff officer for marine and aviation matters and then between 1 May 1923 and the July 1, 1926 Personal aide to the Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, Air Commodore John Miles Steel , who was also the head of the Department of Operations and Intelligence. After a brief, unplanned assignment in an air force depot, on July 19, 1926, he became the pilot in command of the Gloster-Grebe fighter aircraft equipped with No. 56 Squadran RAF at RAF Biggin Hill Air Base .

Dickson completed a course at RAF Staff College, Andover between September 19, 1927 and December 17, 1928 and initially stayed there above schedule before joining the staff of No. 1 Indian Wing was transferred to the base RAF Kohat in British India . He was then from April 4 to December 30, 1930 Personal Adjutant of the Commander of the British Air Force in India (RAF India) and was promoted to Major (Squadron Leader) in this role on November 5, 1930 . During this time he was mentioned again on June 26, 1931 in the war report. Subsequently, he remained until March 30, 1934 as a staff officer at the headquarters of the RAF in British India, before he was initially assigned to an air force depot after his return.

On June 4, 1934, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). He then attended from July 30 to September 19, 1934 a pilot refresher course at the Central Flying School . After a subsequent assignment in the staff of the RAF Western Area, he took on his first own command post on January 14, 1935, as the commanding officer of the Hawker Fury fighter aircraft equipped No. 25 Squadron RAF at RAF Hawkinge Air Force Base. Then he was between 2 March 1936 and the January 17, 1939 an officer in the Joint Staff of the RAF Staff College and received in this use at 1 January 1937 was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel (Wing Commander) before it on 17 January to 3 Attended Imperial Defense College July 1939 .

Second World War

Shortly before the start of the Second World War, Dickson was transferred to the planning department of the Air Force Staff on July 3, 1939, of which he was head from March 1, 1941 to May 17, 1942. In this role, he played a key role in planning operations for the British armed forces and was a member of the advisory staff to Prime Minister Winston Churchill and the chiefs of the armed forces staff. Shortly before the end of this activity, he was promoted to Colonel (Group Captain) on April 14, 1942 , the promotion being dated back to January 1, 1940.

He was then from May 17 to June 26, 1942 Chief of Staff SASO (Senior Air Staff Officer) of No. 9 Fighter Group RAF , of which he was then Air Officer Commanding until November 4, 1942. As such, he became Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB) on June 11, 1942 . He was then from November 4, 1942 to March 21, 1943 in command of No. 10 Group RAF and during this time accompanied the commander of the air attack command ( RAF Fighter Command ) , Air Marshal Trafford Leigh-Mallory , on inspection trips to the desert air force (Desert Air Force) . As a result of this visit, on his return on March 21, 1943, he was entrusted as commander with the formation of the first composite Air Force Group (No. 83 (Composite) Group RAF) , which was the base of the 2nd Tactical Air Fleet ( RAF Second Tactical Air Force ) . After about a year of planning the organization and administration of this new unit, he was replaced by Harry Broadhurst on April 6, 1944, before the landing in Normandy at the request of the Commander-in-Chief of the 21st Army Group , General Bernard Montgomery , while he himself was again Broadhurst's successor Commander of the Desert Air Force stationed in Italy . Shortly afterwards, on April 11, 1944, he was awarded the Soviet Order of Suvorov 3rd Class and the dignity of Commander of the US Legion of Merit .

Promotion to Air Chief Marshal

Shortly before the end of the Second World War, Dickson became Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Policy) on December 21, 1944 and remained in this position until June 1, 1946. July 1945 Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) and knight commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) on January 1, 1946 , so that he has had the addition of "Sir" since then. He was also promoted to major general (Air Vice Marshal) on April 1, 1946 .

On June 1, 1946 Dickson Air Chief Marshal Douglas Evill replaced as Vice-Chief of the Air Staff ( Vice Chief of the Air Staff ) , and held this position until his replacement by Air Marshal James Robb . During this time he was promoted to Lieutenant General (Air Marshal) on July 1, 1947 and took over from Air Marshal Charles Medhurst on March 1, 1948 as Commander in Chief of the Air Forces in the Mediterranean and Middle East (RAF Mediterranean and Middle East) .

He then returned to Great Britain and served between March 2, 1950 and January 1, 1953 as a member of the Air Force Committee for Supply and Organization (Air Member for Supply & Organization) . In this role he played a key role in the expansion of the RAF due to the Korean War and in the talks and planning for the use of US Air Force aircraft on British air bases. During his activity as an Air Member he was promoted to General (Air Chief Marshal) on January 8, 1951 and on January 1, 1952 also knighted commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB). On February 15, 1952, he was a representative of the Air Force at the funeral of King George VI. in St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle .

Chief of the Air Staff and Chief of the Defense Staff

On January 1, 1953 Dickson was appointed Knight Grand Cross collected the Order of the Bath (GCB) and triggered at the same time Marshal of the Royal Air Force John Slessor as Chief of the Air Staff ( Chief of the Air Staff ) from. During this time, on June 1, 1954, he was promoted to Marshal of the Royal Air Force , the highest rank in the Royal Air Force. He held the position of Chief of the Air Staff until January 1, 1956 and was then replaced by Air Chief Marshal Dermot Boyle .

Dickson even then the rods took over on 1 January 1956 post newly created as chairman of the chiefs (Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee) and until 1 January 1959 of the emerged from the Office of the Chief of Defense Staff ( Chief of the Defense Staff ) . He held this post until his retirement on July 16, 1959 and was then replaced by Admiral of the Fleet Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma .

After retiring from active service, Dickson involved in various charities and in 1964 head (master) of the Guild of Glass Merchants ( Worshipful Company of Glass Sellers ) .

Web links

• Biography on Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organization

predecessor	Office	successor
Sir John Slessor	Chief of the Air Staff 1953-1956	Sir Dermot Boyle
Office newly created	Chief of the Defense Staff 1959	Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma