Who is in charge of RAF Bentley Priory?
RAF Bentley Priory
The former Bentley Priory Officers' Mess, which became the Bentley Priory Museum in September 2013, includes the original office of Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding (later Lord Dowding), Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain, preserved with its original furniture. Other Battle of Britain historic artefacts are kept in the Museum, including one of the few remaining Battle of Britain Lace Panels.
Bentley Priory
By the time the Domesday Book was compiled in 1086, William the Conqueror had invested his own bishop (Lansfranc) with the Archbishopric of Canterbury and restored the lands of Harrow, appropriated by King Edward the Confessor, to the Church. The original Priory, which was the only monastic establishment in the Manor of Harrow, housed a cell Augustinian Friars. Bentley Priory is believed to have been founded in 1171 by Ranulf de Glanvill, who was King Henry II's Justiciar from 1180 to 1189. It was dedicated to St. Mary Magdalene, and was in the patronage of the Archbishop of Canterbury. It may have been founded as a cell of St Gregory's Priory, Canterbury, and was certainly under its rule by 1301, when the prior of Bentley was reported to have let a farm without the approval of his superior, the prior of St Gregory's.
RAF Wittering
The station commander of RAF Wittering is currently Group Captain Tony Keeling OBE MDA MA BEng CEng FRAeS RAF, an engineering officer, who is also the commander of the RAF A4 Force Elements.
RAF Bentley Priory
Although several of the rooms were built during the 18th century, alterations to most of them have led to the loss of their original character. Only the entrance hall remains virtually intact with its eight 'Roman Doric' columns supporting a shallow vaulted ceiling. The 1979 fire peeled off the whitewash paint cover of the ceiling revealing the intricate painted pattern (as designed by Sloane). Although the finances did not allow this pattern to be restored at the time, it has since been returned to its former glory by Mess members. A second small fire was started while restoration was under way in 1980 cause of the fire was work lights left on over night.
Anti-Aircraft Command
AA Command was under the operational direction of RAF Fighter Command as part of Air Defence of Great Britain, and occupied a headquarters known as "Glenthorn" in the grounds of Bentley Priory, home of Fighter Command.
RAF Coningsby
The Honorary Air Commandant is Prince William.
RAF Bentley Priory
Project MoDEL is making a major contribution to the consolidation of the Defence Estate in Greater London through the delivery of three key outputs: the development of an integrated 'core site' at RAF Northolt; the re-location of the London-based units; and the disposal of surplus sites. Accordingly, DASC, AHB and RAF Ceremonial relocated to RAF Northolt in 2008 following the completion of their new accommodation. A total of £180 million GBP ($295 million US in 2008) of the £300 million GBP released from Project MoDEL has been re-invested back into RAF Northolt.
No. 3 Group RAF
The Group was reformed on 1 April 2000 to control Joint Force Harrier and maritime aircraft transferred from the former No. 11/18 Group RAF. It came under a Royal Navy officer, the Flag Officer Maritime Aviation. Rear Admiral Iain Henderson was the first occupant of the post, who also had the NATO roles of COMAIREASTLANT and COMMARAIRNORTH. AOC 3 Group/FOMA had two RAF subordinates, Air Commodore Harrier (for all the RAF Harriers and FAA Sea Harriers) and Air Commodore Maritime (for the Nimrods and SAR helicopters). After a further reorganisation in 2003-4, the group became known as the Battle Management Group and controlled the Airborne Early Warning aircraft, ground-based radar installations, maritime reconnaissance aircraft and the search and rescue helicopters in the UK. The group was based alongside Strike Command at RAF High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.
John Bentley (rugby)
Bentley was born in Dewsbury, West Riding of Yorkshire, England, he currently lives in nearby Mirfield with his wife Sandy and three children. He is currently involved with Leeds Tykes community rugby programme and matchday entertainment. He is an Honorary President of the Yorkshire region of the rugby charity Wooden Spoon improving the lives of disadvantaged children and young people in Britain and Ireland, and hosts and coaches at rugby union camps across England with Sale Sharks, Newcastle Falcons, and Leeds Carnegie.
RAF Bentley Priory
In September 1955 the Fighter Command Silver Band performed the first Beating the Retreat ceremony by the RAF in front of the Priory. Dowding's leather-topped desk, many of his papers and other effects still occupy the room in the Officers' Mess which he used as his office, with its views across a stone balcony to the formal Italian garden below. These will remain as part of the building for its future as a museum.
Butley Priory
In 1926 the Gatehouse was purchased by Dr Montague Rendall (1862-1950) to be his home, following his retirement in 1924 as "Informator" (Headmaster) of Winchester College. Rendall, of Harrow School and Trinity College, Cambridge (where he was an exact contemporary of M.R. James of King's, and took a First in Classics in 1885), joined the staff at Winchester in 1887, becoming Second Master in 1899 and Headmaster in 1911. Many of his pupils acknowledged the inspiration of his teaching and example. Never married, and wholehearted in his calling, he steered Winchester through the Great War with a determination to maintain its morale and dignity in Christian acceptance of the call to service and sacrifice. The great project of his last years there, with Sir Herbert Baker, was the planning and construction of the monumental Winchester College War Cloister, an idealization of the 500 Winchester Fallen and of the way of life they had represented, which was dedicated and opened on 31 May 1924.
Royal Air Force Ensign
As the professional head of the RAF, the Chief of the Air Staff may fly the RAF Ensign. Air Attachés and the Heads of RAF Missions may also fly the RAF Ensign. It is also flown daily from the Ministry of Defence building in Whitehall, London.
RAF Bentley Priory
In the Spring of 1940 Air Officer Commanding RAF Fighter Command, Air Chief Marshal Hugh Dowding, by then a widower, lived a very quiet domestic life with his sister Hilda at a house called Montrose (no longer standing) in Stanmore. He rarely went out socially and with an immense work load was happy to forgo all but duty functions. Every morning he would walk through the grounds to his office in the Priory. Dowding would often meet General Frederick Alfred Pile, who was the General Officer Commanding Anti-Aircraft Command, who was walking from his home, Glenthorn. The pair, who were firm friends, would use the time to talk about the war and other subjects. Dowding left visits to other stations in Fighter Command to his Staff Officers as he was much occupied with the work in his Priory office. However, he did pay regular night-time visits to research establishments and the air defences around London when The Blitz started in earnest in September 1940. These visits often followed periods of up to 48 hours at his desk leaving Dowding exhausted. Lord Beaverbrook and Winston Churchill made Dowding unwillingly relinquish command of Fighter Command on 24 November 1940 after he only approved some recommendations in a report to improve night air defences created by a committee of enquiry chaired by Sir John Salmond.
RAF Bentley Priory
RAF Fighter Command, under Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding with Air Commodore A D John Cunningham as his Senior Air Staff Officer (SASO) and Air Commodore N J Gill as Air Officer Administration (AOA), consisted of 76 officers, 71 airmen and 84 civilians (including the 70 Observer Corps personnel).
Stuart Atha
Atha served as the Air Component Commander for the London Olympics Air Security in 2012 and he became the Chief of Staff (Operations) at the Permanent Joint Headquarters in 2014; he handed over to Air Vice Marshal Gary Waterfall on 16 May 2016. He was promoted to air marshal on 27 May 2016. In June 2016 he became Deputy Commander Operations at RAF Air Command in succession to Air Marshal Greg Bagwell.
Project MoDEL
The Royal Air Force station role ceased on 30 May 2008, following the relocation of units to their new accommodation at RAF Northolt and the site will be used for private accommodation and the Officers' Mess will become a Battle of Britain museum.
RAF Bentley Priory closed in 2008 with plans for the building to be refurbished with luxury apartments and a Battle of Britain museum on RAF Fighter Command documenting the site's key role in the Battle. In September 2010 the site was sold to Barratt Homes for the development of new housing and City & Country for the conversion of the existing building into housing and the museum.
Bentley Priory
Bentley Priory is an eighteenth to nineteenth century stately home and deer park in Stanmore on the northern edge of the Greater London area in the London Borough of Harrow.
Stephen Dalton
Dalton was appointed as Honorary Air Commodore to the RAF Regiment on 21 September 2013, in succession to Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Johns. He became Vice President of the Yorkshire Air Museum in 2009 before taking up the post of President in 2015.
Kenneth Hayr
In 1996, the Inspectorate of Flight Safety moved into new purpose-built accommodation at RAF Bentley Priory and the facility's new lecture theatre was named 'The Hayr Theatre' in honour of Hayr who was the first Inspector in 1976 (prior to that date the post had been that of Director). Following the closure of Bentley Priory his picture now hangs in the DARS Course Members Tea bar at RAF Northolt in memory of the Lecture theatre at RAF Bentley Priory.
Air Training Corps
The ATC is the largest part of the Royal Air Force Air Cadets (RAFAC), along with the RAF sections of the Combined Cadet Force. The RAFAC forms one of the seven functional areas of No 22 Group RAF, which is responsible for the recruitment and selection of all RAF personnel and for the policy and delivery of RAF non-operational training (including flying training).Headquarters Air Cadets (HQAC) is based at RAF Cranwell in Lincolnshire. There are subordinate headquarters at region and wing levels, staffed by adult officers and civil servants. HQAC controls two Air Cadet National Adventure Training Centres – at Llanbedr, Gwynedd, Wales and Windermere, Cumbria, England, which provide a range of adventure training courses and accommodation for squadron and wing expeditions. HQAC also controls () ten Volunteer Gliding Squadrons around the UK, through the Air Cadet Central Gliding School at RAF Syerston, and twelve Air Experience Flights.
John Howe (RAF officer)
On his return from Germany in 1975 he attended the Royal College of Defence Studies for ten months and was posted to RAF Bentley Priory as 'Operations Staff Officer (Training)' at Headquarters 11 Group, Strike Command.
Bentley Priory Nature Reserve
Bentley Priory Nature Reserve is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and Local Nature Reserve in Stanmore in the London Borough of Harrow, surrounding the stately home of Bentley Priory. It is a 55 hectare mosaic of ancient woodland, unimproved neutral grassland, scrub, wetland, streams and an artificial lake, an unusual combination of habitats in Greater London.
Air chief marshal
In the RAF, the rank of air chief marshal is held by the serving Chief of the Air Staff (currently Sir Stephen Hillier). Additionally, RAF officers appointed to four-star tri-service posts hold the rank of air chief marshal and currently Sir Stuart Peach, the Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, is the only RAF officer in such a post. Throughout the history of the RAF, 139 RAF officers have held the rank and it has also been awarded in an honorary capacity to senior members of the British Royal Family and allied foreign monarchs.
Royal Observer Corps
On 12 September 2008, a replica of a No. 41 Squadron Spitfire MkIIA, wearing the ""Observer Corps"" badge and title, was installed as gate guardian at RAF High Wycombe. The original aircraft on which the replica is based; EB-Z ser. no P7666, was the personal aircraft of Sqn/Ldr Donald Finlay, Commanding Officer of No. 41 Squadron at RAF Hornchurch. This aircraft being one of two which Observer Corps personnel raised sufficient funds in order to purchase for the RAF at the start of World War II. (In 2010 a BAe Harrier GR9A was adorned with the tail code EB-Z and title ""Observer Corps"" in order to mark the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Harrier "ZG857" displayed these additional markings during the months which preceded the type's retirement from RAF service in March 2011).
Air Historical Branch
The branch moved from RAF Bentley Priory to RAF Northolt in 2008 after the closure of the former. The Air Historical Branch is tasked with the maintenance and preservation of the history of the RAF. It is part of the Royal Air Force Centre for Air Power Studies and is headed by Sebastian Cox.
Bentley Priory
In 1775, Sir John Soane designed a large mansion house north of the original priory, called Bentley Priory, for the wealthy businessman James Duberley. This was added to throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries by various owners. It was significantly extended in 1788, again by Sir John Soane, for John Hamilton, 1st Marquess of Abercorn. The priory was the final home of the Dowager Queen Adelaide, queen consort of William IV, before her death there in 1849. It subsequently served as a hotel and girls' school before being acquired by the Royal Air Force in 1926.
Air Secretary
The Air Secretary is the Royal Air Force appointment of which the incumbent is responsible for policy direction on personnel management for members of the RAF. From 1978 to 1983 the Air Secretary was more often referred to as "Air Officer Commanding Royal Air Force Personnel Management Centre". It is a senior RAF appointment, held by an officer holding the rank of air vice-marshal. The Air Secretary's counterpart in the British Army is the Military Secretary. The Royal Navy equivalent is the Naval Secretary.
RAF Kirton in Lindsey
On 25 March 2013 it was announced the MOD planned to dispose of the airfield and technical facilities with only accommodation remaining, which was emptied later that year. The airfield used to host No. 1 Air Control Centre (1ACC), the RAF’s only deployable ground-based early warning and air control radar unit, which was parented by RAF Scampton.
Robert Leckie (RCAF officer)
Leckie returned to dry land on 5 September 1929, when he was appointed commander of RAF Bircham Newton, Norfolk. On 11 April 1931 he became commander of No. 210 Squadron RAF, initially based at Felixstowe, and then RAF Pembroke Dock, flying the Supermarine Southampton Mk. II. On 1 January 1933 Leckie was promoted to group captain, and on 30 January he was appointed both Superintendent of the RAF Reserve and commander of RAF Hendon. On 21 August 1935 Leckie was also appointed an additional Air Aide-de-Camp to King George V, attending the King's funeral in that capacity on 28 January 1936, and was appointed Air Aide-de-Camp to King Edward VIII on 1 July 1936. Leckie was appointed Director of Training at the Air Ministry on 5 October 1936, taking over from Air Commodore Arthur Tedder, and was promoted to air commodore on 1 January 1937, handing over the post as Air Aide-de-Camp to the King to Group Captain Keith Park the same day. Leckie's tenure as Director of Training ended on 28 November 1938, and on 2 December 1938 he was appointed Air Officer Commanding, RAF Mediterranean, based at Malta.
British Commonwealth Air Training Plan
The RCAF would run the plan in Canada, but to satisfy RAF concerns, Robert Leckie, a senior RAF commander (at the time in charge of RAF squadrons in Malta) and a Canadian, was posted to Ottawa as Director of Training. From 1940 he directed BCATP training.
Jon Crossley
Jon Crossley is a senior warrant officer in the Royal Air Force (RAF). Since October 2016, he has served as Chief of the Air Staff's Warrant Officer (CASWO).
Bentley Priory
The refurbishments included a gallery of fine paintings, several large apartments and a grand staircase of Portland stone; the intricate wooden banister is thought to have been added by Sir John Kelk. In the early 1860s, Sir Robert Smirke (architect of the British Museum) was commissioned by the Marquess to make further additions to the Priory.
RAF Bentley Priory
On 12 September 2013, the Bentley Priory Museum was officially opened by Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall.
Bentley Priory
As of 2013, the site has been sold to a developer and plans to convert some of the building to luxury apartments and build new houses have been approved and construction commenced. The Bentley Priory Battle of Britain Trust has secured part of the building to be used as a museum and memorial dedicated to those who served in the RAF.
Sebastian Cox
Sebastian Cox, MA (born in 1956), is the Head of the Air Historical Branch (AHB) of the Royal Air Force, a specialist archive and history unit based at RAF Northolt, Middlesex, which seeks to maintain and preserve the historical memory of the RAF and to develop and encourage "an informed understanding of RAF and air power history by providing accurate and timely advice to Ministers, the RAF, other government departments and the general public". He has worked at the AHB since 1984 and been its Head since May 1996.
RAF Henlow
RAF Henlow is a Royal Air Force station in Bedfordshire, England, equidistant from Bedford, Luton and Stevenage. It houses the RAF Centre of Aviation Medicine, the Joint Arms Control Implementation Group (JACIG), the Signals Museum and 616 Volunteer Gliding Squadron. The Ministry of Defence announced on 6 September 2016 that the base is set to be closed following a consultation.
RAF Bentley Priory
Dug-outs were built and sandbags deployed to protect the more important officers. In 1939, the magnificent conservatory was pulled down and replaced by the Operations staff wooden offices. The scene was now set for the wartime era, which is in a national context considered to be the most interesting and significant part of the Priory's history, and that of the RAF.
In January 1939, work started on the underground Operations Block which was occupied and commenced operations on 9 March 1940. The average depth of the excavations was .
South East England
In Rotherfield Peppard, near Sonning Common, is the Johnson Matthey Technology Centre, which research fuel cells (with platinum supplied by Anglo American Platinum, the world's largest producer). Stuart Turner (pumps) is at Henley-on-Thames, with Ella's Kitchen. Williams Performance Tenders, who make speedboats, is off the A4074 in Berinsfield. Countax UK, off the A329 at Great Haseley (nearer to Great Milton), manufactures Britain's best-selling garden tractors, and distributes ECHO (Japanese) power tools; to the south off the B480, Martin-Baker test ejector seats at Martin Baker Aerospace Chalgrove. Castrol Technology Centre is towards the Thames. South of RAF Benson off the A4074 at Howbery Park, Crowmarsh is HR Wallingford (former Hydraulics Research Station) and further south along the Thames is CAB International (agricultural research).
RM Education, Kaspersky Lab UK, Achilles (supply chain risk management, international HQ), Sanli UK (garden equipment), Routledge (publisher), Chroma Therapeutics, and Smeg UK are at Milton Park. The former Esso Research Centre at Milton Hill is now the headquarters of Infineum, a division of Esso and Shell which researches oil additives. Rowse Honey is in Wallingford. All parachute training for the RAF and Army takes place at RAF Brize Norton; the RAF 's refuelling force (10 Sqn and 101 Sqn) operate the Voyager, the RAF's largest aircraft, a converted Airbus A330 which carries 111 tonnes of fuel; they also operate the twice-weekly air-bridge to RAF Mount Pleasant; Brize Norton has 24 C-130 Hercules, 8 C-17 Globemasters (99 Sqn), 8 Voyagers (the replacement for the VC-10), and one A400M Atlas (the future replacement for the Hercules). The Blue Cross animal charity are further north on the B4020.
Baron Henley
His younger son, the sixth Baron, resumed the surname of Eden in 1925, the same year he succeeded his half-brother in the titles. the peerages are held by his grandson, the eighth Baron, who succeeded his father in 1977. He is a Conservative politician and served in the Conservative administrations of Margaret Thatcher, John Major and David Cameron. Lord Henley is now one of the ninety elected hereditary peers that remain in the House of Lords after the passing of the House of Lords Act of 1999.
David Prior, Baron Prior of Brampton
David Gifford Leathes Prior, Baron Prior of Brampton (born 3 December 1954) is the current chair of NHS England and chairman of University College Hospital. He served as Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) for North Norfolk from 1997 until the 2001 general election, when he lost his seat to Norman Lamb of the Liberal Democrats by 483 votes.
Royal Air Force Police
RAF Police Flights are responsible to and directed by a RAFP Squadron. Squadron HQs are based at the larger RAF stations and provide remote oversight of the Police Flights at the units within their respective area of responsibility. Squadron HQs are themselves responsible to, and directed by, the Assistant Provost Marshal of the RAFP, who is the Wing Commander of their respective Police Wing. RAFP personnel are not responsible to, or under the direct command of, the Commanding Officer (Base Commander) of the station at which they are situated; all service police on RAFP Wings remain under the command of the Provost Marshal (RAF). Their authority to act as service police stems directly from the Armed Forces Act 2006. Service police are able to issue lawful commands to any service person, regardless of their rank or trade. The RAF Police also provides the RAF's Protective Security (PS) role, similar to that carried out by the Intelligence Corps and elements of the Royal Signals of the British Army. IT Security (ITSy) is a further specialisation within the protective security field and personnel trained to this level are expected to perform all PS and ITSy related tasks.
RAF Bentley Priory
The Observer Corps moved to RAF Bentley Priory from its original location at RAF Uxbridge, along with Dowding and Fighter Command, during July 1936 and would remain at the Priory until it was stood down in December 1995. The Observer Corps was one of the cornerstones of Lord Dowding's air defence system and he said later in his despatch after the Battle of Britain:
RAF Bentley Priory
In 1992, a Royal Observer Corps stained glass window to mark the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, was installed in the officers’ mess at RAF Bentley Priory. The window is located by the main door, just inside the corridor leading to the dining room and depicts two observers on duty at an Observer Corps post in central London with contrails overhead. The colourful window was constructed from an original design and drawing by Observer Lieutenant Commander A P Angove FBIM FITD, the Operations Training Officer (Ops Trg) at HQ ROC. The arched window was designed to balance a Royal Air Force stained glass window already located on the other side of the front door.
Bentley Priory
In the Second World War, Bentley Priory was the headquarters of RAF Fighter Command, and it remained in RAF hands in various roles until 2008.
RAF Belton Park
RAF Belton Park was established in 1942 as the Royal Air Force Regiment Depot, for training RAF Regiment personnel in airfield defence. Belton Park is located north of the centre of Grantham, Lincolnshire, England. The site of the Depot was on farmland on the opposite side of Londonthorpe Lane from the Park.
Phil Bentley
On 19 September 2006 it was announced that Bentley would become the managing director of British Gas, part of the Centrica group, taking over from Mark Clare from March 2007. Bentley's stewardship was often controversial, as the company raised residential energy prices several times during his reign; protests at company premises were not unusual. Bentley frequently appeared in the media defending the company's decisions. The controversy was fuelled by the rise in profits during Bentley's stewardship – profits from the residential energy division of British Gas increased by 24% in one year alone. Bentley repeatedly claimed that price rises were beyond the company's control, and that they were not increased to raise profits. Throughout his time at the company Bentley's salary (£681,000 in 2013) was the subject of frequent criticism.
Air Staff (United Kingdom)
Air Staff is the body of Royal Air Force officers responsible for the running of the RAF.
Bentley Priory
Although little detail is known, the lands of Bentley Priory and the surrounding area were scantily populated but civilised long before the time of the Romans. At the time the first Priory was dedicated, the majority of the area was in the Manor of Harrow. The rest of the land in which the Priory now stands was in the area held by the Count of Mortain and known as Stanmore Magna.
Bentley Priory
The commander of RAF Fighter Command at the time of the Battle of Britain, Sir Hugh Dowding, was honoured with a peerage, as Baron Dowding of Bentley Priory in 1943.
John Bradley (RAF officer)
Air Marshal Sir John Stanley Travers Bradley, (11 April 1888 – 6 January 1982) was a senior Royal Air Force officer who became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief RAF Maintenance Command.
Simon Bryant (RAF officer)
Air Chief Marshal Sir Simon Bryant, (born 20 June 1956) is a former Royal Air Force officer, who served as Commander-in-Chief of Air Command, and he was the second-most senior officer in the service until this post was dis-established in March 2012. He was appointed in 2010, following the sudden death of the then Commander-in-Chief, Air Chief Marshal Sir Christopher Moran, having served as Deputy Commander-in-Chief Personnel for just over a year. He was knighted in the 2011 New Year Honours List.
RAF Northolt
The Ministry of Defence launched Project MoDEL (Ministry of Defence Estates London) in 2006 to consolidate many of its London-based operations at RAF Northolt. Under the project, RAF Bentley Priory, RAF Uxbridge, RAF West Ruislip, RAF Eastcote and the Inglis Barracks in Mill Hill were all closed between 2006 and 2010 with any remaining units transferring to Northolt. The Air Historical Branch, originally established in 1919 to provide a record of air activity during the First World War, was also relocated to RAF Northolt from RAF Bentley Priory in 2008 as part of this project. As a result, the station has been extensively redeveloped with new facilities to support these operations.
Royal Observer Corps
During 1958, RAF Fighter Command expressed a desire to obtain data similar to that provided by the ROC in the event of a nuclear attack, specifically that concerning the location of nuclear bursts and the resulting nuclear fallout. The Air Defence Commander at the Air Defence Operations Centre, (ADOC), RAF Bentley Priory, in order to ensure continued operations by RAF mobile and static units, wished to use such data in determining which UK airfields, (both civil and military), had been subject to blast damage and/or exposed to any subsequent nuclear fallout.
Jason Sutton
Promoted to squadron leader in 2001, he was SO2 in the RAF Ceremonial Office whilst it was based at RAF Bentley Priory. Whilst in the Ceremonial Office, Sutton was involved in organising ceremonial occasions including the unveiling of the Battle of Britain Monument in London, Service of Thanksgiving and Rededication on Battle of Britain Sunday, Annual Church Service of the RAF, 80th Anniversary of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, Memorial Service for HRH Princess Alice, the Duchess of Gloucester the RAF element to the Lord Mayor's Show and the RAF element at all the Remembrance weekend events, including Royal British Legion Festival of Remembrance.
Barbara Cooper (RAF officer)
Air Commodore Barbara Cooper, CBE (born 1958) is a retired British Royal Air Force officer and former Commandant of the Air Cadet Organisation (ACO). She was promoted to Air Commodore in 2008 and became the RAF's highest-ranking female. She became the Assistant Chief of Staff (Manning) at Air Command headquarters. She previously served at the tri-Service military Defence Academy in Shrivenham as Division Director.
RAF Bentley Priory
When the Corps' first Commandant Air Commodore Edward Masterman CB CBE AFC RAF(R’td) had stood down in April 1936, Air Commodore Alfred Warrington-Morris CB CMG OBE AFC MiD RAF(R’td) replaced him and took control of the Observer Corps during the important period immediately prior to the Second World War. He oversaw the move of HQ Observer Corps to Bentley Priory and the Corps’ adoption by RAF Fighter Command. He also controlled the Corps during the memorable events of the Battle of Britain and was still at the helm when the Observer Corps was granted the title "Royal" to become the Royal Observer Corps and became a uniformed branch of the RAF. Warrington-Morris was Mentioned in Despatches in July 1940.
David Murray (RAF officer)
The son of Baron Murray of Epping Forest, the former TUC General Secretary Len Murray, Murray was commissioned into the Royal Air Force on 27 March 1980 in the rank of acting pilot officer. He was promoted to pilot officer on 27 September, and to flying officer on 5 July 1982. Murray served as station commander RAF Halton and then at Worthy Down before becoming garrison commander at Winchester and then commandant of the Defence College of Police and Personnel Administration. Murray served on operational tours in the Falkland Islands, on UN peace-keeping duties in Bosnia and Sierra Leone. He also served in Africa, Australia, Cyprus and Germany. He became assistant chief of staff training in the RAF in 2006 and head of Ministry of Defence Personnel Strategy and Programmes in 2009 before he was promoted to air vice marshal in 2010 and appointed as Defence Services Secretary and Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (Personnel). Murray led the Diamond Jubilee Armed Forces Parade and Muster in 2012.
Bentley Heath
Bentley Heath C of E Primary School is the only primary school in the village. The current headmaster is Mr. Andrew Williams.
Percy Bernard, 5th Earl of Bandon
With the ROC rebuilt and back to full readiness, on 1 February 1949 Lord Bandon handed over his once more fully operational command to his successor Air Commodore Richard Jordan. Having introduced the concept of annual ROC summer training camps in 1948 the Earl had formally opened the first two camps at RAF Thorney Island. In 1953 he returned as Air Vice-Marshal The Earl of Bandon to inspect the sixth annual camp at RAF Waterbeach and address the observers as a visiting VIP guest of honour.
List of Royal Air Force stations
Several former RAF stations are still owned by the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and are operated by QinetiQ in the test and evaluation role. The main facility providing this role is MOD Boscombe Down which still has a significant RAF presence.
Tom Riall
Tom Riall is the Chief Executive Officer of Priory Group having taken over the position in April 2013. Just prior to his appointment, he had served as chief executive of Serco's global services business since June 2012. Serco is a UK company that provides a variety of services and products relating to defence, detention, aviation, and transport. Riall was previously divisional chief executive responsible for the company's Home Affairs division, which provides Gatso speed cameras to UK local authorities. He lives in Ufton Nervet, near Reading in Berkshire.
RAF Bentley Priory
As a result of their efforts during the Battle of Britain the Observer Corps was granted the title Royal by King George VI and became a uniformed volunteer branch of the RAF from April 1941 for the remainder of its existence. Throughout its service the Royal Observer Corps was commanded by an RAF Air Commodore, each of whom served a tour of between three or four years.
Butley Priory
Nicholas de Crioll (who with Bertram de Criol had served the king in Gascony in 1248-49 and 1253-54 and was entrusted with the Cinque Ports and other commands in Kent in 1263) gave Benhall with its appurtenances to his son Nicholas the younger, and consented when the heir (in minority) settled it in lifetime dower upon his bride Margery, daughter of Sir Gilbert Pecche. Prior Robert, who succeeded Walter, had given way to the troubled Prior Thomas by 1277/78. Margery was living when in c. 1290 her husband gave the manor and its appurtenances to Guy Ferre the younger, who for this concord gave to de Crioll a Sore-hawk. Nicholas de Crioll the younger, who died in 1303, retained his patronage of Langdon Abbey.
Prince William, Duke of Cambridge
In January 2009, William transferred his commission to the RAF and was promoted to Flight Lieutenant. He trained to become a helicopter pilot with the RAF's Search and Rescue Force. In January 2010, he graduated from the Defence Helicopter Flying School at RAF Shawbury, where he had been under the instruction of Squadron Leader Craig Finch. On 26 January 2010, he transferred to the Search and Rescue Training Unit at RAF Valley, Anglesey, to receive training on the Sea King search and rescue helicopter; he graduated from this course on 17 September 2010. This made him the first member of the British royal family since Henry VII to live in Wales.
Royal Air Force Mountain Rescue Service
After a recent consolidation, the RAF MRS today comprises three teams, based at RAF Valley in North Wales, RAF Leeming in England and RAF Lossiemouth in Scotland. There is now a central headquarters for administration, training and equipment, associated with the MRT at RAF Valley. Helicopter operations, frequently used in mountain rescue, were until recently conducted in cooperation with No. 202 Squadron RAF and No. 22 Squadron RAF. These two squadrons, with the three remaining MRTs and headquarters, and the Rescue Coordination Centre at the former RAF Kinloss, comprised RAF Search and Rescue. In 2015, the helicopter squadrons were disbanded, and their search and rescue role assigned to the Bristow Group, a private corporation. HRH Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, spent two weeks working with RAF Mountain Rescue in 2005, and Buckingham Palace cites this as background to his later decision to become the patron of Mountain Rescue England and Wales.
David Craig, Baron Craig of Radley
Marshal of the Royal Air Force David Brownrigg Craig, Baron Craig of Radley, (born 17 September 1929) is a retired Royal Air Force officer and member of the House of Lords. He was a fast jet pilot in the 1950s, a squadron commander in the 1960s and a station commander in the 1970s. He served as Chief of the Air Staff during the late 1980s, when the Boeing Airborne early warning and control system was ordered and the European Fighter programme was being developed. He then served as Chief of the Defence Staff during the Gulf War. He was granted a life peerage as Baron Craig of Radley after his retirement from active service in 1991, sitting as a crossbencher.
RAF Henlow
After the First World War, Henlow was home to four aircraft squadrons; No. 19 Squadron RAF, No. 23 Squadron RAF, No. 43 Squadron RAF and No. 80 Squadron RAF. Between 1932 and 1933, Sir Frank Whittle was a student at the RAF technical College on the base. He later spent some time in charge of aero engine testing on the base before being sent to Cambridge.
Commandant Air Cadets
Commandant Air Cadets is the title given to the Royal Air Force officer who is responsible for running the Royal Air Force Air Cadets, embracing the Air Training Corps (ATC) and the RAF Sections of the Combined Cadet Force (CCF RAF). The current Commandant Air Cadets is Air Commodore Dawn McCafferty.
David Murray (RAF officer)
Air Vice Marshal David Paul Murray, (born 1960) is a retired senior Royal Air Force officer. He served as Defence Services Secretary in the Royal Household from 2010 to 2012. He is currently the Controller of the RAF Benevolent Fund.
Bentley Priory
In 1775, Sir John Soane designed a new house north of the original priory called Bentley Priory, for James Duberley, an Army contractor. Duberley is thought to have pulled down the original Priory building before having a more imposing house built on a higher point of the ridge some distance from the original site. Druett based his idea that the original site of the Priory can be found further down the slope at Priory House on the supposition that Duberley would have built higher on the ridge, 'to show off the evidence of his wealth and importance'. The house was sold in 1788 to John Hamilton, who succeeded his uncle as Earl of Abercorn in 1789. On his elevation in the peerage the following year to Marquess, he made extensive alterations to the house and park. He commissioned Sir John Soane, one of the most pre-eminent 18th century architects, to extend and refurbish the house in a more lavish and sumptuous manner, and the outside of the house as it appears today is largely due to his money and Soane's vision (although the clock tower was added at a later date).
RAF Bentley Priory
The corps was created to provide a system for detecting, tracking and reporting aircraft over Britain. During World War II it was complementary to and often replaced the radar system in that it provided an 'over land' element while radar handled the 'over water approach' requirement. In 1955 the detection and reporting of nuclear blasts and fall-out was introduced. By 1965 the aircraft role was no longer needed and the corps formed the field force for the United Kingdom Warning and Monitoring Organisation (UKWMO) until both organisations were disbanded after the Cold war ended.
RAF Bentwaters
Bentwaters airfield's origin dates to 1942 when construction began on a Royal Air Force station called Royal Air Force Butley for use by RAF Bomber Command. On 28 January 1943 the station was renamed Royal Air Force Bentwaters. It was opened for operational use in April 1944. In December it was transferred to No. 11 Group, RAF Fighter Command . During the Second World War, RAF squadrons at Bentwaters were:
Bentley Priory
It was originally a medieval priory or cell of Augustinian Canons in Harrow Weald, then in Middlesex. There are no remains of the original priory, but it probably stood near Priory House, off Clamp Hill.
RAF Holbeach
DIO are responsible for operational support—building, maintaining and servicing the infrastructure, the RAF are responsible for safe practice on the Range. The Range is administered at a local level by the DIO Training Safety Officer (TSO), who has an office at the Range. RAF air traffic control personnel staff the Range Control Tower supported by civilian range staff outsourced to Landmarc Solutions.
RAF Bentley Priory
On the evening of 21 June 1979 at 8:27 pm, smoke was seen coming from the Priory. The London Fire Brigade fortunately arrived in good time and tried to fight the fire. Several teams went inside and tried to get the fire under control. Unfortunately, the electricity had not been switched off and as the firemen advanced to the seat of the fire, they were surrounded by great sparks and had to beat a hasty retreat. The firemen spent the next morning damping down the smouldering remains and looking for the cause. It was quickly established that the fire was an accident and not arson.
David Bentley
Tottenham Hotspur
London Biggin Hill Airport
The current RAF Biggin Hill is a small enclave on the western boundary of the airport to the south of the passenger terminal, and contains the headquarters of 2427 Squadron of the Air Training Corps. Next to this is "St George's Chapel of Remembrance". This brick built chapel was erected in 1951, to replace an earlier chapel destroyed by fire, and now serves as a memorial to all the aircrew who died flying from the Biggin Hill Sector. It is surrounded by a garden of remembrance and has gate guardians in the form of full-sized replicas of a Hurricane and a Spitfire, representing the aircraft that flew from the former airfield during the Battle of Britain. The replicas replaced genuine aircraft that formerly served as the guardians. Air Marshal Hugh Dowding laid the foundation stone. The chapel was taken out of the RAF's control in 2015, and is now run by Biggin Hill Airport.
Tony Bethell
On release from wartime service he joined the trading company Gellatly Hankey in Africa working in the Khartoum and Addis Ababa area until boredom led him to rejoin the general duties branch of the Royal Air Force as a flight lieutenant on 7 December 1949. He became a navigator instructor and also served as personal assistant to Air Chief Marshal Sir George Pirie. In 1953 he was posted to No. 145 Squadron at Celle in Germany flying the de Havilland Vampire, before becoming a flight commander on No. 16 Squadron, also operating Vampires from Celle close to the East German border. Bethell finally retired from the RAF in June 1955, after which he emigrated to Canada.
Ben Bradley (politician)
Benjamin David Bradley (born 11 December 1989) is a British Conservative Party politician. He has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, since the 2017 general election. On 8 January 2018, during Theresa May's Cabinet reshuffle, Bradley was appointed as Vice Chair for Youth at CCHQ, but resigned on 10 July 2018 in protest at Theresa May's Brexit strategy plan, agreed at Chequers; a move which he felt unable explain to his constituents – the majority of whom he said had "voted to leave the EU".
Alison Mardell
Air Vice-Marshal Alison Mardell (born 23 September 1968) is a British solicitor and senior Royal Air Force (RAF) officer. Since 2017, she has served as Director of Legal Services (RAF) and is therefore the head of the RAF Legal Branch.
RAF Bentley Priory
Ironically, it was an aircraft of Bomber Command that came closest to destroying the Priory. A Wellington bomber of No 311 (Czech) Sqn returning to its base attempted to land on the lawns in front of the Priory. It narrowly missed the Priory and crashed outside the Sergeants' Mess; there was one survivor.
RAF Henlow
Today, RAF Henlow houses the Joint Arms Control Implementation Group (JACIG), elements of the RAF'S Police Wings, the RAF Centre for Aviation Medicine (RAF CAM), DE&S, 616 Volunteer Gliding Squadron which operates Vigilant T1 motor gliders. The Band of The Queen's Division (British Army) are stationed at RAF Henlow. A civilian flying school also operates from the site. No 3 Tactical Provost Squadron was formerly based at RAF Henlow, gradually transitioned over to Royal Air Force Honington in 2015.
RAF Air Command
Air Command is commanded by the Chief of the Air Staff. Formerly, it was under a four-star Air Chief Marshal, Commander-in-Chief, Air Command, but this structure was discontinued due to the 2011 Levine Report. There are two Deputy Commanders of Air Marshal rank. The Deputy Commander (Operations) has responsibility for the two Groups inherited from Strike Command (No. 1 Group and No. 2 Group) and also No. 38 Group which brings together the RAF’s expeditionary engineering, logistics, and communications units, Medical Operations units, and RAF Music Services. In November 2018, 11 Group was further formed as part of RAF Command. The Deputy Commander (Operations) acts as the Deputy to the CAS and oversees day-to-day operations The Deputy Commander (Personnel) has responsibility for the Group inherited from Personnel and Training Command, No. 22 (Training) Group.
RAF Bentwaters
Royal Air Force Bentwaters or more simply RAF Bentwaters, now known as Bentwaters Parks, is a former Royal Air Force station about northeast of London and east-northeast of Ipswich, near Woodbridge, Suffolk in England. Its name was taken from two cottages (‘Bentwaters Cottages’) that had stood on the site of the main runway during its construction in 1943.
Robert Peters (RAF officer)
Air Vice Marshal Robert Geoffrey Peters, (born 22 August 1940) is a former Royal Air Force officer who served as Commandant of the RAF Staff College, Bracknell.
RAF Bentley Priory
A final dinner was held for the Battle of Britain veterans in July 2007 to celebrate the role of the building and those who worked in it in preventing Hitler's planned air invasion of Britain in 1940. The sunset ceremony was carried out by the Queen's Colour Squadron and there was a flypast by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and a Eurofighter Typhoon. The salute was taken by the Station Commander Squadron Leader Phil Reid, the Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy and Air Commodore (Ret) Pete Brothers, Chairman of the Battle of Britain Fighter Association.
The final closure Sunset ceremony took place on 30 May 2008, when the RAF ensign was lowered at RAF Bentley Priory for the last time. The station officially closed the following day, and all remaining lodger units moved to RAF Northolt.
Bentley Priory Nature Reserve
The London Loop goes through Bentley Priory, There is access from Common Road, Priory Drive, Aylmer Drive, Embry Way, Old Lodge Way, Bentley Way and Masefield Avenue.
RAF Scampton
The current gate guardian at RAF Scampton is a former Red Arrows Hawk T.1 XX306. Positioned in front of the Station Headquarters, it was unveiled by the then Station Commander Wing Commander Michael Harrop during a ceremony on 12 October 2015.
RAF Bentley Priory
Despite the considerable work undertaken, it became apparent that deterioration was still taking place. In 1964, a surveyor's report showed that the Ante-Room rebuilt in 1947 was suffering from dry-rot. However, it was not until ten years later that the full extent of the decay was thoroughly investigated.
Brian Burridge
In 2005 Air Marshal Burridge was president of the RAF Mountaineering Association and a trustee of the Windsor Leadership Trust. Burridge sat as chair of the Bentley Priory Battle of Britain Trust and was present at the facility's closing ceremony in 2007. He attained a master's degree in business administration from the Open University.
Antonia Terzi
From 2014 she is head of the aerodynamic department at Bentley Motors Ltd.
RAF Valley
RAF Valley previously hosted the Headquarters and 'C Flight' of No. 22 Squadron, part of the RAF's Search and Rescue Force. By October 2015, the RAF SAR Force had been relieved of their responsibility by a new contractor-led operation, run by Bristow Helicopters, and the nearest SAR unit is now based at Caernarfon Airport. The RAF Operational Conversion Unit, 203(R) Squadron, was also based at Valley to train new aircrew onto the Westland Sea King HAR.3/3A, and prepare them for their SAR operations. HRH The Duke of Cambridge, second-in-line to the British Throne, was assigned to C Flight, 22 Squadron at RAF Valley, as a pilot flying the Sea King search and rescue helicopter. He finished his last shift as a pilot on Tuesday 10 September 2013.
Bentley Priory
After Queen Adelaide's death, the Priory was scarcely used until the estate was bought by Sir John Kelk in 1863. Sir John Kelk was an eminent Victorian engineer and the contractor for the Albert Memorial. He also donated the lychgate and lectern to Stanmore Church. The lych gate is still in existence and in regular use. Sir John began immediate improvements to the Priory spending £9,000 on the conservatories alone (demolished in 1939 in order to provide additional office space). He also added a picture gallery, a library, the clock tower, an orangery (which stood some way in front of the present main entrance) a cedar garden and a deer park.
RAF Kinloss
After 73 years as an RAF station, control of Kinloss transferred to the British Army at 1200 on 26 July 2012. A ceremony was attended by eight former RAF Kinloss station commanders, the last station commander Group Captain JJ Johnston, the Lord Lieutenant of Moray and invited guests. The RAF colours were lowered for the last time and British Army colours raised to mark the new chapter in Kinloss's history.
RAF Bentley Priory
The decision that the Mess would have to close came at a particularly bad time as, some four months earlier, the Royal Air Force Association had been given permission to hold a Fighter Command Commemorative Ball at the Priory and invitations had already been sent out. Given the serious concern about the integrity of the building's structure it was decided to use marquees for the majority of the function; the lower floors were temporarily strengthened. The ball was of course, a resounding success and caused HM the Queen Mother, who has a long association with the Mess, to be particularly interested in the Priory's future. It was from that night that the campaign to save the Priory really began and it was eventually decided that the Priory should be renovated at a cost of approximately £1 million. Most of the paintings and other valuables were taken to RAF Quedgeley for safe storage, and Cubitts, sub-contractors of the Department of the Environment, started work.
RAF Bentley Priory
Since its closure, the Officers' Mess has converted into the Bentley Priory Museum with exhibits focusing on the house's role during the Battle of Britain. The grounds have been redeveloped as an upmarket private residential housing estate.
Redlingfield Priory
Priory
Gordon Herbert Vasse
In March 1951 Vasse was posted to RAF Bentley Priory and took over as the seventh Commandant Royal Observer Corps from Air Commodore Sir Richard Bowen Jordan.
Royal Air Force College Cranwell
The Commandant is the air officer in charge of the College. The current incumbent is Air Commodore Peter J Squires. Under the present organization of the RAF, the Commandant reports to Air Officer Commanding No. 22 Group who has Service-wide responsibility for training. From 1920 to 1936 the College Commandant was double-hatted as the Air Officer Commanding RAF Cranwell.Cranwell has had many famous graduates. As there have been many notable RAF officers who were commissioned from Cranwell, a fair and representative list would be impractical. Therefore, only those who are notable in other ways are listed below:
RAF Bentley Priory
Prior to the outbreak of World War II in 1939, the Priory underwent many changes. Chief among these was the hurried adaptation of the two largest rooms (now the anteroom and the Ladies room) into the Operations Room and the Filter Room - moved from its original location in the Crypt bar; the classrooms in the east Wing were converted into accommodation. Externally, brown and green paint were sprayed over the outside of the building including the clock face, and many of the windows were blacked out.
Baron Dowding
Baron Dowding, of Bentley Priory in the County of Middlesex, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1943 for the noted air commander Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding. He was commander of the RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain in 1940. the title is held by his grandson, the third Baron, who succeeded his father in 1992.The heir presumptive is the present holder's only brother the Honourable Mark Dennis James Dowding (b. 1949)