Alastair Smith (RAF Officer)
Air Vice-Marshal Alastair Peter Thomas Smith, is a senior Royal Air Force officer. He serves as commander, Joint Aviation Command. RAF career Smith was commissioned into the RAF on 20 April 1990. After serving as commanding officer of RAF Shawbury, he became Assistant Chief of Staff (Military Strategy and Defence Engagement) in August 2020 and commander, Joint Helicopter Command in March 2023, which became Joint Aviation Command in May 2024. Smith was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 2025 Birthday Honours The 2025 King's Birthday and Operational Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms of Charles III, King Charles III to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to reward and highlight good .... References {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Alastair Living people Royal Air Force air marshals Year of birth missing (living people) Companions of the Order of the Bath ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and the Royal Naval Air Service (RNAS). Following the Allies of World War I, Allied victory over the Central Powers in 1918, the RAF emerged as the largest air force in the world at the time. Since its formation, the RAF has played History of the Royal Air Force, a significant role in Military history of the United Kingdom, British military history. In particular, during the Second World War, the RAF established Air supremacy, air superiority over Nazi Germany's Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain, and led the Allied strategic bombing effort. The RAF's mission is to support the objectives of the British Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence (MOD), which are to "provide the capabilities nee ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Air Vice-Marshal
Air vice-marshal (Air Vce Mshl or AVM) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. Air vice-marshal is usually equivalent to the naval rank of rear admiral or a rank of major general in an army. The rank of air vice-marshal is immediately senior to the rank of air commodore and immediately subordinate to the rank of air marshal. Since before the Second World War it has been common for air officers commanding RAF groups to hold the rank of air vice-marshal. In small air forces such as the Royal New Zealand Air Force and the Ghana Air Force, the head of the air force holds the rank of air vice-marshal. The equivalent rank in the Women's Auxiliary Air Force, Women's Auxiliary Australian ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Joint Aviation Command
The Joint Aviation Command (JAC), previously known as Joint Helicopter Command (JHC), is a tri-service organisation uniting battlefield military helicopters of all three services of the British Armed Forces and unmanned aerial vehicles of the British Army for command and coordination purposes. The majority of the United Kingdom's military helicopters come under JAC, although exceptions include the Royal Navy's anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare and airborne early warning helicopters and the No. 1 Flying Training School. History Background Over the years, the grouping of all battlefield support helicopters operated by the Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Army Air Corps (AAC) and Royal Air Force (RAF) into one of the services had been discussed, however the Ministry of Defence (MOD) believed that any advantages would be outweighed by the damaging impact such a re-organisation would have on ethos, morale and operational effectiveness. The Strategic Defence Review (SDR), publi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Companion Of The Order Of The Bath
Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregiver, such as a nurse assistant, paid to give a patient one-on-one attention Historically * A concubine, a long-term sexual partner not accorded the status of marriage * Lady's companion, a historic term for a genteel woman who was paid to live with a woman of rank or wealth * Companion cavalry, the elite cavalry of Alexander the Great * Foot Companion, the primary type of soldier in the army of Alexander the Great * Companions of William the Conqueror, those who took part in the Norman conquest of England * Muhammad's companions, the Sahaba, the friends who surrounded the prophet of Islam Film and television * ''Companion'' (film), a 2025 American film * Companion (''Doctor Who''), a character who travels with the Doctor in the TV s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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RAF Shawbury
Royal Air Force Shawbury, otherwise known as RAF Shawbury, is a Royal Air Force station near the village of Shawbury in Shropshire in the West Midlands of England. History The First World War The station at Shawbury was first used for military flying training in 1917 by the Royal Flying Corps. No. 29 (Training) Wing formed on 1 September 1917 with three training squadrons, No. 10 Squadron, No. 29 (Australian) (Training) Squadron and No. 67 Squadron. Several different types of aircraft were operated which caused difficulties with training and maintenance. Two of the squadrons combined to form 9 Training Depot Station on 1 March 1918, the other moving to Gloucestershire. Training continued on a more organised basis until the end of the war. The airfield closed in May 1920 when the strength of the RAF was drastically reduced. The hangars and other buildings were demolished and the land was returned to agricultural use. The Second World War In February 1938 the station was rea ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Joint Helicopter Command
The Joint Aviation Command (JAC), previously known as Joint Helicopter Command (JHC), is a tri-service organisation uniting battlefield military helicopters of all three services of the British Armed Forces and unmanned aerial vehicles of the British Army for command and coordination purposes. The majority of the United Kingdom's military helicopters come under JAC, although exceptions include the Royal Navy's anti-surface warfare, anti-submarine warfare and airborne early warning helicopters and the No. 1 Flying Training School. History Background Over the years, the grouping of all battlefield support helicopters operated by the Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Army Air Corps (AAC) and Royal Air Force (RAF) into one of the services had been discussed, however the Ministry of Defence (MOD) believed that any advantages would be outweighed by the damaging impact such a re-organisation would have on ethos, morale and operational effectiveness. The Strategic Defence Review (SDR), publi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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2025 Birthday Honours
The 2025 King's Birthday and Operational Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms of Charles III, King Charles III to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of the King's Official Birthday celebrations during the month of June. The honours list for the United Kingdom was announced on 14 June 2025. The 2025 Operational Honours (June) were awarded imbedded with the Birthday Honours list. The King appoints members to the orders upon the advice of his ministers. However, the Order of the Garter, the Order of the Thistle, the Order of Merit and the Royal Victorian Order are bestowed solely by the sovereign. In the 2025 Birthday Honours, former rugby league player Billy Boston received a knighthood for his services, becoming the first rugby league personality to have that honour. His knighthood was made public earlier t ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Nigel Colman (RAF Officer)
Air Vice-Marshal Nigel James Colman (born 18 January 1971) is a retired officer of the Royal Air Force who last served as Commander of Joint Helicopter Command from 2020 to 2023. RAF career Colman was commissioned into the Royal Air Force (RAF) on 20 June 1991. As officer commanding No. 78 Squadron he saw action in Iraq and then in Afghanistan. He became station commander at RAF Benson as well as Puma and Merlin force commander in October 2012. He saw the Merlins leave the force in October 2014. Colman went on to be Deputy Director of Military Support in July 2015, followed by a move to become the Head of Military Strategic Effects at the Ministry of Defence in April 2018 and Commander of Joint Helicopter Command in March 2020. He stepped down from this position in March 2023, and retired from the RAF at his own request in August 2023. Colman was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2011 New Year Honours, and Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Living People
Purpose: Because living persons may suffer personal harm from inappropriate information, we should watch their articles carefully. By adding an article to this category, it marks them with a notice about sources whenever someone tries to edit them, to remind them of WP:BLP (biographies of living persons) policy that these articles must maintain a neutral point of view, maintain factual accuracy, and be properly sourced. Recent changes to these articles are listed on Special:RecentChangesLinked/Living people. Organization: This category should not be sub-categorized. Entries are generally sorted by family name In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give .... Maintenance: Individuals of advanced age (over 90), for whom there has been no new documentation in the last ten ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Royal Air Force Air Marshals
Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a city * Royal, Missouri, an unincorporated community * Royal, Nebraska, a village * Royal, Franklin County, North Carolina, an unincorporated area * Royal, Utah, a ghost town * Royal, West Virginia, an unincorporated community * Royal Gorge, on the Arkansas River in Colorado * Royal Township (other) Elsewhere * Mount Royal, a hill in Montreal, Canada * Royal Canal, Dublin, Ireland * Royal National Park, New South Wales, Australia Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Royal'' (Jesse Royal album), 2021 * Royal (Ayo album), 2020 * ''The Royal'', a British medical drama television series * '' The Royal Magazine'', a monthly British literary magazine published between 1898 and 1939 * '' The Raja Saab'', working title ' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Year Of Birth Missing (living People)
A year is a unit of time based on how long it takes the Earth to orbit the Sun. In scientific use, the tropical year (approximately 365 solar days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 45 seconds) and the sidereal year (about 20 minutes longer) are more exact. The modern calendar year, as reckoned according to the Gregorian calendar, approximates the tropical year by using a system of leap years. The term 'year' is also used to indicate other periods of roughly similar duration, such as the lunar year (a roughly 354-day cycle of twelve of the Moon's phasessee lunar calendar), as well as periods loosely associated with the calendar or astronomical year, such as the seasonal year, the fiscal year, the academic year, etc. Due to the Earth's axial tilt, the course of a year sees the passing of the seasons, marked by changes in weather, the hours of daylight, and, consequently, vegetation and soil fertility. In temperate and subpolar regions around the planet, four seasons a ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |