Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Edward Johns, (born 28 July 1939) is a retired senior

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

commander. He was a fighter pilot in the 1960s, commanding officer of a squadron during the 1970s and a station commander in the 1980s. Johns served as one of three British directors of operations on the senior planning staff for

Operation Granby Operation Granby, commonly abbreviated Op Granby, was the code name given to the British military operations during the 1991 Gulf War. 53,462 members of the British Armed Forces were deployed during the conflict. The total cost of operations w ...

(the British contribution to the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a Coalition of the Gulf War, 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Ba'athist Iraq, ...

) in 1991 and then acted as a supporting commander for joint operations in the

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

in 1994. As Chief of the Air Staff he advised the British Government on the air force aspects of the

Strategic Defence Review The Strategic Defence Review (SDR) was a British policy document produced in July 1998 by the Labour Government that had gained power a year previously. Then Secretary of State for Defence, George Robertson, set out the initial defence policy of ...

and on

NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...

's air campaign in

Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...

RAF career

The son of Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Edward Johns and Marjory Harley Johns (née Everett), Johns was educated at Portsmouth Grammar School and

RAF College Cranwell The Royal Air Force College (RAFC) is the Royal Air Force military academy which provides initial training to all RAF personnel who are preparing to become commissioned officers. The College also provides initial training to aircrew cadets and ...

,'' Who's Who 2010'', A & C Black, 2010, and commissioned into the Royal Air Force on 15 December 1959. After completing flying training on Piston Provost and

de Havilland Vampire The de Havilland Vampire is a British jet fighter which was developed and manufactured by the de Havilland Aircraft Company. It was the second jet fighter to be operated by the RAF, after the Gloster Meteor, and the first to be powered by ...

aircraft, Johns spent his early career as a fighter pilot serving in the UK, in

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

and in Aden. He was promoted to flying officer on 15 December 1960, flight lieutenant on 15 August 1962 and to

squadron leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is als ...

on 1 January 1969. A Qualified Flying Instructor, in 1971 Johns trained the

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rulers ...

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...

standard on the

Jet Provost The BAC Jet Provost is a British jet trainer aircraft that was in use with the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1955 to 1993. It was originally developed by Hunting Percival from the earlier piston engine-powered Percival Provost basic trainer, an ...

. He was appointed a

Lieutenant of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, o ...

in the 1972

New Year Honours The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...

. He attended

Staff College Staff colleges (also command and staff colleges and War colleges) train military officers in the administrative, military staff and policy aspects of their profession. It is usual for such training to occur at several levels in a career. For e ...

in 1972 and then undertook a tour as Personal Staff Officer to the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Near East Air Force in

. Promoted to

wing commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr in the RAF, the IAF, and the PAF, WGCDR in the RNZAF and RAAF, formerly sometimes W/C in all services) is a senior commissioned rank in the British Royal Air Force and air forces of many countries which have historical ...

on 1 January 1974, he was appointed commanding officer of No. 3(F) Squadron flying Harriers from

RAF Wildenrath Royal Air Force Wildenrath, commonly known as RAF Wildenrath, was a Royal Air Force (RAF) military airbase near Wildenrath in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, that operated from 1952 to 1992. Wildenrath was the first of four 'clutch' stations ...

and RAF Gütersloh in 1975. Harrierxv752

Johns was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 1978

. He was promoted to group captain on 1 July 1979 and became Director of Air Staff Briefing that year. In 1982 Johns became Station Commander and Harrier Force Commander at RAF Gütersloh and was made Aide-de-Camp to

the Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

on 10 December 1982. Promoted to air commodore on 1 January 1985, he was advanced to a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

in the 1985

and attended the

Royal College of Defence Studies The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest lev ...

later that year before becoming Senior Air Staff Officer at

RAF Germany The former Royal Air Force Germany (RAFG) was a command of the Royal Air Force and part of British Forces Germany. It consisted of units located in Germany, initially as part of the occupation following the Second World War, and later as part o ...

. Promoted to air vice marshal on 1 January 1989, Johns went on to be Senior Air Staff Officer at

RAF Strike Command The Royal Air Force's Strike Command was the military formation which controlled the majority of the United Kingdom's bomber and fighter aircraft from 1968 until 2007 when it merged with Personnel and Training Command to form the single Air C ...

in 1989 before he took up the appointment of Air Officer Commanding No 1 Group in 1991. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 1991

Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are prese ...

. It was also in 1991 that Johns served as one of three British directors of operations on the senior planning staff for

(the British contribution to the

). Promoted to air marshal on 24 February 1993, Johns's next appointment was as Chief of Staff and Deputy Commander-in-Chief

later that year. Advanced to

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved bathing (as a symbol of purification) as o ...

in 1994

and promoted to air chief marshal on 30 June 1994, Johns was appointed Commander-in-Chief Strike Command also on 30 June 1994. However, on 10 July 1994, Sir John Thomson who had just been appointed Commander-in-Chief of Allied Forces North West Europe died and Johns was transferred from Strike Command to the NATO command. In this role he acted as a supporting commander for joint operations in the

. He became Honorary Colonel of 73 Engineer Regiment (Volunteers) on 29 November 1994. Johns became Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) in 1997 and was advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in the

1997 Birthday Honours The 1997 Birthday Honours were announced on 14 June 1997 for the United Kingdom and on 2 June 1997 for New Zealand.New Zealand list: Queen's Birthday Honours are announced on or around the date of the Queen's Official Birthday in the United Kingd ...

. He was also appointed Air Aide-de-Camp to The Queen on 9 April 1997. As CAS he advised the British Government on the air force aspects of the

and on NATO's air campaign during the

Kosovo War The Kosovo War was an armed conflict in Kosovo that started 28 February 1998 and lasted until 11 June 1999. It was fought by the forces of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (i.e. Serbia and Montenegro), which controlled Kosovo before the wa ...

, contending that air power had been highly accurate during the 11-week air campaign against the

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

. He was succeeded by Sir Peter Squire as Chief of the Air Staff and Johns retired from the RAF in 2000.

Later life

Johns became Constable and

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Windsor Castle Windsor Castle is a royal residence at Windsor in the English county of Berkshire. It is strongly associated with the English and succeeding British royal family, and embodies almost a millennium of architectural history. The original c ...

in 2000: he was advanced to Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order on relinquishing that appointment on 17 December 2007. He also became honorary air commodore of the

Royal Air Force Regiment The Royal Air Force Regiment (RAF Regiment) is part of the Royal Air Force and functions as a specialist corps. Founded by royal warrant in 1942, the Corps carries out soldiering tasks relating to the delivery of air power. Examples of such t ...

on 22 April 2000. He was Chairman of the Trustees of the

RAF Museum The Royal Air Force Museum is a museum dedicated to the Royal Air Force in the United Kingdom. The museum is a non-departmental public body of the Ministry of Defence and is a registered charity. The museum is split into two separate sites: * Ro ...

from 2000 to 2006 and has been President of

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People Hearing Dogs for Deaf People is a UK charity which trains dogs to alert deaf people to a variety of sounds. The Charity's dogs provide emotional support through companionship, and practical support by alerting deaf people to life-saving sound ...

since 2005.

Personal life

In 1965 he married Elizabeth Naomi Anne Manning; they have one son and two daughters. His interests include military history, rugby, cricket and equitation.

Honours and awards

References

, - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Johns, Richard Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Royal Air Force air marshals Chiefs of the Air Staff (United Kingdom) People educated at The Portsmouth Grammar School Graduates of the Royal Air Force College Cranwell Royal Air Force air marshals of the Gulf War 1939 births Living people Military personnel from Sussex Alumni of the Royal College of Defence Studies