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John Aiken (RAF Officer)
Air Chief Marshal Sir John Alexander Carlisle Aiken, (22 December 1921 – 31 May 2005) was a senior Royal Air Force (RAF) officer, and the Commander of British forces in Cyprus at the time of the Turkish invasion of the island in 1974. RAF career Educated at Birkenhead School, Aitken joined the Royal Air Force in 1941, serving in the Second World War in North-West Europe, flying Spitfires with No. 611 Squadron from 1942 and in the Far East as a flight commander with No. 548 Squadron flying Spitfires out of Darwin from 1944. In 1948 he became an instructor at the RAF College Cranwell before becoming Officer Commanding Birmingham University Air Squadron in 1950. He was made Personal Staff Officer to the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at Fighter Command in 1954, Officer Commanding No. 29 Squadron in 1956 and a Staff Officer at Headquarters Allied Forces Northern Europe in 1958. He went on to be deputy director, Intelligence (Air) at the Air Ministry in 1960 before being a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Belfast
Belfast (, , , ; from ) is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel (Great Britain and Ireland), North Channel. It is the second-largest city in Ireland (after Dublin), with an estimated population of in , and a Belfast metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of 671,559. First chartered as an English settlement in 1613, the town's early growth was driven by an influx of Scottish people, Scottish Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Presbyterians. Their descendants' disaffection with Kingdom of Ireland, Ireland's Protestant Ascendancy, Anglican establishment contributed to the Irish Rebellion of 1798, rebellion of 1798, and to the Acts of Union 1800, union with Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain in 1800—later regarded as a key to the town's industrial transformation. When granted City status in the United Kingdom#Northern Ireland, city s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Fighter Command
RAF Fighter Command was one of the commands of the Royal Air Force. It was formed in 1936 to allow more specialised control of fighter aircraft. It operated throughout the Second World War, winning fame during the Battle of Britain in 1940. The command continued until November 1943, when it was disbanded and the RAF fighter force was split into two categories, defence and attack. The defensive force became Air Defence of Great Britain (ADGB) and the offensive force became the RAF Second Tactical Air Force. ADGB was renamed Fighter Command in October 1944 and continued to provide defensive patrols around Britain. It was disbanded for the second time in 1968, when it was subsumed by the new Strike Command. Origins On 20 May 1926, the forerunner of Fighter Command was established as a group within Inland Area. On 1 June, Fighting Area was transferred to the Air Defence of Great Britain. Fighting Area was raised to command status in 1932 and renamed Fighter Command on 1 May ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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] |
Royal Air Forces Association
The Royal Air Forces Association, also known as RAF Association or RAFA, is a British registered charity. It provides care and support to serving and retired members of the Air Forces of the British Commonwealth, and to their dependents. The organisation was formed in 1943, and has 504 branches in the UK, with a total membership of approximately 79,000 in the UK and abroad. It receives no funding from the UK Government and operates entirely on donations and subscription fees. Its "Wings Appeal" raises around £2 million annually. It provides five flying scholarships for members of the Air Training Corps and Girls Venture Corps Air Cadets, each year. It also runs a website where serving or ex-serving Air Force personnel can search for comrades. See also *The Royal British Legion (RBL) * SSAFA * RAF Benevolent Fund (RAFBF) *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 D ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Defence Intelligence
Defence Intelligence (DI) is an organisation within the United Kingdom intelligence community which focuses on gathering and analysing military intelligence. It differs from the UK's intelligence agencies (MI6, GCHQ and MI5) in that it is an integral part of a government department – the Ministry of Defence (MoD) – rather than a stand-alone organisation. The organisation employs a mixture of civilian and military staff and is funded within the UK's defence budget. The organisation was formerly known as the Defence Intelligence Staff (DIS), but changed its name in 2009. The primary role of Defence Intelligence is that of ' all-source' intelligence analysis. This discipline draws information from a variety of overt and covert sources to provide the intelligence needed to support military operations, contingency planning, and to inform defence policy and procurement decisions. The maintenance of the ability to give timely strategic warning of politico-military and scientific ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Limassol
Limassol, also known as Lemesos, is a city on the southern coast of Cyprus and capital of the Limassol district. Limassol is the second-largest urban area in Cyprus after Nicosia, with an urban population of 195,139 and a district population of 262,238. The Limassol municipality is the most populated in Cyprus, with a population of 108,105, followed by Strovolos in Nicosia. Limassol was built between two ancient Greek cities, Amathus and Kourion. Its historical centre is located around the medieval Limassol Castle and the Old Port. Today the city spreads along the Mediterranean coast and has extended much farther than the castle and port, with its suburbs stretching along the coast to Amathus. To the west of the city is Akrotiri, one of the two British Overseas Territories of Akrotiri and Dhekelia on the island. In 2014, Limassol was ranked by TripAdvisor as the 3rd up-and-coming destination in the world, in its Top 10 Traveler's Choice Destinations on the Rise list. In ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nicosia
Nicosia, also known as Lefkosia and Lefkoşa, is the capital and largest city of Cyprus. It is the southeasternmost of all EU member states' capital cities. Nicosia has been continuously inhabited for over 5,500 years and has been the capital of Cyprus since the 10th century. It is the last divided capital in Europe; three years after Cyprus gained independence from British rule in 1960, the Bloody Christmas conflict between Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots triggered intercommunal violence, and Nicosia's Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities segregated into its south and north respectively in 1964. A decade later, Turkey invaded Cyprus following Greece's successful attempt to take over the island. The leaders of the takeover would later step down, but the dividing line running through Nicosia (and the rest of the island, interrupted only briefly by British military bases) became a demilitarised zone that remains under the control of Cyprus while heavil ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Akrotiri And Dhekelia
Akrotiri and Dhekelia (), officially the Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia (SBA), is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory made of two non-contiguous areas on the island of Geography of Cyprus, Cyprus. The areas, which include Overseas military bases of the United Kingdom, British military bases and installations that were formerly part of the British Cyprus, Crown colony of Cyprus, were retained by the British under the Treaty of Guarantee (1960), 1960 treaty of independence signed by the United Kingdom, Greece, Turkey, the President of Cyprus and the representative of the Turkish Cypriot community. The territory serves as a station for signals intelligence and is thereby part of the United Kingdom's surveillance-gathering work in the Mediterranean and the Middle East. Despite being under British control, Akrotiri and Dhekelia are integrated with the surrounding Cypriot communities and economies. The areas are notable for their strategic geopo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
British Forces Near East
British Forces Cyprus (BFC) is the name given to the British Armed Forces stationed in the UK Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia on the island of Cyprus and at a number of related 'retained sites' in the Republic of Cyprus. The United Kingdom retains a military presence on the island in order to keep a strategic location at the eastern end of the Mediterranean, for use as a staging point for forces sent to locations in the Middle East and Asia. BFC is a tri-service command, with all three services based on the island reporting to it. History Following the establishment of the Republic of Cyprus in 1960, the UK retained two Sovereign Base Areas in Akrotiri and Dhekelia and an RAF air marshal was appointed as the Administrator of the Sovereign Base Areas. The Treaty of Establishment also provided British access to 40 'retained sites' in the republic of Cyprus; these included numerous radar stations, several ports, a range of accommodation and support facilities and a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RAF Germany
Royal Air Force Germany, commonly known as RAF Germany, and abbreviated RAFG, was a command of the Royal Air Force (RAF) and part of British Forces Germany (BFG). It consisted of units located in Germany, initially in what was known as West Germany as part of the British Air Forces of Occupation (BAFO) following the Second World War, and later as part of the RAF's commitment to the defence of Europe during the Cold War. The commander of RAFG doubled as commander of NATO's Second Allied Tactical Air Force (2ATAF). Its motto was 'Keepers of the Peace'. History RAF Germany was established on , through the renaming of the RAF's Second Tactical Air Force. The command remained based at RAF Rheindahlen with Air Marshal Sir John Edwardes-Jones continuing as its Air Officer Commanding. Flying operations were conducted from six airfields; four of these: Geilenkirchen, Laarbruch, Bruggen, and Wildenrath, were the so-called 'clutch' airfields built earlier in the decade, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ministry Of Defence (United Kingdom)
The Ministry of Defence (MOD or MoD) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for implementing the defence policy set by the government and serves as the headquarters of the British Armed Forces. The MOD states that its principal objectives are to defend the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and its interests and to strengthen international peace and stability. The MOD also manages day-to-day running of the armed forces, contingency planning and defence procurement. The expenditure, administration and policy of the MOD are scrutinised by the Defence Select Committee, except for Defence Intelligence which instead falls under the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament. History During the 1920s and 1930s, British civil servants and politicians, looking back at the performance of the state during World War I, concluded that there was a need for greater ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
