Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many Commonwealth of Nations, countries that have historical British i ...

Sir Arthur Sheridan Barratt, (25 February 1891 – 4 November 1966) was an officer in the

Royal Flying Corps The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) was the air arm of the British Army before and during the First World War until it merged with the Royal Naval Air Service on 1 April 1918 to form the Royal Air Force. During the early part of the war, the RFC sup ...

during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

and a senior commander in the

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 t ...

during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He acquired the nickname "Ugly".

RAF career

Barratt was commissioned into the

Royal Field Artillery The Royal Field Artillery (RFA) of the British Army provided close artillery support for the infantry. It was created as a distinct arm of the Royal Regiment of Artillery on 1 July 1899, serving alongside the other two arms of the regiment, the ...

in 1910 and transferred to the

in 1914.Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Chief Marshal Sir Arthur Barratt
/ref> He served in the

, commanding No. 6 Squadron and then No. 49 Squadron before taking over 3rd (Corps) Wing. After the war he became Assistant Commandant at the

Royal Air Force College Cranwell The Royal Air Force College (RAFC) is the Royal Air Force 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 is resp ...

and then Staff Officer for Administration at Headquarters No. 3 Group. He was made Commandant at the School of Army Co-operation in 1926 and Air Staff Officer to the

General Officer Commanding General officer commanding (GOC) is the usual title given in the armies of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth (and some other nations, such as Ireland) to a general officer who holds a command appointment. Thus, a general might be the GOC ...

Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...

in April 1927 before joining the Air Staff at Headquarters No. 22 Group in November 1927. He went on to be Chief Instructor at the

RAF Staff College, Andover The RAF Staff College at RAF Andover was the first Royal Air Force staff college to be established. Its role was the training of officers in the administrative, staff and policy aspects of air force matters. History Foundation Following the ...

in 1929, Air Officer Commanding No. 1 (Indian) Group in 1931 and Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters RAF India in 1932. After that he was Director of Staff Duties at the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force and civil aviation that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the ...

in 1935 and then returned to the

, as Commandant in 1936. He served in the

as Principal RAF Liaison Officer to the French Air Force and then Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief British Air Forces in France. When he heard that on 14 May 1940, forty of the seventy-one British bombers that had taken off did not return, he is said to have cried. He continued his war service as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at Army Co-operation Command in November 1940 and Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at

Technical Training Command The United States Army Air Forces during World War II had major subordinate Commands below the Air Staff level. These Commands were organized along functional missions. One such Command was the Flying Training Command (FTC). It began as Air Cor ...

in 1943. His last appointment was as Inspector-General of the RAF in 1945, in which capacity he took part in the Victory Parade in June 1946Commanders to participate
Flight International, 23 May 1946 before retiring in 1947.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Barratt, Arthur Sheridan Royal Air Force air marshals 1891 births 1966 deaths Royal Field Artillery officers People educated at Clifton College Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Recipients of the Military Cross Officers of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) British recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1939–1945 (France) Recipients of the Croix de guerre (Belgium) Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour Commanders with Star of the Order of Polonia Restituta British aviation pioneers Royal Flying Corps officers Graduates of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich Deputy lieutenants of Hampshire Military personnel of British India Military personnel from Peshawar British Army personnel of World War I