Air Marshal Carey William Adamson, (5 September 1942 – 10 May 2019) was a senior officer of the

Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF; ) is the aerial warfare, aerial military service, service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed initially in 1923 as a branch of the New Zealand Army, being known as the New Zealand Perm ...

. Adamson grew up in Fairlie before attending

Timaru Boys' High School Timaru Boys' High School (also known as TBHS), established in 1880, is a single sex state (public) secondary school located in the port city of Timaru, South Canterbury, New Zealand. TBHS caters for years 9 to 13 (ages 12 to 19 years). At t ...

, where he was a boarder apart from his final year, when he commuted daily on his motorcycle. As a teenager, Adamson joined the Air Training Corps. He then joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force in 1961, where he served as a pilot flying Austers and Harvards. In 1964 Adamson was assigned to the United States to train on the C130 Hercules. He was Chief of the Air Staff from 1995 to 1999 and Chief of Defence Force from 1999 to 2001. In 2002, he caused "unprecedented controversy" when he criticised the government for disestablishing the air combat force. In the

1979 Queen's Birthday Honours The Queen's Birthday Honours 1979 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The appointments were made to celebrate ...

, Adamson was awarded the Air Force Cross. In the

1999 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1999 for various Commonwealth realms were announced on 30 December 1998, to celebrate the year passed and mark the beginning of 1999. The ''Honours list'' is a list of people who have been awarded one of the various orders, d ...

, he was appointed a

Companion of the New Zealand Order of Merit The New Zealand Order of Merit () is an order of merit in the New Zealand royal honours system. It was established by royal warrant on 30 May 1996 by Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand, "for those persons who in any field of endeavour, have ...

. Adamson was predeceased by his wife, Denyce (née Pickens), in 2013. He had

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

for the last few years of his life, and died on 10 May 2019. He received a military funeral at

Wellington Cathedral of St Paul The Wellington Cathedral of St Paul, also called St Paul's Cathedral or Wellington Cathedral, is an Anglicanism, Anglican cathedral Church (building), church located on Hill Street, at its junction with Molesworth Street, Wellington, Molesworth ...

References

External links

South Canterbury Museum Collections – Air Vice Marshal Carey Adamson
, - 1942 births 2019 deaths Companions of the New Zealand Order of Merit New Zealand military personnel of the Vietnam War People educated at Timaru Boys' High School People from Fairlie, New Zealand New Zealand recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Royal New Zealand Air Force air marshals {{NewZealand-mil-bio-stub