David Lee (RAF Officer)
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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 David John Pryer Lee, (4 September 1912 – 13 February 2004) was a
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 ...
officer 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 ...
and a senior commander in the 1950s and early 1960s.


RAF career

Educated at
Bedford School Bedford School is a 7–18 Single-sex education, boys Public school (United Kingdom), public school in the county town of Bedford in England. Founded in 1552, it is the oldest of four independent schools in Bedford run by the Harpur Trust. Bed ...
,Obituary: Air Chief Marshal Sir David Lee
Daily Telegraph, 19 February 2004
Lee joined the Royal Air Force in 1930.
/ref> He served in 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 ...
as a pilot with No. 61 Squadron and then with No. 106 Squadron before becoming Deputy Director of Plans 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 ...
. He completed his war service as Officer Commanding No. 904 Wing in the
Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...
where he was responsible for repatriating
prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
. After the War he joined the Directing Staff at the
RAF Staff College, Bracknell The RAF Staff College at Bracknell was a Royal Air Force staff college active for most of the second half of the 20th century. Its role was the training of staff officers in the administrative, staff and policy aspects of air force matters. It ...
, and was then appointed Deputy Director, Policy at the Air Ministry before becoming Station Commander at
RAF Scampton Royal Air Force Scampton or RAF Scampton (formerly ) is a former Royal Air Force List of former Royal Air Force stations, station located adjacent to the A15 road (England), A15 road near to the village of Scampton, Lincolnshire, and north-wes ...
in 1953. He went on to be Secretary of the Chiefs of Staff Committee in 1956, Air Officer Commanding Air Forces Middle East in 1959 and Commandant of the
RAF Staff College, Bracknell The RAF Staff College at Bracknell was a Royal Air Force staff college active for most of the second half of the 20th century. Its role was the training of staff officers in the administrative, staff and policy aspects of air force matters. It ...
in 1962. He last appointments were as
Air Member for Personnel An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosphere ...
in 1965 and UK Military Representative to NATO in 1968 before retiring in 1971.


Family

In 1938 he married Denise Hartoch; they had a son and a daughter.


Books

Lee wrote three official histories of the RAF overseas: *''Flight from the Middle East: A history of the Royal Air Force in the Arabian Peninsula and adjacent territories 1945–1972'', HMSO 1980 *''Eastward: A history of the Royal Air Force in the Far East 1945–1972'', HMSO 1984 *''Wings in the Sun: A history of the Royal Air Force in the Mediterranean 1945–1986'', HMSO Books 1989 He also wrote two accounts of his own time in the RAF: *''Never Stop the Engine when it's Hot'', Thomas Harmsworth Publishing 1983 – recounting his time as a junior officer flying
Westland Wapiti The Westland Wapiti was a British two-seat general-purpose military single-engined biplane of the 1920s. It was designed and built by Westland Aircraft Works to replace the Airco DH.9A in Royal Air Force service. First flying in 1927, the Wa ...
s between the wars on the NorthWest Frontier of India *''...And We Thought the War Was Over'', Thomas Harmsworth Publishing 1991 – about his time as CO of 904 Tactical Wing of
P-47 Thunderbolt The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt is a World War II-era fighter aircraft produced by the American company Republic Aviation from 1941 through 1945. It was a successful high-altitude fighter, and it also served as the foremost American fighter-bombe ...
s in the Dutch East Indies at the end of World War II


References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, David 1912 births 2004 deaths People educated at Bedford School British World War II pilots British World War II bomber pilots Royal Air Force air marshals Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of the Bath People from Luton Military personnel from Bedfordshire