Air Commodore Air commodore (Air Cdre or Air Cmde) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...

Sir John Adrian Chamier, (26 December 1883 – 3 May 1974) was a British officer of 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 ...

. Chamier is known as "The Founding Father of the ATC" for his role in the foundation of the

Air Training Corps The Air Training Corps (ATC) is a British Youth organisations in the United Kingdom, volunteer youth organisation; aligned to, and fostering the knowledge and learning of military values, primarily focusing on military aviation. Part of the ...

Military career

Indian Army and Royal Air Force

Chamier was educated at the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC) was a United Kingdom, British military academy for training infantry and cavalry Officer (armed forces), officers of the British Army, British and British Indian Army, Indian Armies. It was founded in 1801 at Gre ...

. After passing out on 27 August 1902, his name was added to the Unattached List of the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

, and he was in October posted to the Punjab command. He was commissioned into the Indian Army as a second lieutenant on 11 January 1904, but with seniority from 27 August 1902, and on 5 February 1904 was attached to the 33rd Punjabis, an Indian Army regiment. He was promoted captain on 27 August 1911. Chamier was commissioned as a flying officer into 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 ...

on 26 August 1915 and served as a

pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...

in 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 ...

. After the war, he transferred to the newly formed

, in which he served the rest of his career, eventually retiring in 1929.Air Cadet Publication 31: General Service Training, 2000. Section 1, p. 31.1.1-1 From November 1921 to February 1922, as Deputy Director, Directorate of Operations and Intelligence, Air Ministry, he was a delegate to the Washington Conference on the Limitation of Armaments.

Air Training Corps

After retirement from the RAF, Chamier became secretary of the

Air League of the British Empire The Air League is an aviation and aerospace non-profit organisation based in the United Kingdom. It is the UK's largest provider of aviation and aerospace scholarships and bursaries. The Air League aims to inspire, enable, and support the next ...

. During his tenure as secretary Chamier became involved with the founding, in 1938 of the

Air Defence Cadet Corps The Air Defence Cadet Corps was a volunteer youth organisation in the United Kingdom, preparing young people for military aviation. Founded in 1938, it was replaced in 1941 by the Air Training Corps. Establishment In 1938, Air Commodore Chami ...

, which on 5 February 1941 evolved into the

because the ADCC was seen as too forceful and decided to change it to a more subtle name of ATC. He set up the ATC to promote recruitment in the RAF and to get young people who are interested in aviation to be able to go to their local squadron at their own free will, making it more enjoyable. After it was founded, Chamier became the Air Training Corps' first

Commandant Commandant ( or ; ) is a title often given to the officer in charge of a military (or other uniformed service) training establishment or academy. This usage is common in English-speaking nations. In some countries it may be a military or police ...

, until his retirement in 1944. He was succeeded by Air Marshal Sir Leslie Gossage.

Civilian career

Between 1928 and 1931 Chamier was a director on the board of Vickers (Aviation) Limited. In the 1930s, Chamier and his company, Chamier, Gilbert-Lodge and Co acted as consultants for airport design and construction including those at

Belfast Harbour Belfast Harbour is a major maritime hub in Belfast, Northern Ireland, handling 67% of Northern Ireland's seaborne trade and about 25% of the maritime trade of the entire island of Ireland. It is a vital gateway for raw materials, exports and c ...

and

Luton Luton () is a town and borough in Bedfordshire, England. The borough had a population of 225,262 at the 2021 census. Luton is on the River Lea, about north-west of London. The town's foundation dates to the sixth century as a Saxon settleme ...

. Chamier was, at one time, the aviation correspondent for the

British Broadcasting Corporation The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public broadcasting, public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved in ...

(BBC).

Aircraft

Chamier had a

Mignet HM.14 The Mignet HM.14 ''Flying Flea'' (''Pou du Ciel'' literally "Louse of the Sky" in French) is a single-seat light aircraft first flown in 1933, designed for amateur construction. It was the first of a family of aircraft collectively known as Flyin ...

''Flying Flea'' light aircraft registered ''G-ADME'' in his name between 1935 and 1938.

Decorations

Chamier received several decorations for his service to the British Empire. He was made a Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

, the

Order of St. Michael and St. George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George I ...

and the

Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly throughout the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful ...

, and an Officer of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

. In 1944 he was

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

ed as a

Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised Order of chivalry, orders of chivalry; it is a part of the Orders, decorations, and medals ...

Politics

Chamier was a member of and speaker at meetings of the

January Club The January Club was a discussion group founded in 1934 by Oswald Mosley to attract Establishment support for the movement known as the British Union of Fascists. The Club was under the effective control of Robert Forgan, working on behalf of t ...

of the

British Union of Fascists The British Union of Fascists (BUF) was a British fascist political party formed in 1932 by Oswald Mosley. Mosley changed its name to the British Union of Fascists and National Socialists in 1936 and, in 1937, to the British Union. In 1939, f ...

Published works

*''The Birth of the Royal Air Force'', Pitman, London, (1943) (No ISBN),
British Library Catalogue Entry

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chamier, John Adrian 1883 births 1974 deaths Royal Air Force air commodores British Army personnel of World War I Royal Air Force personnel of World War I Knights Bachelor Companions of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Officers of the Order of the British Empire Royal Flying Corps officers British Indian Army officers British Union of Fascists members British World War I pilots Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst