Air Marshal Sir John Jackson Stringer (born November 1969) is a senior

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. Since August 2022 he has been Deputy Commander,

Allied Air Command The Allied Air Command (AIRCOM) is the Staff (military), central command of all NATO air force, air and space forces and the Commander Allied Air Command is the prime air and space advisor to the Alliance. When directed by the Supreme Allied Com ...

Early life and education

Stringer was born in Sale, Cheshire, in November 1969. He was educated at Watford Grammar School for Boys and

New College, Oxford New College is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by Bishop William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as New College's feeder school, New College was one of the first col ...

. He is a graduate of the U.K. Advanced and Higher Command and Staff Courses, the

Royal College of Defence Studies The Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS) instructs the most promising senior officers of the British Armed Forces, His Majesty's Diplomatic Service and Civil Service in national defence and international security matters at the highest leve ...

and holds master's degrees from the

University of Oxford The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...

and

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...

RAF career

Stringer was commissioned into the

in 1993. After officer and pilot training, he joined the Jaguar Force at

RAF Coltishall Royal Air Force Coltishall more commonly known as RAF Coltishall is a former Royal Air Force List of former Royal Air Force stations, station located north-north-east of Norwich, in the England, English Counties of the United Kingdom, county ...

. A Qualified Weapon Instructor, he flew operationally over Yugoslavia and helped enforce the Northern Iraq No Fly Zone. From 2007 to 2009, Stringer served as the air officer commanding No. 29 Squadron RAF, the Typhoon Operational Conversion Unit at

RAF Coningsby Royal Air Force Coningsby or RAF Coningsby , is a Royal Air Force (RAF) station located south-west of Horncastle, and north-west of Boston, in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. It is a Main Operating Base of the RAF and h ...

. He spent two years as Deputy Assistant Chief of Staff (DACOS) Joint Effects in the J3 Division of the

Permanent Joint Headquarters The Permanent Joint Headquarters (PJHQ) is the British tri-service headquarters from where all overseas military operations are planned and controlled. It is situated at Northwood Headquarters in Northwood, London. The Permanent Joint Headqua ...

in Northwood. Between October 2012 and September 2014, he commanded RAF Coningsby and its Typhoon Wing. He was posted as Assistant Chief of Staff Operations (ACOS Ops) to Headquarters Air Command in August 2015. He went on to command No. 83 Expeditionary Air Group as the UK Air Component Commander between October 2016 and October 2017, and oversaw all air operations in

Operation Shader Operation Shader is the operational code name given to the contribution of the United Kingdom in the ongoing military intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. The operation involves the British Army providing ground su ...

. On 11 May 2018, in the 2018 Special Honours, Stringer was appointed

Commander 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 ...

(CBE) "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in the field during the period 1 April 2017 to 30 September 2017". Promoted to Air Vice-Marshal, he served as Chief of Staff at Joint Forces Command (JFC) and subsequently Director of Strategy as JFC evolved into UK Strategic Command, overseeing its work on the 2021 UK Defence and Security Integrated Review. In August 2022, he was promoted to air marshal and was simultaneously appointed Deputy Commander, of

. Stringer has over 3000 flying hours, predominantly on single-seat combat aircraft. Stringer was appointed a

Knight Commander 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 ...

in the

2025 Birthday Honours The 2025 King's Birthday and Operational Honours are appointments by some of the 15 Commonwealth realms of Charles III, King Charles III to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to reward and highlight good ...

Personal life

Johnny is married to Lisa and has two sons. His interests include history, art and literature, food and drink, and road cycling. He is the President of the Royal Air Force Gliding & Soaring Association.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Stringer, John Living people 1969 births Royal Air Force air marshals People from Sale, Greater Manchester People educated at Watford Grammar School for Boys Alumni of New College, Oxford Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies Alumni of King's College London Commanders of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century Royal Air Force personnel 21st-century Royal Air Force personnel Royal Air Force personnel of the Iraq War Royal Air Force personnel of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) Military personnel from Manchester Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath