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 Michael James Graydon, (born 24 October 1938) is a retired

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 ...

(RAF) officer. He was a fast jet pilot in the 1960s, a squadron commander in the 1970s and a station commander in the 1980s before serving as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief

RAF Strike Command The Royal Air Force's Strike Command was the military formation which controlled the majority of the United Kingdom's bomber and fighter aircraft from 1968 until 2007 when it merged with Personnel and Training Command to form the single Air ...

during the

Gulf War , combatant2 = , commander1 = , commander2 = , strength1 = Over 950,000 soldiers3,113 tanks1,800 aircraft2,200 artillery systems , page = https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-PEMD-96- ...

. He was Chief of the Air Staff from 1992 to 1997, in which role he advised the British Government on the implementation of No Fly Zones in

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

and

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

and implemented the Front Line First initiative.

RAF career

The son of James Julian Graydon and Rita Mary Graydon (née Alkan), Graydon was educated at Wycliffe College, in the town of Stonehouse in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( , ; abbreviated Glos.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by Herefordshire to the north-west, Worcestershire to the north, Warwickshire to the north-east, Oxfordshire ...

, and became a flight cadet 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 ...

in January 1957 before being commissioned into the Royal Air Force on 15 December 1959. His potential as a flying instructor was noticed early in his career and, after completing his Qualified Flying Instructor course at the Central Flying School, he was posted to No. 1 Flying Training School at RAF Linton-on-Ouse in Yorkshire in 1960.''

Who's Who A Who's Who (or Who Is Who) is a reference work consisting of biographical entries of notable people in a particular field. The oldest and best-known is the annual publication ''Who's Who (UK), Who's Who'', a reference work on contemporary promin ...

2010'', A & C Black, 2010, Promoted to flying officer on 15 December 1960, he attended No. 229 Operational conversion unit where he gained experience on the Hunters before being sent to No. 56 Squadron at RAF Wattisham, from where he flew Lightnings, in 1962.

Graydon was promoted to flight lieutenant on 15 June 1962. He became a qualified flying instructor at No. 226 Operational conversion unit in November 1964. He became a flight commander at No. 56 Squadron in April 1967, based at RAF Akrotiri in

Cyprus Cyprus (), officially the Republic of Cyprus, is an island country in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Situated in West Asia, its cultural identity and geopolitical orientation are overwhelmingly Southeast European. Cyprus is the List of isl ...

. Having been awarded the Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air in the 1967 Birthday Honours, he was promoted to squadron leader on 1 January 1968. Graydon attended RAF Staff College in 1970 and became Personal Staff Officer to the Deputy Commander-in-Chief Allied Forces Central Europe in 1971 before joining the Air Staff in the Directorate of Operations at the Ministry of Defence in 1973. Promoted to wing commander on 1 July 1975, he attended the National Defence College at Latimer in 1976. Graydon became Officer Commanding No. 11 Squadron at RAF Binbrook in July 1977 and military advisor to the Chief of the Defence Staff in 1979. Promoted to

group captain Group captain (Gp Capt or G/C) is a senior 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 influence. Group cap ...

on 1 July 1980, he became Station Commander at RAF Leuchars in 1981 and at RAF Stanley in the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; ), commonly referred to as The Falklands, is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and from Cape Dub ...

in 1983. He 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 ...

in the 1984

New Year Honours The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...

and attended the Royal College of Defence Studies later that year. Promoted to

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 ...

on 1 July 1984, Graydon became Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters No. 11 Group at RAF Bentley Priory in January 1985. He went on to be Assistant Chief of Staff at the Policy Division at Headquarters

SHAPE A shape is a graphics, graphical representation of an object's form or its external boundary, outline, or external Surface (mathematics), surface. It is distinct from other object properties, such as color, Surface texture, texture, or material ...

in June 1986 and was promoted to

air vice marshal Air vice-marshal (Air Vce Mshl or AVM) 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 Commonwealth of Nations, countries which have historical British infl ...

on 1 July 1986. Promoted to air marshal on 5 April 1989, he was appointed Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at RAF Support Command that month and appointed

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 1989 Birthday Honours. Promoted to

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 ...

on 31 May 1990, he became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at

serving in that role during the

in 1991. Graydon became Chief of the Air Staff in November 1992, was appointed Air Aide-de-Camp on 15 December 1992 and advanced to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in the 1993

. As Chief of the Air Staff he advised the British Government on the implementation of No Fly Zones in

and

. He also implemented the Front Line First initiative launched in July 1994 which contributed to reducing the RAF manpower from around 75,000 to around 53,000. He retired from the Royal Air Force in April 1997.

Later life

In retirement, Graydon has been a non-executive director of Thales plc and Symbiotics. He has also been member of the council of the Air League since 2007, Vice-Patron of the Air Cadet Council since 1999, President of the Battle of Britain Memorial Trust since 1999, Chairman of the Air Squadron since 2005 and Deputy Chairman of the Church Schools Company since 2003. Additionally he has been Vice-Chairman of the Governors of Wycliffe College since 1992. In 2006, Graydon expressed his belief that action was required to end the isolation of

Northern Cyprus Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), is a ''de facto'' state that comprises the northeastern portion of the Geography of Cyprus, island of Cyprus. It is List of states with limited recognition, recognis ...

. As a trustee of the British Cyprus Memorial Trust, he provided support for the campaign for a memorial, erected on 8 November 2009, to all British servicemen who died in service in

during the conflict in between 1956 and 1960. Then in 2010/11, Graydon won approval from the North Cyprus government and the Royal British Legion to establish a branch of the Royal British Legion in North Cyprus: on 1 October 2011 the branch was officially formed with Graydon as president. He is currently the chairman of the board of trustees for the International Bomber Command Centre.

Personal life

In 1963, Graydon married Margaret Elizabeth Clark; they have no children. His interests include golf, flying and reading.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Graydon, Michael 1938 births Living people Royal Air Force air marshals Chiefs of the Air Staff (United Kingdom) Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air People educated at Wycliffe College, Gloucestershire Graduates of the Royal Air Force College Cranwell Royal Air Force air marshals of the Gulf War Graduates of the Royal College of Defence Studies People from Kew, London Military personnel from the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames