RAF Air Command
| Air Command | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1 April 2007 |
| Country | |
| Branch | |
| Role | Military air operations |
| Location | RAF High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire |
| Motto | Fortis Ubique Volantis (Flying Bravely Everywhere) |
Air Command is the title applied to the Royal Air Force's Chief of the Air Staff's headquarters at RAF High Wycombe. As a military formation was formed by the merger of Royal Air Force Strike and Personnel and Training commands on 1 April 2007, and has its headquarters at RAF High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.[1] Since the last dedicated Commander-in-Chief stepped down in 2012 the central Whitehall MOD RAF staff and Air Command have run together to a greater and greater degree.
The equivalent in the Royal Navy is Navy Command Headquarters at Portsmouth and the equivalent in the British Army is Army Headquarters at Andover.
History
[edit]Air Command was formed by the merger of RAF Strike Command and RAF Personnel and Training Command on 1 April 2007.[2] Initially, it was under a four-star Air Chief Marshal, Commander-in-Chief, Air Command. At that time, there were two Deputy Commanders of Air Marshal rank: the Deputy Commander-in-Chief (Personnel) and the Deputy Commander-in-Chief (Operations). Initially it supervised No. 1 Group RAF and No. 2 Group RAF.[3]
Following the implementation of the 2011 Levene Report, the role of Commander-in-Chief, Air Command was discontinued in spring 2012, and the deputy commanders started to report direct to the Chief of the Air Staff.[4] Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton was the first CAS to supervise the two deputy commanders-in-chief directly.[5]
In November 2018, No. 11 Group was formed to create a "multi-domain operations group" as part of RAF Command.[6]
Commanders-in-Chief (post discontinued in Spring 2012)
[edit]- Air Chief Marshal Sir Clive Loader KCB OBE, 30 March 2007[7] – 2 April 2009 (appointed as C-in-C Strike Command)
- Air Chief Marshal Sir Christopher Moran KCB OBE MVO, 3 April 2009[8] – 26 May 2010[9] (Died in office)
- Air Chief Marshal Sir Simon Bryant KCB CBE, 18 June 2010[10] to March 2012
CAS Subordinates
[edit]
As of 31 December 2025, the Chief of the Air Staff has five principal subordinates (see graph):
- James Fremantle, Director of Resources
- Air Vice-Marshal Mark Phelps, Director Legal Services (RAF)
- Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, responsible for personnel matters
- Air and Space Commander, responsible for air and space operations (including No. 1 Group, No. 2 Group, No. 11 Group, No. 22 Group RAF, and UK Space Command)
- Air Marshal Paul Godfrey, Assistant Chief of Space Operations for Future Concepts and Partnerships, attached United States Space Force, Washington, DC.
| Royal Air Force of the British Armed Forces |
|---|
| Components |
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| History and future |
| Aircraft |
| Personnel |
| Organisation |
| Auxiliary services |
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "RAF Command". Archived from the original on 16 July 2008. Retrieved 8 December 2023.
- ^ Royal Air Force Web Site - Official Announcement of Formation of RAF Air Command
- ^ "Air Command senior, as of September 2012". assets.publishing.service.gov.uk. GOV.UK.
- ^ Defence Reform Report ("the Levene Report"), June 2011, para 7.7, page 35.
- ^ "Air Rank Appointments List 07/08 dated 16 October 2008". Ministry of Defence. Archived from the original on 4 April 2012. Retrieved 26 May 2012.
- ^ "Key Battle of Britain Fighter Command group to be reformed". Press Association. 11 July 2018. Retrieved 12 July 2018.
- ^ RAF Air Rank Appointments List 08/06 of 25 Sep 2006 retrieved 3 Jan 2011
- ^ RAF Air Rank Appointments List 07/08 of 16 Oct 2008 retrieved 3 Jan 2011
- ^ Announcement of ACM Moran's death retrieved 27 May 2010
- ^ RAF Air Rank Appointments List 04/10 of 18 Jun 2010 retrieved 3 Jan 2011
External links
[edit]- RAF Air Command, last recorded webpage, July 4, 2017
- https://www.raf.mod.uk/our-organisation/senior-commanders/ - list of senior commanders, accessed April 2026