Air marshal is an air-officer rank which originated within the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence, including many Commonwealth nations. The rank is usually equivalent to a vice admiral or a lieutenant general.
The United Kingdom's Strategic Command (StratCom), previously known as Joint Forces Command (JFC), manages allocated joint capabilities from the three armed services.
The Royal Air Force Legal Branch (RAFLB) or Directorate Legal Services (DLS) – as it is better known – is the uniformed legal service provider for the Royal Air Force. It consists of solicitors and barristers qualified in a Commonwealth jurisdiction. DLS is headquartered at Air Command RAF High Wycombe. The Directorate is currently staffed by a mixture of members of:
Air Command is the only Command currently active in the Royal Air Force. It 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.
Air Marshal Sir Stuart David Atha, is a former senior officer of the Royal Air Force. He led No. 3 (Fighter) Squadron from 2000 to 2004, which included deployment to Iraq on Operation Telic, commanded RAF Coningsby (2006–08), No. 83 Expeditionary Air Group (2009–10) and No. 1 Group (2011–14), and served as the Air Component Commander for security during the 2012 London Olympics. Atha was Deputy Commander Operations from 2016 to 2019.
Air Marshal Sir Barry Mark North, is a retired senior Royal Air Force officer, who served as Deputy Commander (Personnel) at RAF Air Command. A helicopter pilot, North has held command appointments at all levels, notably No. 78 Squadron in the Falkland Islands, the Special Forces Flight as a squadron leader and the newly established No. 83 Expeditionary Air Group in the Middle East as an air commodore.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Andrew Douglas Pulford, is a retired senior Royal Air Force (RAF) commander. A helicopter pilot with operational service in Northern Ireland, the Falklands War and Iraq War, Pulford commanded RAF Odiham and No. 2 Group, and served as Assistant Chief of Defence Staff Operations, before taking up the post of Deputy Commander-in-Chief Personnel at Air Command and Air Member for Personnel in 2010. He became Chief of the Air Staff on 31 July 2013, retiring from the Royal Air Force on 12 July 2016.
Air Marshal Sir Kevin James Leeson, is a retired Royal Air Force engineer officer, whose final appointment was as Chief of Materiel – Air at the Defence Equipment and Support organisation, concurrently holding the appointments of Air Member for Materiel on the Air Force Board and Chief Engineer (RAF), at which point he was the most senior non-aircrew officer in the service.
The Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (A.C.N.S.) is a senior appointment in the Royal Navy usually a two-star rank and has a NATO ranking code of OF-7.
Air Marshal Edward Jackson Stringer, is a senior Royal Air Force officer. Since April 2018 he has served as Director-General of the Defence Academy. He also served as Director-General of Joint Force Development, Strategic Command from April 2018 to March 2021. He served as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff from April 2013 to January 2015, and as Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (Operations) from March 2015 to 2018.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard John Knighton, is a senior Royal Air Force officer and engineer currently serving as Chief of the Air Staff since June 2023. Previously, he served as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff, Deputy Chief of Defence Staff at the Ministry of Defence and as Deputy Commander Capability at RAF Air Command.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Wigston, is the senior officer in the Royal Air Force, serving as Chief of the Air Staff since 26 July 2019 until 2 June 2023. He previously served as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff from 2017 to 2018, and Deputy Commander (Personnel) and Air Member for Personnel and Capability from 2018 to 2019.
The Assistant Chief of the Defence Staff (ACDS) is a senior British military officer. There are a number of ACDS appointments and they are held by officers of two-star rank. They work in the Ministry of Defence.
Air Marshal Sir Gerard Michael David Mayhew, is a senior Royal Air Force officer, who served as Deputy Commander Operations, Headquarters Air Command between May 2019 and August 2022.
Air Vice Marshal Christina Reid Elliot, is a retired senior Royal Air Force officer.
Air Marshal Andrew Mark Turner, is a former senior Royal Air Force officer and helicopter pilot.
Air Marshal Ian David Gale, is a senior officer in the Royal Air Force. He is currently serving as Director-General of Joint Force Development, Strategic Command.
Deputy Commander Capability is responsible for the strategic planning and delivery of all aspects of Royal Air Force capability, including people, equipment, infrastructure, and training. The appointee is a Member of the United Kingdom's Air Force Board as the Air Member for Personnel and Capability due to their position. The current Deputy Commander Capability is Air Marshal Richard Maddison.
Air Vice-Marshal Simon S. Edwards is a senior officer in the Royal Air Force, currently serving as Assistant Chief of the Air Staff.
