John Frederick Andrews Higgins

John Frederick Andrews Higgins
Nickname(s)	Jack Higgins
Born	1 September 1875
Died	1 June 1948 (aged 72) Leamington, England, UK
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Air Force
Years of service	c. 1895–1930 1939–1940
Rank	Air Marshal
Commands held	No. 5 Squadron RFC RFC Training Wing II Brigade RFC VI Brigade RFC III Brigade RFC No. 3 Area Midland Area RAF forces of the Rhine Northern Area Inland Area Iraq Command Indian Air Force
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Awards	Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Distinguished Service Order Air Force Cross Mentioned in Despatches (6)
Other work	Director of Air Service Training Ltd (1931?), Hamble, England, with J D Siddeley, F P Scott and S W Hiscocks

Air Marshal Sir John Frederick Andrews Higgins KCB, KBE, DSO, AFC, RAF (1 September 1875 – 1 June 1948), known as Jack Higgins, was a senior officer in the Royal Flying Corps, serving as a brigade commander from 1915 to 1918. After World War I he served in a range of senior posts in the Royal Air Force until his retirement in 1930. He returned to active service for the first year of World War II.

RAF career

Higgins became a cadet at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich and was commissioned into the Royal Field Artillery in 1895, serving in the Second Boer War.^[1] In November 1900 he was awarded the DSO for his service during this war.^[2]

He served as Officer Commanding No. 5 Squadron from July 1913 and then at the start of November 1914, Higgins was selected to head up the RFC's training wing which was based at Netheravon.^[3] He went on to command II Brigade RFC, VI Brigade RFC and then III Brigade RFC during the course of World War I.^[1] In the closing stages of the War he was General Officer Commanding No. 3 Area and then General Officer Commanding Midland Area.^[1]

After the War he was appointed General Officer Commanding RAF forces of the Rhine and then Air Officer Commanding Northern Area before becoming Director of Personnel at the Air Ministry in 1920.^[1] He went on to be Air Officer Commanding Inland Area in 1922, Air Officer Commanding Iraq Command in 1924 and Air Member for Supply and Research in 1926.^[1] He retired to India in 1930 but was recalled as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Air Forces in India in October 1939 at the start of World War II before retiring again in August 1940.^[1]

References

1. Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation - Air Marshal Sir John Higgins
2. The London Gazette: no. 27359. p. 6308. 27 September 1901.
3. Macmillan, Norman. Sir Sefton Brancker p. 81