Marshal of the air force

This article is about air force officers who rank as marshals. For the similarly named but lesser air force rank, see Air marshal.

Marshal of the air force is the English term for the most senior rank in a number of air forces. The ranks described by this term can properly be considered marshal ranks.

No air force in an English-speaking country formally uses the exact title "marshal of the air force", although it is sometimes used as a shortened form of the full title. In several Commonwealth air forces and many Middle Eastern air forces the most senior rank is named "marshal of the", followed by the name of the air force (e.g. marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force).

Brazil and Italy have used rank titles which literally translate as marshal of the air, whereas Portugal's rank translates as "marshal of the air force". Nazi Germany's Luftwaffe used the rank of Generalfeldmarschall (also used by the World War II German Army) The premier rank of Reichsmarschall was also held solely by Hermann Göring.

The first instance of this rank was marshal of the Royal Air Force, which was established on paper in 1919 and was first held by Lord Trenchard (from 1927 onwards). Other Commonwealth countries later adopted their own national versions of the rank but, unlike the United Kingdom, they have only used it as a ceremonial honour.

Seniority

Marshals of the air force can be properly considered marshals and such ranks are equivalent to the army rank of field marshal and the navy rank of admiral of the fleet. Marshal of the air force is a five-star rank and in NATO countries it is described by the ranking code of OF-10. As such a senior rank, it is very seldom held. It is awarded either in a ceremonial capacity to heads of state or members of royal families, or to the most senior officers in large air forces.

In the air forces of Australia, India, Thailand and the United Kingdom, marshals of the air force are immediately senior to air chief marshals. In the case of New Zealand, although the rank of marshal of the Royal New Zealand Air Force has been bestowed, no Royal New Zealand Air Force officer has attained higher rank than air marshal and the New Zealand rank of air chief marshal only exists on paper. A similar situation to the one in New Zealand also existed in Malaysia until the 1970s when the Royal Malaysian Air Force replaced its air-officer ranks with general-officer ranks, although it retained the rank of marshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force. The rank of marshal of the Royal Canadian Air Force was never granted.[1]

During Germany's Nazi period, the Luftwaffe (air force), in common with the Heer (army), used the rank of generalfeldmarschall (field marshal), which was equivalent to großadmiral (grand admiral) in the navy. Generalfeldmarschall was immediately senior to generaloberst (colonel general) and it was the most senior German air force and army rank until the promotion of Hermann Göring, the commander of the Luftwaffe, to the even higher rank of reichsmarschall (imperial marshal or marshal of the realm) in July 1940. The German ranks of reichsmarschall and generalfeldmarschall ceased to exist with the fall of the Third Reich.

Insignia and distinguishing flags

Rank insignia

There are a variety of rank insignia in use by the different air forces which maintain a rank of marshal of the air force. Some, such as the Royal Air Force, derive the pattern from the sleeve lace for an admiral of the fleet, using one broad light blue band on a wider broad black band with four narrow light blue bands each on slightly wider black bands. Others use a pattern of stars, typically numbering five in total.

Command flags

The following command or rank flags are or have been in use:

Current holders of the rank

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, holds the ranks of Marshal of the Royal Air Force, Marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force and Marshal of the Royal New Zealand Air Force.

As of 2015, there are 16 living individuals who hold or have held the rank, or its equivalents, of Marshal of the Air Force. 11 of those are royalty who have been appointed to the rank in a ceremonial capacity, including Queen Sirikit of Thailand, the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales and the current head of state of Malaysia. In the case of Malaysia, the elected Yang di-Pertuan Agong is appointed a Marshal of the Air Force for his tenure as head of state, but relinquishes the rank after completing his term in office. He can, however, be re-appointed to the rank if he later serves another term.

The Duke of Edinburgh holds the ceremonial rank of a Marshal of the Royal Air Force, as well as the honorary ranks of Marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force and Marshal of the Royal New Zealand Air Force; owing to their smaller size, however, neither of the latter two air forces have ever used the rank in an operational capacity. Although the rank of Marshal of the Royal Canadian Air Force existed on paper until 1968, the Duke of Edinburgh was never appointed to this rank nor to the other Canadian 5-star ranks before they were abolished that year. In 2012, his son, the Prince of Wales, was appointed to the British rank.

The remaining five holders of the rank were all serving air officers, three of whom served as Chief of the Air Staff of the Royal Air Force, and were promoted to the rank of Marshal of the Royal Air Force upon concluding their tenure. Of those, only Lord Craig did not retire then, as he went on to serve as Chief of the Defence Staff as a Marshal of the RAF. In June 2014, retired Air Chief Marshal the Lord Stirrup was promoted to Marshal of the RAF in a ceremonial capacity, marking the first time since 1992 that an RAF air officer had been awarded the rank; Lord Stirrup had served as Chief of the Defence Staff from 2006 to 2010. Air Chief Marshal Arjan Singh, DFC, served as the first four-star Chief of the Air Staff of the Indian Air Force from 1964 to 1969, when he retired. He was promoted to the ceremonial rank of Marshal of the Indian Air Force in 2002, thus making India the only other Commonwealth nation besides the UK to have awarded the rank to an air officer.

List of marshals of the air force

Country
 Year of promotion /
appointment
Portrait Officer
 Rank
 Year of birth
 Year of death
Notes
Australia 1939 HM King George VI Marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force 1895 1952 Honorary rank.
Australia 1954 HRH Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force 1921 - Honorary rank.
Appointed 1 April 1954.[2]
BahrainHM Hamad ibn Isa Al KhalifahMarshal of the Royal Bahrain Air Force1950-Honorary rank.[3]
Brazil1959Armando Figueira Trompowsky de AlmeidaMarechal-do-ar18891964Promoted 30 January 1959[4]
Brazil1960Eduardo GomesMarechal-do-ar18961981Patron of the Brazilian Air Force. Promoted 22 September 1960.[5]
BrazilCasimiro Montenegro FilhoMarechal-do-ar19042000
EgyptHM King FaroukMarshal of the Royal Egyptian Air Force19201965Honorary rank.[6]
Egypt1952HM King Fuad IIMarshal of the Royal Egyptian Air Force1952-Honorary rank.
Appointed 26 July 1952 at the age of six months.[6]
EthiopiaHIM Haile SelassieMarshal of the Imperial Ethiopian Air Force18921975Honorary rank.[7]
EthiopiaHIM Amha SelassieMarshal of the Imperial Ethiopian Air Force19161997Honorary rank.[8]
Germany1938Hermann GöringReichsmarschall18931945Promoted to Generalfeldmarschall 4 February 1938, promoted to Reichsmarschall 19 June 1940
Germany1940Albert KesselringGeneralfeldmarschall18851960Promoted 19 July 1940
Germany1940Erhard MilchGeneralfeldmarschall18921972Promoted 19 July 1940
Germany1940Hugo SperrleGeneralfeldmarschall18851953Promoted 19 July 1940
Germany1943Wolfram Freiherr von RichthofenGeneralfeldmarschall18951945Promoted 16 February 1943
Germany1945Robert Ritter von GreimGeneralfeldmarschall18921945Promoted 25 April 1945
Greece George II of Greece Aitherarchis (Marshal of the Royal Hellenic Air Force)18901947Honorary rank.[9]
India2002 Arjan Singh Marshal of the Indian Air Force1919-Promoted.
26 January 2002[10]
Iraq1933HM King GhaziMarshal of the Royal Iraqi Air Force19121939Honorary rank.
Appointed 8 September 1933
Iraq1939HRH Prince Abdul IllahMarshal of the Royal Iraqi Air Force19131958Honorary rank.
Appointed 6 April 1939[11]
Iraq1953HM King Faisal IIMarshal of the Royal Iraqi Air Force19351958Honorary rank.
Appointed 2 May 1953
Italy1933Italo BalboMaresciallo dell'Aria18961940Promoted August 1933
JordanHM King Hussein of JordanMarshal of the Royal Jordanian Air Force19351999Honorary rank.[12]
Jordan1999 HM King Abdullah IIMarshal of the Royal Jordanian Air Force1962-Honorary rank.
Appointed 7 February 1999[12]
Malaysia1970 Sultan Abdul HalimMarshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force1927-Honorary rank.
Appointed 21 September 1970.[13][14] Relinquished role as Head of State on 20 September 1975. Re-appointed Head of State on 13 December 2011.
Malaysia1975 Sultan Yahya PetraMarshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force19171979Honorary rank.
Appointed 21 September 1975[14]
Malaysia1979 Sultan Ahmad ShahMarshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force1930-Honorary rank.
Appointed 30 March 1979[14]
Malaysia1984 Sultan IskandarMarshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force19322010Honorary rank.
Appointed 26 April 1984,[14] died 22 January 2010.
Malaysia1989 Sultan Azlan ShahMarshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force19282014Honorary rank.
Appointed 26 April 1989[14] died 28 May 2014.
Malaysia1994 Tuanku JaafarMarshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force19222008Honorary rank.
Appointed 26 April 1994,[14] died 27 December 2008.
Malaysia1999 SalahuddinMarshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force19262001Honorary rank.
Appointed 26 April 1999[14] died 21 November 2001.
Malaysia2001 Tuanku Syed SirajuddinMarshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force1943-Honorary rank.
Appointed 12 December 2001.[14]
Malaysia2007 Mizan Zainal AbidinMarshal of the Royal Malaysian Air Force1962-Honorary rank.
Appointed 16 February 2007.[14]
New Zealand1977 HRH Prince Philip, Duke of EdinburghMarshal of the Royal New Zealand Air Force1921-Honorary rank.
Appointed 11 June 1977.[15]
Oman1974 Sultan QaboosMarshal of the Royal Air Force of Oman1940-Honorary rank.[16]
Portugal1958 Francisco Craveiro LopesMarechal da Força Aérea18941964Honorary rank.[17]
Portugal1990 Humberto DelgadoMarechal da Força Aérea19061965Posthumous promotion.[18]
Saudi Arabia1991 HRH Prince Khalid bin SultanField Marshal1949-
Thailand Fuen Ronnaphagrad RitthakhaneeMarshal of the Royal Thai Air Force19001987
Thailand Chalermkiat VatthanangkunMarshal of the Royal Thai Air Force19141960
Thailand HM Queen SirikitMarshal of the Royal Thai Air Force1932-Honorary rank.
Possibly the only woman to have held such rank.
Thailandc. 1964 Thanom KittikachornMarshal of the Royal Thai Air Force19122004Appointed himself.
United Kingdom1927 Hugh Trenchard, 1st Viscount TrenchardMarshal of the Royal Air Force18731956Promoted 1 January 1927.
United Kingdom1933 Sir John SalmondMarshal of the Royal Air Force18811968Promoted 1 January 1933.
United Kingdom1936 HM King Edward VIIIMarshal of the Royal Air Force18941972Honorary rank.
Appointed 21 January 1936.
United Kingdom1936 HM King George VIMarshal of the Royal Air Force18951952Honorary rank.
Appointed 11 December 1936.
United Kingdom1937Sir Edward EllingtonMarshal of the Royal Air Force18771967Promoted 1 January 1937.
United Kingdom1940 Cyril Newall, 1st Baron NewallMarshal of the Royal Air Force18861963Promoted 4 October 1940. Retired 20 days later.[19]
United Kingdom1944 Charles Portal, 1st Viscount Portal of HungerfordMarshal of the Royal Air Force18931971Promoted 1 June 1944.
United Kingdom1945 Arthur Tedder, 1st Baron TedderMarshal of the Royal Air Force18901967Promoted 12 September 1945.
United Kingdom1946 Sholto Douglas, 1st Baron Douglas of KirtlesideMarshal of the Royal Air Force18931969Promoted 1 January 1946.
United Kingdom1946 Sir Arthur HarrisMarshal of the Royal Air Force18921984Promoted 1 January 1946, several months after retirement.[20]
United Kingdom1950 Sir John SlessorMarshal of the Royal Air Force18971979Promoted 8 June 1950.
United Kingdom1953 HRH Prince Philip, Duke of EdinburghMarshal of the Royal Air Force1921-Honorary rank.
Appointed 15 January 1953.
United Kingdom1954 Sir William DicksonMarshal of the Royal Air Force18981987Promoted 1 June 1954.
United Kingdom1958 Sir Dermot BoyleMarshal of the Royal Air Force19041993Promoted 1 January 1958.
United Kingdom1958 HRH Prince Henry, Duke of GloucesterMarshal of the Royal Air Force19001974Honorary rank.
Appointed 12 June 1958.
United Kingdom1962 Sir Thomas PikeMarshal of the Royal Air Force19061983Promoted 6 April 1962.[21]
United Kingdom1967 Charles Elworthy, Baron ElworthyMarshal of the Royal Air Force19111993Promoted 1 April 1967.[22]
United Kingdom1971 Sir John GrandyMarshal of the Royal Air Force19132004Promoted and retired on the same day (1 April 1971).[23]
United Kingdom1974 Sir Denis SpotswoodMarshal of the Royal Air Force19162001Promoted and retired on the same day (31 March 1974).[24]
United Kingdom1976 Sir Andrew HumphreyMarshal of the Royal Air Force19211977Promoted 6 August 1976.[25]
United Kingdom1977 Neil Cameron, Baron Cameron of BalhousieMarshal of the Royal Air Force19201985Promoted 31 July 1977.[26]
United Kingdom1982 Sir Michael BeethamMarshal of the Royal Air Force19232015Promoted and retired on the same day (14 October 1982).[27]
United Kingdom1985 Sir Keith WilliamsonMarshal of the Royal Air Force1928-Promoted and retired on the same day (15 October 1985).[28]
United Kingdom1988 David Craig, Baron Craig of RadleyMarshal of the Royal Air Force1929-Promoted 14 November 1988.[29]
United Kingdom1992 Sir Peter HardingMarshal of the Royal Air Force1933-Promoted 6 November 1992.[30] Resigned commission 14 June 1994.[31]
United Kingdom2012 HRH Prince Charles, Prince of WalesMarshal of the Royal Air Force1948-Honorary rank.
Appointed 16 June 2012.[32]
United Kingdom2014 Jock Stirrup, Baron StirrupMarshal of the Royal Air Force1949-Honorary rank. Promoted 13 June 2014.[33]

Other countries

The rank also exists or has existed (on paper) in Afghanistan, Bangladesh,[34] Brunei, Iran, South Korea, Nigeria,[35] Pakistan[36] and South Vietnam, but not all of these countries have ever actually used it. The Turkish Air Force maintains a rank of hava mareşalı (literally air marshal but equivalent to five-star rank). The Indonesian Air Force maintains the rank of marsekal besar (literally, "great marshal" and also a five-star rank) although no Indonesian Air Force officer has ever been promoted to the rank. The French Air Force, in common with the French Army has marshal of France as its most senior rank. However, unlike the French Army, the Air Force has never had one of its officers created a marshal of France.

The United States does not use the rank, instead using general of the air force which has only been held once and is currently retained only on paper. China also does not use a marshal rank, preferring first class general (kong jun yi ji shang jiang) which has never been held by an air force officer and was abolished in 1994. Spain uses the equivalent rank of captain general of the Air Force which is held only by HM King Felipe VI.

Fictional use

A marshal of the air force is mentioned in Roald Dahl's book The BFG. Dahl himself was a Royal Air Force officer during World War II.

See also

References

  1. ↑ CAP 6 Dress Orders for the Royal Canadian Air Force. Ottawa: RCAF, 1958. pp. 3–62.
  2. ↑ The London Gazette: no. 40137. p. 1959. 2 April 1954. Retrieved 2009-10-10. Announcement of the appointment of HRH Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, as admiral of the fleet in the Royal Australian Navy, field marshal in the Australian Military Forces and marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force.
  3. ↑ Buyers, Christopher. "The Al-Khalifa Dynasty". The Royal Ark. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
  4. ↑ http://www.incaer.aer.mil.br/MarTrompowsky.htm
  5. ↑ http://www.rudnei.cunha.nom.br/FAB/en/patrono.html
  6. 1 2 Egypt
  7. ↑ Buyers, Christopher (May 2001 – July 2007). "The Solomonic Dynasty - page 1". The Royal Ark. Retrieved 2010-09-02.
  8. ↑ Buyers, Christopher (May 2001 – July 2007). "The Solomonic Dynasty - page 2". The Royal Ark. Retrieved 2008-04-08.
  9. ↑ The Who's who of the Allied Governments 2. Allied Publications. 1942. p. 62.
  10. ↑ India
  11. ↑ Buyers, Christopher. "Al-Hashimi Dynasty". The Royal Ark. Retrieved 17 December 2008.
  12. 1 2 Jordan
  13. ↑ Sultan Abdul Halim
  14. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Maylasia
  15. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 47237. p. 7127. 10 June 1977. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  16. ↑ Oman
  17. ↑ http://www.archontology.org/nations/portugal/port010/craveiro.php
  18. ↑ Portugal
  19. ↑ Baron Newall
  20. ↑ Barrass, Malcolm (2007-09-29). "Marshal of the RAF Sir Arthur Harris". Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation. Retrieved 2008-03-31.
  21. ↑ Barrass, Malcolm (2007-09-01). "Marshal of the RAF Sir Thomas Pike". Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation. Retrieved 2008-04-20.
  22. ↑ Barrass, Malcolm (2007-06-16). "Marshal of the RAF The Lord Elworthy of Timaru". Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation. Retrieved 2008-04-18.
  23. ↑ Barrass, Malcolm (2007-06-16). "Marshal of the RAF Sir John Grandy". Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation. Retrieved 2008-04-01.
  24. ↑ Barrass, Malcolm (2007-10-07). "Marshal of the RAF Sir Denis Spotswood". Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation. Retrieved 2008-04-02.
  25. ↑ Probert, Henry (1991). High Commanders of the Royal Air Force. London: HMSO. p. 133. ISBN 0-11-772635-4.
  26. ↑ Probert, p. 135.
  27. ↑ Probert, p. 137.
  28. ↑ Probert, p. 139.
  29. ↑ Probert, p. 141.
  30. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 53103. p. 18862. 9 November 1992. Retrieved 2009-04-29.
  31. ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 53814. p. 14206. 10 October 1994. Retrieved 2009-04-29.
  32. ↑ "Prince Charles awarded highest rank in all three armed forces," Daily Telegraph, 16 June 2012. Accessed 18 June 2012.
  33. ↑ "2014 Birthday Honours for service personnel and defence civilians". Ministry of Defence. 13 June 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  34. ↑ http://www.bangladeshnavy.org/ranks.html
  35. ↑ http://www.nigerianairforce.net/AboutNAF/ColoursWings.aspx
  36. ↑ http://www-ec.njit.edu/~axz6893/airforce.htm
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