Air Commodore

Air Commodore

Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...

 Ashley David Stevenson OBE

Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...

 ADC

Aide-de-camp

An aide-de-camp is a personal assistant, secretary, or adjutant to a person of high rank, usually a senior military officer or a head of state...

 RAF

Royal Air Force

The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...

 is a senior serving Royal Air Force Officer and is currently Commandant

Commandant

Commandant is a senior title often given to the officer in charge of a large training establishment or academy. This usage is common in anglophone nations...

 Royal Air Force College Cranwell.

Military career

Stevenson was commissioned into the Flying Branch as a Flying Officer

Flying Officer

Flying officer is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence...

 from the ranks of the RAF

Royal Air Force

The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...

 on 25 February 1982. He conducted his flying training in the USA on the T-37 and T-38

T-38 Talon

The Northrop T-38 Talon is a twin-engine supersonic jet trainer. It was the world's first supersonic trainer and is also the most produced. The T-38 remains in service as of 2011 in air forces throughout the world....

 aircraft, completing using the Hawk

BAE Hawk

The BAE Systems Hawk is a British single-engine, advanced jet trainer aircraft. It first flew in 1974 as the Hawker Siddeley Hawk. The Hawk is used by the Royal Air Force, and other air forces, as either a trainer or a low-cost combat aircraft...

 in the UK.

He was awarded the Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct

Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct

Instituted in 1939 by King George VI as the King's Commendation for Brave Conduct, the Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct acknowledged brave acts by civilians and members of the military in non-warlike circumstances during a time of war or in peacetime where the action would not otherwise be...

 in 1992 for his actions in an ejection situation following a bird strike.

As Officer Commanding No 3 (Fighter) Squadron

No. 3 Squadron RAF

No 3 Squadron of the Royal Air Force operates the Typhoon F2, FGR4 and T3 from RAF Coningsby, Lincolnshire.No 3 Squadron, which celebrated its 95th anniversary over the weekend of 11-13 May 2007, is unique in the RAF for having two official crests....

, Wing Commander

Wing Commander (rank)

Wing commander is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries...

 Stevenson commanded the detachment of Harrier GR.7 aircraft deployed during the Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone

Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...

 crisis, the first operation conducted by the combined RAF/Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

 Joint Force Harrier

Joint Force Harrier

Joint Strike Wing, previously known as Joint Force Harrier, was the British military formation which controlled the STOVL Harrier aircraft of the Royal Air Force and Fleet Air Arm...

.

Stevenson served as Station Commander RAF Wittering

RAF Wittering

RAF Wittering is a Royal Air Force station within the unitary authority area of Peterborough, Cambridgeshire. Although Stamford in Lincolnshire is the nearest town, the runways of RAF Wittering cross the boundary between Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire....

 for two years and, on promotion to Air Commodore

Air Commodore

Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...

, was appointed Air Commodore Force Development Headquarters in No 1 Group

No. 1 Group RAF

Number 1 Group of the Royal Air Force is one of the two operations groups in Air Command.The group is today referred to as the Air Combat Group, as it controls the RAF's combat fast-jet aircraft and has airfields in the UK plus RAF Unit Goose Bay in Canada, which is used extensively as an...

 on 27 November 2006.

Stevenson was appointed to the newly-created NATO post of Commander Kandahar Airfield

Kandahar Airfield

Kandahar International Airport is located 10 miles south-east of Kandahar City in Afghanistan. The airport was built by the United States in the 1960s, under the United States Agency for International Development program. It may have been intended to be used as a possible U.S...

, Afghanistan in July 2007. He then became Commandant

Commandant

Commandant is a senior title often given to the officer in charge of a large training establishment or academy. This usage is common in anglophone nations...

 Royal Air Force College Cranwell and Director of Recruiting in April 2008.