Air Marshal

Air Marshal

Air marshal is a three-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...

 Sir Gilbert Edward Nicholetts KBE CB AFC

Air Force Cross (United Kingdom)

The Air Force Cross is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the United Kingdom Armed Forces, and formerly also to officers of the other Commonwealth countries, for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying, though not in active operations against the enemy"...

 & Bar

Medal bar

A medal bar or medal clasp is a thin metal bar attached to the ribbon of a military decoration, civil decoration, or other medal. It is most commonly used to indicate the campaign or operation the recipient received the award for, and multiple bars on the same medal are used to indicate that the...

 (9 November 1902 – 7 September 1983) was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force

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...

 during the 1950s.

RAF career

Nicholetts joined the Royal Air Force in 1921. He was appointed appointed Officer Commanding No. 228 Squadron

No. 228 Squadron RAF

No. 228 Squadron RAF was a unit that during the greatest part of its existence flew over water, doing so in World War I, World War II and beyond, performing anti-submarine, reconnaissance and air-sea rescue tasks.-Formation and World War I:...

 just at the start of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. He went on to be Station Commander at RAF Haifa and then RAF Shallufa before being taken Prisoner of War

Prisoner of war

A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...

 in 1942. After the War he became Senior Air Service Officer at Headquarters No. 25 (Armament) Group and then Air Officer Commanding the Central Photographic Establishment before becoming Director of Organisation at the Air Ministry

Air Ministry

The Air Ministry was a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964...

 in 1948. He was then made Senior Air Service Officer at Headquarters RAF Coastal Command

RAF Coastal Command

RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force . Founded in 1936, it was the RAF's premier maritime arm, after the Royal Navy's secondment of the Fleet Air Arm in 1937. Naval aviation was neglected in the inter-war period, 1919–1939, and as a consequence the service did not receive...

 in 1951, Air Officer Commanding No. 21 Group in 1953 and Air Officer Commanding AHQ Malta

AHQ Malta

AHQ Malta was an overseas command of the Royal Air Force established on December 28, 1941 by renaming RAF Mediterranean under Air Vice Marshal Hugh Lloyd....

 in 1956. His last appointment was as Inspector-General of the RAF

Inspector-General of the RAF

The Inspector-General of the RAF was a senior appointment in the Royal Air Force, responsible for the inspection of airfields. The post existed from 1918 to 1920 and from 1935 until the late 1960s....

in 1958 before retiring in 1959.