Glenn Torpy
Overview
Air Chief Marshal
Air chief marshal is a senior 4-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Sir Glenn Lester Torpy, GCB, CBE, DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, 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...
(born 27 July 1953, Ely
Ely, Cambridgeshire
Ely is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about by road from London. It is built on a Lower Greensand island, which at a maximum elevation of is the highest land in the Fens...
) is a retired senior 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...
commander. He was a fast jet pilot in the late 1970s and 1980s, a senior officer in the early 1990s and a senior commander in the late 1990s and 2000s. He served as Chief of the Air Staff, the professional head of the RAF, from 2006 to 2009.
Glenn Torpy joined 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...
as a Pilot Officer
Pilot Officer
Pilot officer is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks immediately below flying officer...
on 8 September 1974 after obtaining a BSc
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degree in aeronautical engineering from Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
.
His early career, after he left the RAF College Cranwell, involved flying duties on Jaguar
SEPECAT Jaguar
The SEPECAT Jaguar is an Anglo-French jet ground attack aircraft, originally used by the British Royal Air Force and the French Armée de l'Air in the close air support and nuclear strike role, and still in service with several export customers, notably the Indian Air Force and the Royal Air Force...
aircraft before qualifying as a weapons instructor
Qualified Weapons Instructor
Qualified Weapons Instructor is a qualification given to graduates of the Royal Air Force or Royal Navy Qualified Weapons Instructor courses...
on Hawk aircraft.
His early commands included a tour as a Squadron Leader on Tornado
Panavia Tornado
The Panavia Tornado is a family of twin-engine, variable-sweep wing combat aircraft, which was jointly developed and manufactured by the United Kingdom, West Germany and Italy...
aircraft before being appointed Officer Commanding No.
Unanswered Questions
Encyclopedia
Air Chief Marshal
Sir Glenn Lester Torpy, GCB, CBE, DSO
, ADC
(born 27 July 1953, Ely
) is a retired senior Royal Air Force
commander. He was a fast jet pilot in the late 1970s and 1980s, a senior officer in the early 1990s and a senior commander in the late 1990s and 2000s. He served as Chief of the Air Staff, the professional head of the RAF, from 2006 to 2009.
as a Pilot Officer
on 8 September 1974 after obtaining a BSc
degree in aeronautical engineering from Imperial College London
.
His early career, after he left the RAF College Cranwell, involved flying duties on Jaguar
aircraft before qualifying as a weapons instructor
on Hawk aircraft.
His early commands included a tour as a Squadron Leader on Tornado
aircraft before being appointed Officer Commanding No. 13 Squadron. During the Gulf War
, Torpy saw active service with No. 13 Squadron and was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Service Order
(DSO).
In 1995, following several staff office appointments, Torpy was appointed Station Commander at RAF Bruggen
in Germany
. He was then appointed Assistant Chief of Staff (Operations) at Permanent Joint Headquarters
in Northwood.
From 2001 to 2003 he was Air Officer Commanding Number One Group
and he also served as the Air Component Commander on Operation Telic
(British operations in Iraq). From 2003 to 2004 he was Deputy Commander-in-chief at RAF Strike Command
. On 26 July 2004 he was appointed Chief of Joint Operations at the Permanent Joint Headquarters
in Northwood.
(CBE) in the 1999 New Year Honours
, and a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
(KCB) in the 2005 New Year Honours. He was appointed as Chief of the Air Staff and an Air Aide-de-Camp
to Her Majesty the Queen
on 13 April 2006 in succession to Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup
. He was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) in the 2008 Birthday Honours. In addition to his British honours, Torpy was awarded the Legion of Merit (Degree of Officer)
from the United States
in 'recognition of gallant and distinguished services during coalition operations in Iraq
'.
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Air Chief Marshal
Air chief marshal is a senior 4-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Sir Glenn Lester Torpy, GCB, CBE, DSO
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
, 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...
(born 27 July 1953, Ely
Ely, Cambridgeshire
Ely is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, England, 14 miles north-northeast of Cambridge and about by road from London. It is built on a Lower Greensand island, which at a maximum elevation of is the highest land in the Fens...
) is a retired senior 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...
commander. He was a fast jet pilot in the late 1970s and 1980s, a senior officer in the early 1990s and a senior commander in the late 1990s and 2000s. He served as Chief of the Air Staff, the professional head of the RAF, from 2006 to 2009.
Military career
Glenn Torpy joined the Royal Air ForceRoyal 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...
as a Pilot Officer
Pilot Officer
Pilot officer is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks immediately below flying officer...
on 8 September 1974 after obtaining a BSc
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science is an undergraduate academic degree awarded for completed courses that generally last three to five years .-Australia:In Australia, the BSc is a 3 year degree, offered from 1st year on...
degree in aeronautical engineering from Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
.
His early career, after he left the RAF College Cranwell, involved flying duties on Jaguar
SEPECAT Jaguar
The SEPECAT Jaguar is an Anglo-French jet ground attack aircraft, originally used by the British Royal Air Force and the French Armée de l'Air in the close air support and nuclear strike role, and still in service with several export customers, notably the Indian Air Force and the Royal Air Force...
aircraft before qualifying as a weapons instructor
Qualified Weapons Instructor
Qualified Weapons Instructor is a qualification given to graduates of the Royal Air Force or Royal Navy Qualified Weapons Instructor courses...
on Hawk aircraft.
His early commands included a tour as a Squadron Leader on Tornado
Panavia Tornado
The Panavia Tornado is a family of twin-engine, variable-sweep wing combat aircraft, which was jointly developed and manufactured by the United Kingdom, West Germany and Italy...
aircraft before being appointed Officer Commanding No. 13 Squadron. During the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, Torpy saw active service with No. 13 Squadron and was subsequently awarded the Distinguished Service Order
Distinguished Service Order
The Distinguished Service Order is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, and formerly of other parts of the British Commonwealth and Empire, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typically in actual combat.Instituted on 6 September...
(DSO).
In 1995, following several staff office appointments, Torpy was appointed Station Commander at RAF Bruggen
RAF Bruggen
The former Royal Air Force Station Brüggen, more commonly known as RAF Brüggen, in Germany was a major station of the Royal Air Force until 15 June 2001. It was situated next to the village of Elmpt, approximately west of Düsseldorf near the German-Netherlands border. The base was named after...
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. He was then appointed Assistant Chief of Staff (Operations) at Permanent Joint Headquarters
Permanent Joint Headquarters
The Permanent Joint Headquarters is the British tri-service headquarters from where all overseas military operations are planned and controlled. It is situated at Northwood Headquarters in Northwood, London....
in Northwood.
From 2001 to 2003 he was Air Officer Commanding Number One 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...
and he also served as the Air Component Commander on Operation Telic
Operation Telic
Operation TELIC was the codename under which all British military operations in Iraq were conducted between the start of the Invasion of Iraq on 19 March 2003 and the withdrawal of the last remaining British forces on 22 May 2011...
(British operations in Iraq). From 2003 to 2004 he was Deputy Commander-in-chief at RAF Strike Command
RAF Strike Command
The Royal Air Force's Strike Command was the military formation which controlled the majority of the United Kingdom's bomber and fighter aircraft from 1968 until 2007: it was merged with Personnel and Training Command to form the single Air Command. It latterly consisted of two formations - No. 1...
. On 26 July 2004 he was appointed Chief of Joint Operations at the Permanent Joint Headquarters
Permanent Joint Headquarters
The Permanent Joint Headquarters is the British tri-service headquarters from where all overseas military operations are planned and controlled. It is situated at Northwood Headquarters in Northwood, London....
in Northwood.
Honours
Torpy was made a Commander of the Order of the British EmpireOrder 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...
(CBE) in the 1999 New Year Honours
New Year Honours
The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, being a civic occasion on the New Year annually in which new members of most Commonwealth Realms honours are named. The awards are presented by the reigning monarch or head of state, currently Queen Elizabeth II...
, and a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(KCB) in the 2005 New Year Honours. He was appointed as Chief of the Air Staff and an Air Aide-de-Camp
Air Aide-de-Camp
An air aide-de-camp is a senior honorary aide-de-camp appointment for air officers in the Royal Air Force, the Royal Australian Air Force and the Indian Air Force. Normally the recipient is appointed as an air aide-de-camp to the head of state...
to Her Majesty the Queen
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
on 13 April 2006 in succession to Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup
Jock Stirrup
Air Chief Marshal Graham Eric "Jock" Stirrup, Baron Stirrup, GCB, AFC, FRAeS, FCMI, RAF, is a former senior Royal Air Force commander, who was the Chief of the Defence Staff from 2006 until his retirement in late 2010. He is also a Crossbench member of the House of Lords.As a junior RAF officer,...
. He was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) in the 2008 Birthday Honours. In addition to his British honours, Torpy was awarded the Legion of Merit (Degree of Officer)
Legion of Merit
The Legion of Merit is a military decoration of the United States armed forces that is awarded for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements...
from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in 'recognition of gallant and distinguished services during coalition operations in Iraq
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
'.
Ranks and Promotions
| Insignia | Rank | Date of promotion | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
Pilot Officer Pilot Officer Pilot officer is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks immediately below flying officer... |
8 December 1974 | On taking a BSc degree; seniority backdated to 8 December 1972 |
 |
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... |
8 March 1975 | Seniority backdated to 8 June 1973. |
 |
Flight Lieutenant Flight Lieutenant Flight lieutenant is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many Commonwealth countries. It ranks above flying officer and immediately below squadron leader. The name of the rank is the complete phrase; it is never shortened to "lieutenant"... |
8 December 1975 | |
 |
Squadron Leader Squadron Leader Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these... |
1 July 1983 | |
 |
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... |
1 July 1989 | |
 |
Group Captain Group Captain Group captain is a senior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks above wing commander and immediately below air commodore... |
1 July 1993 | |
 |
Air Commodore Air Commodore Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force... |
1 January 1997 | |
 |
Air Vice-Marshal Air Vice-Marshal Air vice-marshal is a two-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in... |
1 January 2001 | |
 |
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... |
1 January 2004 | |
 |
Air Chief Marshal Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal is a senior 4-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force... |
13 April 2006 |
External links
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