David Craig, Baron Craig of Radley

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
For the 18th century law lord, see William Craig, Lord Craig.

The Lord Craig of Radley
Officer of the Order of the British Empire
Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air
Other workConvenor of the Crossbench Peers

OBE (born 17 September 1929) is a retired Royal Air Force officer and member of the House of Lords. He was a fast jet pilot in the 1950s, a squadron commander in the 1960s and a station commander in the 1970s. He served as Chief of the Air Staff during the late 1980s, when the Boeing Airborne early warning and control system was ordered and the European Fighter programme was being developed. He then served as Chief of the Defence Staff during the Gulf War. He was granted a life peerage as Baron Craig of Radley after his retirement from active service in 1991, sitting as a crossbencher. As of 2022, he is the last living officer in the British Armed Forces to have held a five-star rank whilst on active service.[n 1]

Early life

The son of

Head of School.[1] He gained a place at Lincoln College, Oxford, where he graduated with a degree in mathematics, and joined the Oxford University Air Squadron.[1]

RAF career

Craig was commissioned as a

North Coates.[1] He was promoted to squadron leader on 1 January 1959[5]
and posted to the Air Ministry later that year.[6] He attended RAF Staff College in 1961 before joining No. 35 Squadron at RAF Coningsby in January 1963 initially as a flight commander and then as Officer Commanding the Squadron flying Vulcan B2 aircraft.[6]

Promoted to

Field Marshal Sir Richard Hull in June 1965.[6] He was awarded the Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air in the 1965 Birthday Honours.[8]

Vulcan B2, a type flown by Craig in the early 1960s

Craig was appointed an

Aide-de-Camp to the Queen in 1969.[11] He was made Director (Plans and Operations) and Headquarters Far East Command in 1970,[11] and having been promoted to air commodore on 1 January 1972,[12] he became Station Commander at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus later that year.[11] He attended the Royal College of Defence Studies in 1974.[13] Promoted to air vice-marshal on 1 January 1975,[14] he became Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Operations) on 25 March 1975.[15]

Appointed a

Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in the 1984 Birthday Honours.[21]

Craig became

Air Aide-de-Camp to the Queen on the same date.[22] As Chief of the Air Staff he advised the British Government on the ordering of the Boeing Airborne early warning and control system and the development of the European Fighter programme.[23] Having been promoted to the rank of Marshal of the Royal Air Force on 14 November 1988,[24] he became Chief of the Defence Staff on 9 December 1988.[25] As Chief of the Defence Staff he advised the British Government on the deployment of 45,000 servicemen and women during the Gulf War.[26] He retired from service in 1991.[11]

Later work

On 30 July 1991, following his retirement from the RAF, Craig was made a

County of Norfolk.[27][28] In retirement he was a Director of ML Holdings plc from 1991 to 1992.[11] He was the Convenor of the Crossbench Peers in the House of Lords from December 1999 until July 2004 and Chairman of the Council of King Edward VII's Hospital from 1998 to 2004.[11] He was awarded an honorary DSc. from Cranfield University in 1988.[11]

Personal life

Craig married Elisabeth June Derenburg in 1955; they have two children: The Hon. Christopher Craig (born 1957) and The Hon. Susan Craig (born 1960).[29] His interests include fishing and shooting.[11]

Arms

Coat of arms of David Craig, Baron Craig of Radley
Crest
Riding from an astral crown or a knight on horseback in full armour, his dexter hand holding a broken tilting spear, all proper, his helm surmounted by three ostrich plumes gules, argent and sable.
Escutcheon
Ermine, an arrow in bend gules feathered or, the point upwards proper, transfixing a mullet vert, over all on a chevron sable three delta figures argent.
Supporters
On either side a double-headed eagle wings displayed per pale gules and azure, beaked and legged or, that to the dexter charged on the breast with two keys in saltire wards upwards also gold and that to the sinister charged on the breast with a rose argent barbed and seeded proper; a compartment comprising a grassy mount traversed palewise by a runway both proper bordered by four crosses formy gules.
Motto
Nec Degenero[30]

Notes

  1. ^ Though Admiral of the Fleet Benjamin Bathurst is also living as of 2022, he was promoted to Admiral of the Fleet upon his retirement as First Sea Lord in 1995. Since 1997, all appointments to five-star ranks in the British Armed Forces have only been honorary.

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Probert, p. 95
  2. ^ "No. 39358". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 October 1951. p. 5363.
  3. ^ "No. 39499". The London Gazette (Supplement). 25 March 1952. p. 1677.
  4. ^ "No. 39758". The London Gazette (Supplement). 23 January 1953. p. 482.
  5. ^ "No. 41586". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 1958. p. 7950.
  6. ^ a b c Probert, p.96
  7. ^ "No. 43210". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1963. p. 77.
  8. ^ "No. 43667". The London Gazette (Supplement). 12 June 1965. p. 5505.
  9. ^ "No. 44326". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 June 1967. p. 6276.
  10. ^ "No. 44493". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 January 1968. p. 82.
  11. ^
    ISBN 978-1-4081-1414-8
  12. ^ "No. 45564". The London Gazette (Supplement). 4 January 1972. p. 92.
  13. ^ Probert, p.97
  14. ^ "No. 46469". The London Gazette (Supplement). 20 January 1975. p. 871.
  15. ^ "No. 46526". The London Gazette (Supplement). 25 March 1975. p. 3973.
  16. ^ "No. 47549". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 June 1978. p. 6231.
  17. ^ "No. 48467". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 December 1980. p. 3.
  18. ^ "No. 48498". The London Gazette (Supplement). 20 January 1981. p. 821.
  19. ^ "No. 49122". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 September 1982. p. 12552.
  20. ^ "No. 49406". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 July 1983. p. 8832.
  21. ^ "No. 49768". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 June 1984. p. 2.
  22. ^ "No. 50279". The London Gazette (Supplement). 7 October 1985. p. 13878.
  23. ^ Probert, p.98
  24. ^ "No. 51530". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 November 1988. p. 12790.
  25. ^ "No. 51550". The London Gazette (Supplement). 5 December 1988. p. 13684.
  26. ^ "No. 52589". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 June 1991. p. 37.
  27. ^ "No. 52588". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 June 1991. p. 1.
  28. ^ "No. 52621". The London Gazette. 2 August 1991. p. 11833.
  29. ^ "David Craig, Baron Craig of Radley". The Peerage.com. Retrieved 3 June 2012.
  30. ^ Debrett's Peerage. 2000.

Sources

  • Probert, Henry (1991). High Commanders of the Royal Air Force. HMSO.
    ISBN 0-11-772635-4
    .

External links
Military offices
Preceded by
Basil Primavesl
 Station Commander RAF Cranwell
1968–1970 		Succeeded by
Gerald Pendred
Preceded by
Air Officer Commanding No. 1 Group

1978–1980 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Vice-Chief of the Air Staff
1980–1982 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Commander-in-Chief RAF Strike Command
1982–1985
Chief of the Air Staff
1985–1988
Preceded by Chief of the Defence Staff
1988–1991 		Succeeded by
Sir Richard Vincent
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Convenor of the
Crossbench Peers

1999–2004 		Succeeded by
Orders of precedence in the United Kingdom
Preceded by
The Lord Skidelsky
 Gentlemen
Baron Craig of Radley 		Followed by
The Lord Rogers of Quarry Bank
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