Peter Vanneck
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Sir Peter Vanneck | |
---|---|
Air Commodore[1] | |
Service number | 205378 (RAuxAF) |
Battles/wars | Second World War
|
Awards | Knight of Justice of the Order of St John (1959) Commander, Legion of Honour (France) (1981) Grand Officer, Order of the Crown (Belgium) (1983) |
Relations | Lord Huntingfield (father) Lord Stevenson of Coddenham (son-in-law) |
Early life
Vanneck was born on 7 January 1922 in London,[2] the youngest son of Lord Huntingfield and American-born Margaret Eleanor Crosby.[2]
He spent his early years in Australia during his father's tenure as Governor of Victoria in the 1930s. He attended Geelong Grammar School and was sent back to Britain to study at Stowe School, having won a scholarship.[2]
Vanneck joined the
Having attended a promotion course in
After the war, he trained as a pilot. On 30 September 1945, he transferred to 771 Naval Air Squadron of the Fleet Air Arm. The squadron was based at RNAS Yeovilton. He transferred to 807 Naval Air Squadron on 18 August 1947. He retired from the Royal Navy on 24 May 1949, when he resigned his commission.[2]
University and Air Force service
After leaving the Royal Navy in 1949, Vanneck matriculated at Trinity College, Cambridge.[2] He joined the Cambridge University Air Squadron to further pursue his interest in flying, and was commissioned into the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve as a flying officer on 17 November 1949.[5]
He transferred to
In 1958, he transferred to No. 3619 (County of Suffolk) Fighter Control Unit[2] based at RAF Nacton[8] He was promoted to squadron leader on 1 July 1958.[9] He commanded the unit from 28 June 1959[10] to 1 February 1961.[2][11] He then moved No 1 (County of Hertford) Maritime Headquarters Unit based at RAF Northwood.[2] On 1 July 1962, he was promoted to group captain and appointed Inspector of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force.[12] He resigned that appointment and retired from the Royal Auxiliary Air Force on 1 September 1973.[13]
Business career
Vanneck then went into business with the engineering company
Political career
Vanneck became involved in Municipal affairs through the
After a year serving as a
A popular Lord Mayor, Vanneck declared that despite his interesting careers, he had missed out on the one he would most like, which was to be a tug-boat skipper on the Thames. He made excellent contacts with his Paris counterpart Jacques Chirac and arranged an official visit to visit (one of only two that had taken place since the French revolution). Vanneck was a Francophile who was fluent in French.
At the end of his Lord Mayoral term, Vanneck was adopted as Conservative candidate for the European Parliament for Cleveland. He won the seat at the 1979 election, enjoying his time in the European institutions. He was vice-chairman of the Political Affairs committee and served on Energy Resources and Technology. After keeping his seat by only 2,625 votes in 1984, he lost in the 1989 election, and then retired from public life.
Later life
He died on 2 August 1999 in London.[2]
Honours and decorations
As part of the
He was appointed
References
- ^ a b "No. 46427". The London Gazette (Supplement). 10 December 1974. p. 12555.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r "Royal Navy (RN) Officers 1939–1945". UnitHistories.com. Retrieved 10 July 2012.
- ^ "No. 35748". The London Gazette. 16 October 1942. p. 4499.
- ^ "No. 36032". The London Gazette. 28 May 1943. p. 2386.
- ^ "No. 38892". The London Gazette (Supplement). 25 April 1950. p. 2027.
- ^ "No. 39209". The London Gazette (Supplement). 20 April 1951. p. 2314.
- ^ "No. 39325". The London Gazette (Supplement). 31 August 1951. p. 4668.
- ^ Geoff Foster. "RAF Ipswich aerodrome". Control Towers.co.uk. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
- ^ "No. 42010". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 April 1960. p. 2786.
- ^ "No. 41758". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 July 1959. p. 4351.
- ^ "No. 42383". The London Gazette (Supplement). 13 June 1961. p. 4374.
- ^ "No. 42721". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 June 1962. p. 5303.
- ^ "No. 46085". The London Gazette (Supplement). 24 September 1973. p. 11405.
- ^ "Conservatives at the heart of Freemasonry". The Independent. London. 31 October 1995. Archived from the original on 26 May 2022.
- ^ "No. 40497". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 June 1955. p. 3292.
- ^ "No. 42870". The London Gazette (Supplement). 28 December 1962. pp. 8–9.
- ^ "No. 43871". The London Gazette. 11 January 1965. p. 331.
- ^ "No. 45984". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 May 1973. pp. 6474–6475.
- ^ "No. 47360". The London Gazette. 25 October 1977. p. 13431.
- ^ "No. 42929". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 February 1963. p. 1811.
- ^ "No. 46115". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 October 1973. p. 12875.
- ^ "No. 49625". The London Gazette (Supplement). 23 January 1984. p. 1052.
- Obituary, The Times, 26 August 1999
- "Who Was Who", A&C Black
External links
- European Parliament site