Air Marshal Sir Alan Lees, (23 May 1895 – 14 August 1973) was a

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

officer who became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief

RAF Reserve Command RAF Home Command was the Royal Air Force command that was responsible for the maintenance and training of reserve organisationsJohn D. Rawlings, 'The History of the Royal Air Force,' Temple Press Aerospace, Feltham, Middlesex, 1984, p.180 from fo ...

RAF career

Educated at

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin * Wellington College, Wellington, Ne ...

and the

Royal Military College, Sandhurst The Royal Military College (RMC), founded in 1801 and established in 1802 at Great Marlow and High Wycombe in Buckinghamshire, England, but moved in October 1812 to Sandhurst, Berkshire, was a British Army military academy for training infant ...

, Lees was commissioned into the

Royal West Kent Regiment The Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army based in the county of Kent in existence from 1881 to 1961. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as part of the Childers Reforms, originally as the Quee ...

in 1914 at the start of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

.Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Marshal Sir Alan Lees
/ref> He became a pilot in 1915 and while serving on the Western Front was wounded and taken prisoner in 1917. After the War he transferred to the new

and in 1928 became

Officer Commanding The officer commanding (OC), also known as the officer in command or officer in charge (OiC), is the commander of a sub-unit or minor unit (smaller than battalion size), principally used in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. In other countries, t ...

No. 56 Squadron. He was appointed Officer Commanding No. 1 (Indian Wing) Station in 1932, Station Commander at

RAF Driffield Royal Air Force Driffield or RAF Driffield is a former Royal Air Force station in the East Riding of Yorkshire, in England. It lies about south-west of Driffield and north-west of Beverley. It is now operated by the Defence Infrastructure Org ...

in 1938 and then joined the staff at Headquarters RAF Bomber Command in 1939. He served in the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

as Air Officer Commanding

No. 2 Group No. 2 Group is a Group (military aviation unit)#United Kingdom, group of the Royal Air Force which was first activated in 1918, served from 1918–20, from 1936 through the Second World War to 1947, from 1948 to 1958, from 1993 to 1996, was react ...

from 1941, Air Officer Commanding No. 222 (General Reconnaissance) Group from 1942 and Air Officer Administration at Headquarters Air Command South East Asia from 1944. After the War he became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief

before retiring in 1949. In that role he introduced a tie and trophy1475 (Dulwich) Squadron strive and win!
Air Cadets London and South East Region for members of the

Air Training Corps The Air Training Corps (ATC) is a British volunteer-military youth organisation. They are sponsored by the Ministry of Defence and the Royal Air Force. The majority of staff are volunteers, and some are paid for full-time work – including C ...

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Lees, Alan 1895 births 1973 deaths People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire Royal Air Force air marshals of World War II Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Recipients of the Air Force Cross (United Kingdom) Queen's Own Royal West Kent Regiment officers Graduates of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst Grand Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau British World War I prisoners of war World War I prisoners of war held by Germany British Army personnel of World War I Military personnel from Lancashire