The Air League is an aviation and aerospace non-profit organisation based in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. It is the UK's largest provider of aviation and aerospace scholarships and bursaries. The Air League aims to inspire, enable, and support the next generation of aviation and aerospace professionals from all backgrounds across the UK. Each year thousands of people from around the UK, including disadvantaged youngsters and wounded and injured servicemen and women benefit from Air League support.

History

Founded in 1909 as "The Aerial League of The British Empire", The Air League was formed to counter 'the backwardness and apathy' shown by the UK in the face of emerging aeronautical developments and to stress the 'vital importance from a commercial and national defence point of view of this new means of communication'. The founders of the Air League were concerned that Britain was falling behind other nations in the development of its aviation capability. They foresaw the threats, both military and commercial, to the country's future wellbeing if aviation was not made central to government thinking. When 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 ...

broke out five years later, Britain was taking aviation sufficiently seriously to be able to develop and produce aircraft that could hold their own in the rapidly evolving scramble for air superiority. In 1938 The Air League founded the

Air Defence Cadet Corps The Air Defence Cadet Corps was a volunteer youth organisation in the United Kingdom, preparing young people for military aviation. Founded in 1938, it was replaced in 1941 by the Air Training Corps. Establishment In 1938, Air Commodore Chami ...

, which is now 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 ...

Presidents

Henry Lascelles, 6th Earl of Harewood Henry George Charles Lascelles, 6th Earl of Harewood (9 September 1882 – 24 May 1947) was a British soldier and peer. He was the husband of Mary, Princess Royal, and thus a son-in-law of George V and Queen Mary and a brother-in-law to Edward ...

, (1945 - 1947) *Air Chief Marshal Sir

Philip Joubert de la Ferté Air Chief Marshal Sir Philip Bennet Joubert de la Ferté, (21 May 1887 – 21 January 1965) was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force during the 1930s and the Second World War. Early life Joubert de la Ferté was born in Darjeeling, India t ...

(1947 - 1954) *

Samuel Hoare, 1st Viscount Templewood Samuel John Gurney Hoare, 1st Viscount Templewood, (24 February 1880 – 7 May 1959), more commonly known as Sir Samuel Hoare, was a senior British Conservative politician who served in various Cabinet posts in the Conservative and National g ...

(1954 - 1956) *

Archibald Sinclair, 1st Viscount Thurso Archibald Henry Macdonald Sinclair, 1st Viscount Thurso, (22 October 1890 – 15 June 1970), known as Sir Archibald Sinclair between 1912 and 1952, and often as Archie Sinclair, was a British politician and leader of the Liberal Party. Backgr ...

(1956–1958) *

Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, 14th Duke of Hamilton Air Commodore Douglas Douglas-Hamilton, 14th Duke of Hamilton and 11th Duke of Brandon, (3 February 1903 – 30 March 1973) was a Scottish nobleman and aviator who was the first man to fly over Mount Everest. When German Deputy Führer Rudol ...

(1959–1968) *

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from El ...

(1959) - ''For the period of the Air League Jubilee celebrations'' *Air Chief Marshal

Sir Francis Fogarty Air Chief Marshal Sir Francis Joseph Fogarty, (16 January 1899 – 12 January 1973) was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the Second World War and also in the post-war years. During the First World War he served as a pilot i ...

(1968 - 1972) *Air Chief Marshal Sir Denis Smallwood (1980 - 1984) *Marshal of the RAF Sir

John Grandy Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir John Grandy, (8 February 1913 – 2 January 2004) was a senior officer in the Royal Air Force. He was the only officer who fought and commanded a squadron during the Battle of Britain to reach the post of Chie ...

(1984–1987) *Air Marshal Sir

Charles Ness Air Marshal Sir Charles Ernest Ness, (4 April 1924 – 13 September 1994) was a senior Royal Air Force commander. RAF career Ness joined the Royal Air Force in 1943 and served as an observer during the Second World War. In 1965 he became Office ...

(1987–1990)Air League
Flight International, 14 February 1990 *Sir Michael Cobham (1990–1993) *Dr James Ewart Henderson CVO (1993–1996) *

Baron Tebbit Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often Hereditary title, hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher th ...

(1996–1999) *Air Chief Marshal Sir Michael Knight (1999–2004) *Sir Michael Marshall (2004–2009) *Air Chief Marshal Sir

Brian Burridge Air Chief Marshal Sir Brian Kevin Burridge, (born 26 September 1949) is a retired Royal Air Force officer. A former Nimrod pilot, Burridge was in overall command of British forces under Operation Telic during the 2003 invasion of Iraq. RAF care ...

(2009–2014) *Sir Roger Bone KCMG (2014–2021) *Air Marshal Sir Christopher Harper (2021–Present)

Women's Aerial League

The Women's Aerial League was also set up in 1909 - on 4 May Relations with the Aerial League were friendly, but this organisation led its own existence, and also set up the Boys' and Girls' Aerial League.

References

{{reflist

External links

Air League web site
1909 establishments in the United Kingdom Aviation organisations based in the United Kingdom