Air Marshal Sir Charles Edward Neville Guest, (4 October 1900 – 23 June 1977) 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) and ...

officer who became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at

RAF Transport Command RAF Transport Command was a Royal Air Force command that controlled all transport aircraft of the RAF. It was established on 25 March 1943 by the renaming of the RAF Ferry Command, and was subsequently renamed RAF Air Support Command in 1967. ...

from 1952 to 1954.

RAF Career

Educated at

King Edward's School, Birmingham King Edward's School (KES) is an independent school (UK), independent day school for boys in the British Public school (UK), public school tradition, located in Edgbaston, Birmingham. Founded by Edward VI of England, King Edward VI in 1552, it ...

, Guest joined the Royal Air Force in 1918.Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Marshal Sir Charles Guest
/ref> He became a test pilot before being appointed

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, ...

No. 12 Squadron in 1936 and being seconded to the British Military Mission in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

the following year. 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 opposin ...

as Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters No. 202 Group and then at No. 204 Group before becoming deputy director of Organisation at the

Air Ministry The Air Ministry was a department of the Government of the United Kingdom with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964. It was under the political authority of the Secretary of State ...

in 1942. He became Air Officer Commanding No. 229 Group in 1943 and Air Officer Commanding Transport at

South East Asia Command South East Asia Command (SEAC) was the body set up to be in overall charge of Allies of World War II, Allied operations in the South-East Asian theatre of World War II, South-East Asian Theatre during the World War II, Second World War. Histo ...

in 1945. After the War he was appointed Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters Air Command South East Asia and then Air Officer Commanding No. 1 Group in 1947. He went on to be Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Operations) in 1948, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at

in 1952 and

Inspector-General of the RAF The Inspector-General of the RAF was a senior appointment in the Royal Air Force, responsible for the inspection of airfields. The post existed from 1918 to 1920 and from 1935 until the late 1960s. For much of World War II, a second inspector-ge ...

in 1954 before retiring in 1956. In retirement he became an aeronautical advisor to the Minister of Transport and a member of the Air Safety Board. He also became Vice President of the Old Edwardians.Old Edwardians
/ref>

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Guest, Charles 1900 births 1977 deaths Companions of the Order of the Bath Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire People educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham Royal Air Force air marshals of World War II