Air Marshal Douglas John Stuart Riding, (born 6 May 1943) is a retired senior

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

commander and a former

Vice Chief of the Defence Force The Vice Chief of the Defence Force (VCDF) is the military deputy to the Chief of the Defence Force (CDF) of Australia, and acts as the CDF in his absence under standing acting arrangements. Vice Admiral David Johnston, the incumbent VCDF, has ...

. Riding was born in the

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

suburb of

Burwood, New South Wales Burwood is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is west of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the Local government in Australia, local government area of Mun ...

, on 6 May 1943. Following a secondary education at

Manly Boys High School The Manly Selective Campus of the Northern Beaches Secondary College is a Education in Australia#Government schools, government-funded Mixed-sex school, co-educational Selective school (New South Wales), academically selective secondary school, se ...

, he joined the

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

(RAAF) in June 1962 as an aircrew cadet, and graduated as a pilot the following year. He was posted for operational service during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

for a tour from April to December 1969 with the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

19th Tactical Air Support Squadron Nineteen or 19 may refer to: * 19 (number), the natural number following 18 and preceding 20 * one of the years 19 BC, AD 19, 1919, 2019 Films * ''19'' (film), a 2001 Japanese film * ''Nineteen'' (film), a 1987 science fiction film Music ...

. As a result of his "gallant services in Vietnam", Riding was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Riding was Officer Commanding

RAAF Base East Sale RAAF Base East Sale is a Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) military air base and training school, located in , Victoria, Australia. The base is one of the main training establishments of the RAAF, including where Australian Air Force Cadets fr ...

from 1987 to 1990. During the 1990s, he held senior positions in the RAAF: Director-General Programs & Resource Management 1990–93; Director-General Defence Force Plans & Programs 1994–95; Assistant Chief of Air Staff (Materiel) 1995–97. In July 1998 he was appointed

(VCDF). He retired from the RAAF in June 2000 at the end of his term as VCDF.Media Release - Veteran's Entitlements
/ref> He was appointed an

Officer of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...

in 2000. In November 2000 Riding was appointed a non-executive Director of BAE Systems Australia.BAE Systems Australia
''Aviation Week'' 10 November 2000. Retrieved 2016-10-01

References

1943 births Military personnel from New South Wales Australian military personnel of the Vietnam War Living people Officers of the Order of Australia People from Sydney Foreign recipients of the Air Medal Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Royal Australian Air Force air marshals Vice Chiefs of the Defence Force (Australia) {{Australia-mil-bio-stub