Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer originating from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. An air chief marshal is equivalent to an Admir ...

Sir George Clark Pirie, (28 July 1896 – 21 January 1980) was a senior commander in the

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 ...

during 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 ...

and the immediate post-war years. During 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 ...

, Pirie served as an infantry officer before transferring to the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

where he took up duties as an observer officer.

RAF career

Educated at

Fettes College Fettes College () is a co-educational independent boarding and day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, with over two-thirds of its pupils in residence on campus. The school was originally a boarding school for boys only and became co-ed in 1983. In ...

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

and the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

, Pirie volunteered for service with the

Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) The Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) was a rifle regiment of the British Army, the only regiment of rifles amongst the Scottish regiments of infantry. It was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 26th Cameronian Reg ...

just after the outbreak of the

.Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Chief Marshal Sir George Pirie
/ref> He was gazetted as a second lieutenant on 19 September 1914. In March 1916 Pirie began training to be an observer with No. 2 Squadron of the

Royal Flying Corps "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colors = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , decorations ...

. He became Officer Commanding No. 6 Squadron on the Western Front in 1918. Pirie was still serving with 6 Squadron when it moved to the Middle East and served with the squadron when he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for services in Mesopotamia. The citation for his DFC, which was listed in the '' London Gazette'' dated 28 October 1921, stated the award was: "For great gallantry and good work, especially during operations in the relief of Diwaniyah and during our retirement to Hillah. This officer showed remarkable ability in quick initiative when leading his flight during 'operations".London Gazette After the war he served as Officer Commanding No. 29 Squadron before becoming Station Commander at

RAF Tangmere RAF Tangmere was a Royal Air Force station located in Tangmere, England, famous for its role in the Battle of Britain, and one of several stations near Chichester, West Sussex. The famous Second World War aces Wing Commander Douglas Bader, a ...

in 1933. He was made deputy director of Operations 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 1936 and Air

Attaché In diplomacy, an attaché is a person who is assigned ("to be attached") to the diplomatic or administrative staff of a higher placed person or another service or agency. Although a loanword from French, in English the word is not modified accord ...

Washington D. C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

in 1937. He served in the

as Air Officer Commanding the RAF in Northern Ireland and as Air Officer Administration at Headquarters Middle East Command before becoming Director of War Organisation and then Director-General of Organisation at the

. He completed his war service as Deputy Air Commander in Chief at Air Command South East Asia in 1945. After the War he was Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Air Command South East Asia and Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Air Command Far East before becoming

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 1948. He was made Air Member for Supply and Organisation in September 1948 and Head of the RAF Staff in

in 1950 before retiring in 1951.

References

External links

National Portrait Gallery – Sir George Clark Pirie
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Pirie, George Clark 1896 births 1980 deaths Royal Air Force air marshals Alumni of the University of St Andrews Cameronians officers People educated at Fettes College Royal Flying Corps officers Royal Air Force personnel of World War II Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Military Cross Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) British air attachés People from Pittenweem Scottish airmen British Army personnel of World War I