Air Chief Marshal Sir John Whitworth-Jones, (28 February 1896 – 4 February 1981) was a pilot in 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 ...

and a senior

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 ...

commander 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 opposi ...

. After the latter he held several senior RAF appointments before his retirement in 1954.

Military career

Born the son of Lieutenant Colonel Aylmer Jones and his wife Lilian (née Cookworthy). His elder brother was

Felix Aylmer Sir Felix Edward Aylmer Jones, OBE (21 February 1889 – 2 September 1979) was an English stage actor who also appeared in the cinema and on television. Aylmer made appearances in films with comedians such as Will Hay and George Formby. Earl ...

. Jones was educated at Magdalen College School in Oxford and also at St Paul's School. He joined the territorial army in 1912 and went to France as a Bugler aged 18 with the 517th (2nd London) division of the Royal Engineers. He was commissioned as a second lieutenant on the Royal Flying Corps general list on 13 April 1917 during the

. Later in the war he served as a pilot in No. 47 Squadron and No. 21 Squadron.Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Chief Marshal Sir John Whitworth-Jones
/ref> He was made

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. 13 Squadron in 1931 and Officer Commanding No. 208 Squadron in 1933 before joining the Air Staff in the Deputy Directorate of Operations (Home) 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. He served in the

as Director of Fighter Operations from 1940, Air Officer Commanding No 9 (Fighter) Group from 1942 and Assistant Deputy Chief of Staff at

South East Asia Command South East Asia Command (SEAC) was the body set up to be in overall charge of Allied operations in the South-East Asian Theatre during the Second World War. History Organisation The initial supreme commander of the theatre was General Sir A ...

from 1943. He went on to be Director-General of Organisation at the Air Ministry in June 1945. After the war he was Air Officer Commanding AHQ Malaya, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief

Technical Training Command The United States Army Air Forces during World War II had major subordinate Commands below the Air Staff level. These Commands were organized along functional missions. One such Command was the Flying Training Command (FTC). It began as Air Corp ...

and then Air Member for Supply and Organisation before retiring in 1954.

References

, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Whitworth-Jones, John 1896 births 1981 deaths Royal Air Force air marshals of World War II Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Commanders of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) British World War I pilots People educated at Magdalen College School, Oxford People educated at St Paul's School, London