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 Michael James Douglas Stear, (11 October 1938 – 5 January 2020) was a senior commander of 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 ...

(RAF). He served as Deputy Commander in Chief,

Allied Forces Central Europe Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum (JFCBS) is a NATO command with its headquarters at Brunssum, the Netherlands. It was established in 2004 from previous commands as part of NATO's continuing command structure reductions in the face of a then-dim ...

from 1992 to 1996.

Early life

Stear was educated at

Monkton Combe School (Thy Word is Truth) , established = , type = Public schoolIndependent schoolBoarding school , founder = The Revd Francis Pocock , head_label = Head Master , head ...

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

where he gained his private pilot's licence, and began his

National Service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The l ...

in 1957. From 1959 he attended the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

where he joined the

Cambridge University Air Squadron Cambridge University Air Squadron, abbreviated CUAS, formed in 1925, is the training unit of the Royal Air Force at the University of Cambridge and forms part of the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. It is the oldest of 15 University Air Squadr ...

(part of the

Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR) was established in 1936 to support the preparedness of the U.K. Royal Air Force in the event of another war. The Air Ministry intended it to form a supplement to the Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF ...

), being commissioned as an acting pilot officer on 10 May 1961. After completing his degree, he joined the

, and was granted a permanent commission as a pilot officer on 1 October 1962, relinquishing his RAFVR commission the same day.

RAF career

Stear served as a pilot with No. 1 Squadron after completing flying training, and was promoted to flying officer on 1 April 1963, and to flight lieutenant on 1 January 1964. In 1967, he joined No. 208 Squadron and saw action in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

. Awarded the

Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air The Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air, formerly the King's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air, was a merit award for flying service awarded by the United Kingdom between 1942 and 1994. It was replaced by the Queen’ ...

in 1969, Stear began a three-year period of service in 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 ...

as part of an officer exchange programme later that year. He was promoted to squadron leader on 1 January 1970. On his return to the UK in 1972 he was posted to the Air Secretary's Branch at the

Ministry of Defence {{unsourced, date=February 2021 A ministry of defence or defense (see spelling differences), also known as a department of defence or defense, is an often-used name for the part of a government responsible for matters of defence, found in states ...

, and in 1974 was posted to

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

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. 17 Squadron. He was promoted to wing commander on 1 July 1974. In 1976, after short-term posting as Officer Commanding No. 56 Squadron at

RAF Wattisham Royal Air Force Station Wattisham or more simply RAF Wattisham is a former Royal Air Force station located in East Anglia just outside the village of Wattisham, south of Stowmarket in Suffolk, England. During the Cold War it was a major front- ...

, he was appointed Personal Staff Officer to the Chief of Air Staff, Ministry of Defence. Stear was promoted to group captain on 1 July 1979, and in 1980 returned to Germany as Officer Commanding

RAF Gütersloh Royal Air Force Gütersloh, more commonly known as RAF Gütersloh, was a Royal Air Force Germany military airfield, the nearest Royal Air Force airfield to the East/West German border, in the vicinity of the town of Gütersloh. It was const ...

. In 1982 he became Assistant Chief of Staff (Operations), HQ

Second Allied Tactical Air Force Second Allied Tactical Air Force (2 ATAF) was a NATO military formation under Allied Air Forces Central Europe tasked with providing air support to NATO's Northern Army Group (NORTHAG). 2 ATAF commanded all flying units based within its sector and ...

and, with the advent of the

Falklands War The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...

, posted as Air Commodore Plans, HQ Strike Command. Appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in the 1982 Birthday Honours, he was promoted to air commodore on 1 July 1983, and to air vice marshal on 1 July 1985. He served as Air Officer Commanding (AOC) No. 11 Group from 1 August 1985 until 15 July 1987, then as Assistant Chief of Defence Staff (NATO/UK). He was promoted to air marshal on 25 October 1989, to serve as AOC No. 18 Group and Commander Maritime Air Eastern Atlantic and Channel. Stear was knighted as a

Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

in the 1990 New Year Honours. He was promoted to air chief marshal on 27 August 1992, and a year later was appointed Deputy Commander in Chief, Allied Forces Central Europe.

Retirement

Stear retired from the RAF on 11 October 1996, and on the same day was commissioned into the

Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (Training Branch) The Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (Training Branch), often abbreviated to RAFVR(T), was a Volunteer Reserve element of the Royal Air Force specifically appointed in a cadet training role within the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. Members ...

as a flying officer for a period of four years. He was twice granted an extension of service, first until 10 October 2003, and then until 10 October 2007, when he finally relinquished his RAFVR(T) commission at the age of 68. Stear also maintained his links with the Air Force by becoming President of the

Royal Air Forces Association The Royal Air Forces Association (also called the RAF Association or RAFA) is the largest single service membership organization and the longest standing registered service charity that provides welfare support to the family of RAF members. Th ...

in 1998. In 2000, he was appointed a deputy lieutenant for the County of

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

. He died on 5 January 2020 at the age of 81.Stear
/ref>

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Stear, Michael 1938 births 2020 deaths People educated at Monkton Combe School Alumni of the University of Cambridge Royal Air Force air marshals Recipients of the Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Deputy Lieutenants of Devon