Vice Admiral Sir Richard Jeffrey Ibbotson, (born 27 June 1954) is a former

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

officer who served as Deputy Commander-in-Chief Fleet.

Naval career

Educated at

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

, Ibbotson joined the

in 1975 and specialized in underwater warfare.Guest Speaker in 2008
Anti Submarine Warfare Instructors Association He was promoted to lieutenant on 1 September 1977 (seniority 1 January 1977), to lieutenant commander on 1 January 1985, and was promoted to commander on 31 December 1990. Ibbotson was given command of the mine countermeasure vessel before serving in the

Gulf War The Gulf War was a 1990–1991 armed campaign waged by a 35-country military coalition in response to the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. Spearheaded by the United States, the coalition's efforts against Iraq were carried out in two key phases: ...

in 1991 for which he was awarded the

Distinguished Service Cross The Distinguished Service Cross (D.S.C.) is a military decoration for courage. Different versions exist for different countries. *Distinguished Service Cross (Australia) *Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) *Distinguished Service Cross (U ...

. He went on to command the

frigate A frigate () is a type of warship. In different eras, the roles and capabilities of ships classified as frigates have varied somewhat. The name frigate in the 17th to early 18th centuries was given to any full-rigged ship built for speed and ...

before joining the Directorate of Nuclear Policy 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 ...

. He became Staff Operations Officer to the

Commander United Kingdom Task Group The Commander United Kingdom Task Group (COMUKTG ) was a senior Royal Navy operational appointment from April 1992 to March 2015. In March 2015 the post was renamed Commander Amphibious Task Group. History In April 1992, the Royal Navy re-designa ...

in the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...

and was present during the withdrawal from

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

in July 1997. Promoted to

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

on 30 June 1997, he became commanding officer of the frigate as well as Captain of the 1st Frigate Squadron and then served as Assistant Director, and then as Acting Director of the Directorate of Operational Capability at the Ministry of Defence, before becoming Commander of British Forces in the

Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...

in 2002. He was appointed Commander of the Standing Naval Force, Atlantic ( STANAVFORLANT) in 2003 and Commander of the

Royal Naval College, Dartmouth Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a cit ...

in 2004. He went on to be Naval Secretary in 2005, with a promotion to rear admiral on 23 June. He was appointed Flag Officer, Sea Training in 2007 and Deputy Commander-in-Chief Fleet in 2009. He was appointed

Knight 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 ...

(KBE) in the

2011 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2011 were announced on 31 December 2010 in the United Kingdom,United Kingdom: New Zealand,New Zealand"New Year Honours 2011"(14 January 2011) 2 ''New Zealand Gazette'' 55. The Cook IslandsThe Cook Islands: Grenada,Grenada: ...

.Honours List: Military Division – Royal Navy
The Independent, 31 December 2010

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Ibbotson, Richard 1954 births Living people Royal Navy vice admirals Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companions of the Order of the Bath Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom) Deputy Lieutenants of Devon Alumni of Grey College, Durham