Air Vice-Marshal Air vice-marshal (AVM) is a two-star air officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes u ...

Robert Peel Willock, (17 December 1893 – 22 March 1973) was 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) and ...

officer who commanded the British Air Forces in Iraq 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 ...

RAF career

Willcock was commissioned into the 9th (Reserve) Battalion of the

Oxford and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry The Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry was a light infantry regiment of the British Army that existed from 1881 until 1958, serving in the Second Boer War, World War I and World War II. The regiment was formed as a consequence of th ...

in 1914 and went on to serve as a Squadron Commander with the

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

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 ...

.Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Vice-Marshal R P Willock
/ref> Following his promotion to wing commander in 1928,
Flight International, 5 January 1928 he was appointed Station Commander at

RAF Kenley The former Royal Air Force Station Kenley, more commonly known as RAF Kenley was an airfield station of the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War and the RAF in the Second World War. It played a significant role during the Battle of Britain ...

in 1928 before going on to be Air Attaché in

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

in 1933 and Director of Staff Duties 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 1938. He served in the

as Air Officer Commanding No. 21 (Training) Group. He became Air Officer Commanding AHQ Iraq and Persia in 1943 and then became Head of the RAF delegation in

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 1944 before retiring in 1945. In retirement, he was the Civil Aviation Adviser to the UK High Commissioner to

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willcock, Robert 1893 births 1973 deaths British air attachés Commanders of the Legion of Merit Commanders with Star of the Order of Polonia Restituta Companions of the Order of the Bath Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry officers Royal Air Force air marshals Royal Air Force personnel of World War I Royal Flying Corps officers British Army personnel of World War I