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 Walter Hugh Merton, (29 August 1905 – 23 March 1986) 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 ...

(RAF) 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 opposin ...

. After the war he held several senior RAF appointments before his retirement in 1963.

RAF career

Born in Canada,Service Aviation
Flight International, 6 November 1959 Merton joined the Royal Air Force as a cadet in 1924.
/ref> He was appointed Officer Commanding No. 38 Squadron in 1937. He served in the

as Officer Commanding No. 218 Squadron and then as Officer Commanding No. 37 Squadron. He continued his war service as Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters 257 Wing and then in the Middle East. He was made Station Commander at

RAF Luqa Royal Air Force Luqa was a Royal Air Force station located on the island of Malta, now developed into the Malta International Airport. It hosted aircraft of Air Headquarters Malta (AHQ Malta) during the Second World War. Particularly during ...

in 1943 and Assistant Commandant at the RAF War Staff College in April 1944 before becoming Director of Organisation 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 August 1944. After the war he became Station Commander at RAF Mildenhall and then at

RAF Upwood Royal Air Force Upwood or more simply RAF Upwood is a former Royal Air Force station adjacent to the village of Upwood, Cambridgeshire, England, in the United Kingdom. It was a non-flying station which was under the control of the United Sta ...

before becoming Air Attaché in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

in 1947. He was appointed Deputy Director for Air Force Liaison in 1948, Head of the RAF Delegation in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

in 1949 and Air Officer Commanding No. 63 Group in 1951. He went on to be Air Officer Commanding

No. 22 Group No. 22 Group is one of five groups currently active in the Royal Air Force, falling under the responsibility of Deputy Commander-in-Chief (Personnel) in Air Command. Its previous title up until 2018 was No. 22 (Training) Group. It is responsible ...

in 1952, Chief of Staff to the

Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...

in 1954 and Air Officer for Administration at Headquarters

RAF Bomber Command RAF Bomber Command controlled the Royal Air Force's bomber forces from 1936 to 1968. Along with the United States Army Air Forces, it played the central role in the strategic bombing of Germany in World War II. From 1942 onward, the British bo ...

in 1956. After that he was made Chief of Staff at Headquarters Allied Air Forces Central Europe in 1959 and

Air Member for Supply and Organisation The Air Member for Materiel is the senior Royal Air Force officer responsible for procurement matters. The post-holder is a member of the Air Force Board and is in charge of all aspects of procurement and organisation for RAF regular, reserve and ...

in 1960 before retiring in 1963. In retirement he became Inspector-General of Civil Defence.

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Merton, Walter 1905 births 1986 deaths British air attachés Royal Air Force air marshals Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire Knights Commander of the Order of the Bath Grand Crosses of the Order of George I with Swords Gold crosses of the Order of George I Grand Crosses of the Order of the Phoenix (Greece)