RAF Flying Training Command
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Flying Training Command was an
organization An organization or organisation (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is an entity—such as a company, an institution, or an association—comprising one or more people and having a particular purpose. The word is derived from ...
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 ...
; it controlled
flight training Flight training is a course of study used when learning to pilot an aircraft. The overall purpose of primary and intermediate flight training is the acquisition and honing of basic airmanship skills. Flight training can be conducted under a str ...
units. The command's headquarters were at Shinfield Park,
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in
Berkshire Berkshire ( ; in the 17th century sometimes spelt phonetically as Barkeshire; abbreviated Berks.) is a historic county in South East England. One of the home counties, Berkshire was recognised by Queen Elizabeth II as the Royal County of Berk ...
.


History

Flying Training Command was formed from the elements of Training Command which were responsible for flying training on 27 May 1940;Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation - RAF Home Commands formed between 1939 - 1957
, accessed 24 May 2008
Reserve Command, formed 1 February 1939, was absorbed into Flying Training Command on the same date. The remainder of Training Command became
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 ...
on the same date. No. 21 Group RAF was transferred to Flying Training Command on 27 May 1940, responsible for the RAF College and the Service Flight Training Schools from the Midlands northwards. Nos 50, 51, and 54 Groups were flying training formations transferred from Reserve Command to Flying Training Command when it was formed. In March 1943 the command included Nos 21, 23, 25, and 29, 50, 51, and 54 Groups.
No. 23 Group RAF No. 23 Group RAF was a group of the Royal Air Force, first established in 1918, and finally disbanded in 1975. The group was reformed as No 23 (Training) Group in RAF Inland Area on 12 April 1926, at RAF Spitalgate, by re-numbering No. 3 Group RA ...
was reformed as No 23 (Training) Group in Inland Area on 12 Apr 1926, at
RAF Spitalgate Royal Air Force Spitalgate or more simply RAF Spitalgate formerly known as RFC Grantham and RAF Grantham was a Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force station, located south east of the centre of Grantham, Lincolnshire, England fronting onto th ...
, by re-numbering
No. 3 Group RAF No. 3 Group (3 Gp) of the Royal Air Force was an RAF group first active in 1918, again in 1923–26, part of RAF Bomber Command from 1936 to 1967, and part of RAF Strike Command from 2000 until it disbanded on 1 April 2006. No. 3 Group was first ...
. Its stations were Digby, Eastchurch, Flowerdown, Manston, and
RAF Sealand MoD Sealand (formerly RAF Sealand), is a Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Ministry of Defence installation in Flintshire, in the northeast corner of Wales, close to the border with England. It is a former Royal Air Force station, active be ...
, while it commanded 1 (Netheravon), 2, and 5 FTSs; the Armament and Gunnery School at Eastchurch; the SoTT (Airmen) at
RAF Manston Royal Air Force Manston or more simply RAF Manston is a former Royal Air Force station located in the north-east of Kent, at on the Isle of Thanet from 1916 until 1996. The site was split between a commercial airport Kent International Airpor ...
; the
Central Flying School The Central Flying School (CFS) is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. Established in 1912 at the Upavon Aerodrome, it is the longest existing flying training school. The school was based at R ...
at
RAF Upavon Royal Air Force Upavon or RAF Upavon is a former RAF station in Wiltshire, England. It was a grass airfield, military flight training school, and administrative headquarters of the Royal Air Force. The station opened in 1912 and closed in 1993, ...
, and finally the Electrical and Wireless School at
RAF Flowerdown Royal Air Force Flowerdown or more simply RAF Flowerdown is a former Royal Air Force station located in Hampshire, England. The Royal Flying Corps (RFC) School for Wireless Operators moved from Farnborough to Flowerdown, later RAF Flowerdown ...
. 23 Group was transferred to
RAF Training Command Training Command was the Royal Air Force's command responsible for flying and ground training from 1936 to 1940 and again from 1968 to 1977. Training Command was formed from RAF Inland Area on 1 May 1936 and absorbed into RAF Support Command on 13 ...
on 1 May 1936. The RAF List for 1938 records that it comprised the Central Flying School; 1-3 and 5-11 Flying Training Schools; the Packing Depot at Sealand; the School of Air Navigation and
No. 48 Squadron RAF No. 48 Squadron was a Royal Air Force squadron that saw service in both the First and Second World Wars. History First World War No. 48 Squadron of the Royal Flying Corps was formed at Netheravon, Wiltshire, on 15 April 1916. The squadron w ...
at Manston; the Station Flight and No. 24 MU at
Tern Hill Tern Hill, also known as Ternhill, is a village in Shropshire, England, notable as the location of the former RAF Ternhill, RAF Tern Hill station, which is now operated by the British Army as Clive Barracks. The settlement is named after the Ri ...
; and No. 27 MU at
RAF Shawbury Royal Air Force Shawbury, otherwise known as RAF Shawbury, is a Royal Air Force station near the village of Shawbury in Shropshire in the West Midlands of England. History The First World War The station at Shawbury was first used for military ...
. In September 1939 it controlled Nos 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, and 12 Service Flying Training Schools, the
Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment The Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment (A&AEE) was a research facility for British military aviation from 1918 to 1992. Established at Martlesham Heath, Suffolk, the unit moved in 1939 to Boscombe Down, Wiltshire, where its work ...
at
RAF Martlesham Heath Royal Air Force Martlesham Heath or more simply RAF Martlesham Heath is a former Royal Air Force station located southwest of Woodbridge, Suffolk, England. It was active between 1917 and 1963, and played an important role in the development of ...
, and the group communications flight co-located with Group Headquarters at
RAF Spitalgate Royal Air Force Spitalgate or more simply RAF Spitalgate formerly known as RFC Grantham and RAF Grantham was a Royal Flying Corps and Royal Air Force station, located south east of the centre of Grantham, Lincolnshire, England fronting onto th ...
in
Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...
. It was then transferred again to Flying Training Command on 27 May 1940. It was reabsorbed into Training Command in 1968 and disbanded on 2 May 1975. In mid-1965 the Command was made up of No. 23 Group, No. 25 Group, the
RAF College Cranwell The Royal Air Force College (RAFC) is the Royal Air Force military academy which provides initial training to all RAF personnel who are preparing to become commissioned officers. The College also provides initial training to aircrew cadets and ...
, the
RAF Staff College The RAF Staff College may refer to: *RAF Staff College, Andover (active: 1922 to 1940 and 1948 to 1970) *RAF Staff College, Bulstrode Park The RAF Staff College, Bulstrode Park, was a satellite staff college for the Royal Air Force based at Buls ...
, Bracknell, the
Central Flying School The Central Flying School (CFS) is the Royal Air Force's primary institution for the training of military flying instructors. Established in 1912 at the Upavon Aerodrome, it is the longest existing flying training school. The school was based at R ...
, and the College of Air Warfare. Flying Training Command was eventually re-absorbed into the newly re-established Training Command on 1 June 1968.


Shinfield Park

After Flying Training Command left, the
Meteorological Office The Meteorological Office, abbreviated as the Met Office, is the United Kingdom's national weather service. It is an executive agency and trading fund of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and is led by CEO Penelope ...
College relocated from
Stanmore Stanmore is part of the London Borough of Harrow in London. It is centred northwest of Charing Cross, lies on the outskirts of the London urban area and includes Stanmore Hill, one of the highest points of London, at high. The district, which ...
, Middlesex in October 1971. In 2004 both the College and the Met. Office HQ in
Bracknell Bracknell () is a large town and civil parish in Berkshire, England, the westernmost area within the Greater London Built-up Area, Greater London Urban Area and the administrative centre of the Bracknell Forest, Borough of Bracknell Forest. It l ...
relocated to
Exeter Exeter () is a city in Devon, South West England. It is situated on the River Exe, approximately northeast of Plymouth and southwest of Bristol. In Roman Britain, Exeter was established as the base of Legio II Augusta under the personal comm ...
,
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 ...
.The Met Office in Exeter
Exeter City Council
The site has since been developed into residential accommodation, although ''The Lodge'', the centrepiece of Shinfield Park and a Georgian listed building, remains and is waiting redevelopment.


Aircraft operated

*
Airspeed Oxford The Airspeed AS.10 Oxford is a twin-engine monoplane aircraft developed and manufactured by Airspeed. It saw widespread use for training British Commonwealth aircrews in navigation, radio-operating, bombing and gunnery roles throughout the Seco ...
*
Avro Anson The Avro Anson is a British twin-engined, multi-role aircraft built by the aircraft manufacturer Avro. Large numbers of the type served in a variety of roles for the Royal Air Force (RAF), Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) a ...
*
BAC Jet Provost The BAC Jet Provost is a British jet trainer aircraft that was in use with the Royal Air Force (RAF) from 1955 to 1993. It was originally developed by Hunting Percival from the earlier piston engine-powered Percival Provost basic trainer, and ...
*
de Havilland Mosquito The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito is a British twin-engined, shoulder-winged, multirole combat aircraft, introduced during the Second World War. Unusual in that its frame was constructed mostly of wood, it was nicknamed the "Wooden Wonder", or ...
T.III


Air Officers Commanding-in-Chief

Air Officers Commanding-in-Chief were: *27 May 1940 Air Marshal Sir Lawrence Pattinson *7 Jul 1941 Air Marshal Sir William Welsh *17 Aug 1942 Air Marshal Sir Philip Babington *6 Oct 1945 Air Marshal Sir Arthur Coningham *15 Oct 1947 Air Chief Marshal Sir
Ralph Cochrane Air Chief Marshal Sir Ralph Alexander Cochrane, (24 February 1895 – 17 December 1977) was a British aviator and Royal Air Force officer, perhaps best known for his role in Operation Chastise, the famous "Dambusters" raid. Early RAF career Ral ...
*1 Mar 1950 Air Marshal Sir
Hugh Walmsley Air Marshal Sir Hugh Sidney Porter Walmsley, (6 June 1898 – 2 September 1985) was a senior commander in the Royal Air Force during and after the Second World War. He was the final commander of RAF India and the unified Royal Indian Air Force b ...
*1 Aug 1952 Air Marshal Sir
Lawrence Pendred Air Marshal Sir Lawrence Fleming Pendred, (5 May 1899 – 19 September 1986) was a Royal Air Force officer who became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Flying Training Command from 1952 until his retirement in 1955. RAF career Educated at E ...
*20 Dec 1955 Air Marshal Sir
Richard Atcherley Air Marshal Sir Richard Llewellyn Roger Atcherley, (12 January 1904 – 18 April 1970) was a senior Royal Air Force officer. He served as Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Pakistan Air Force from 1949 to 1951. Early life Richard Atcherley and ...
*1 Mar 1959 Air Marshal Sir
Hugh Constantine Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Alex Constantine, (23 May 1908 – 16 April 1992) was a Royal Air Force officer who became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Flying Training Command. RAF career Educated at Christ's Hospital, Constantine joined the R ...
*24 Sep 1961 Air Marshal Sir
Augustus Walker Air Chief Marshal Sir George Augustus Walker, (24 August 1912 – 11 December 1986) was a Second World War bomber pilot, a jet aircraft pioneer, and a senior Royal Air Force officer in the post-war era, as well as a rugby player. Early life Walk ...
*26 Jun 1964 Air Marshal Sir Patrick Dunn *1 Oct 1966 Air Marshal Sir John Davis


See also

*
List of Royal Air Force commands This is a list of Royal Air Force commands, both past and present. Although the concept of a command dates back to the foundation of the Royal Air Force, the term command (as the name of a formation) was first used in purely RAF-context in 1936 w ...


References


Citations


Bibliography

* Sturtivant, Ray,
ISO ISO is the most common abbreviation for the International Organization for Standardization. ISO or Iso may also refer to: Business and finance * Iso (supermarket), a chain of Danish supermarkets incorporated into the SuperBest chain in 2007 * Iso ...
and John Hamlin. ''RAF Flying Training and Support Units since 1912''. Tonbridge Wells, Kent, UK: Air-Britain (Historians) Ltd., 2007. . *


External links


Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation - RAF Home Commands formed between 1939 and 1957
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flying Training Command Training units and formations of the Royal Air Force Royal Air Force commands Military units and formations established in 1940 Military units and formations of the Royal Air Force in World War II Military units and formations disestablished in 1968