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 ...

Richard Ernest Saul, (16 April 1891 – 30 November 1965) was a pilot 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 ...

and 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) an ...

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 opposi ...

Earlier years

Saul was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

, Ireland, in 1891. He was a bank official with the Royal Bank of Ireland before joining the Army.§ At the start of the First World War he was a second lieutenant in the Royal Army Service Corps but by 1916 he was a Flying Officer (Observer) with No. 16 Squadron of the Army's Royal Flying Corps.Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Vice-Marshal R E Saul
/ref> During the war he rose to command No. 4 Squadron and after the armistice he commanded No. 7 Squadron and then No. 12 Squadron. In 1925 he was given command of No. 2 Squadron. A keen sportsman Saul played rugby and hockey for the RAF; in both 1928 and 1932 he was the RAF tennis champion. In September 1933 Saul was appointed the Officer Commanding No. 203 Squadron operating out of

Basra Basra ( ar, ٱلْبَصْرَة, al-Baṣrah) is an Iraqi city located on the Shatt al-Arab. It had an estimated population of 1.4 million in 2018. Basra is also Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is han ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

and in 1935 Saul led a flight of flying boats, from his squadron, on a long-distance journey from Plymouth to Basra.

Second World War and beyond

During the

Saul was Air Officer Commanding No. 13 Group from 1939, Air Officer Commanding No. 12 Group from 1940 and then Air Officer Commanding Air Defences Eastern Mediterranean from 1943. Saul retired from the RAF on 29 June 1944 and then served as the Chairman of the

United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA) was an international relief agency, largely dominated by the United States but representing 44 nations. Founded in November 1943, it was dissolved in September 1948. it became part o ...

's mission in the Balkans. He next acted as the vice-chairman of the International Transport Commission in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. After Saul left Rome in 1951, he took up employment as the manager of the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 ...

bookshop until finally retiring in 1959. Richard Saul died on 30 November 1965 after being hit by a car two days earlier.

Notes

References

Century of Flight – Air Vice Marshal Richard Ernest Saul D.F.C.
, - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Saul, Richard 1891 births 1965 deaths Royal Flying Corps officers British Army personnel of World War I Royal Air Force personnel of World War I Royal Air Force air marshals of World War II Battle of Britain Aviators from Dublin (city) Irish people of World War I Irish people of World War II Royal Army Service Corps officers British officials of the United Nations Companions of the Order of the Bath Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) Knights of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) Recipients of the Croix de guerre (Belgium) British male tennis players Military personnel from Dublin (city)