Alick Stevens
Encyclopedia
Air Marshal
Sir Alick Charles Stevens KBE
CB
(31 July 1898 - 2 July 1987) was a Royal Air Force
officer who became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at RAF Coastal Command
.
, Stevens joined the Royal Naval Air Service
in 1916. He served in World War I
and was shot down over the North Sea
in November 1916 becoming a Prisoner of War
. He was appointed Officer Commanding
No. 205 Squadron
in 1935. He served in World War II
as Deputy Director and then Director of Operations (Naval Co-operation) until 1943 when he became Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters No. 18 (Reconnaissance) Group
. He was made Air Officer Commanding RAF Gibraltar
in 1944.
After the War he served as Air Officer Commanding No. 47 Group, Air Officer Commanding No. 4 Group
and then Air Officer Commanding No. 22 Group
before being appointed Commander of British Forces Aden
in 1948. He went on to be Air Officer Commanding RAF East Africa before becoming Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters RAF Coastal Command
in 1950 and then Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at RAF Coastal Command
in 1951 and retiring in 1953.
Air Marshal
Air marshal is a three-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Sir Alick Charles Stevens KBE
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
CB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(31 July 1898 - 2 July 1987) was a Royal Air Force
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force is the aerial warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Formed on 1 April 1918, it is the oldest independent air force in the world...
officer who became Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at RAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force . Founded in 1936, it was the RAF's premier maritime arm, after the Royal Navy's secondment of the Fleet Air Arm in 1937. Naval aviation was neglected in the inter-war period, 1919–1939, and as a consequence the service did not receive...
.
RAF career
Educated at Victoria College, JerseyVictoria College, Jersey
Victoria College is a fee paying States of Jersey-provided school in membership of the HMC, in St Helier, Jersey, Channel Islands. The castellated neo-gothic architecture is a landmark overlooking the town.-History:In the 1590s, Laurens Baudains - a wealthy farmer from St...
, Stevens joined the Royal Naval Air Service
Royal Naval Air Service
The Royal Naval Air Service or RNAS was the air arm of the Royal Navy until near the end of the First World War, when it merged with the British Army's Royal Flying Corps to form a new service , the Royal Air Force...
in 1916. He served in World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and was shot down over the North Sea
North Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
in November 1916 becoming a Prisoner of War
Prisoner of war
A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...
. He was appointed Officer Commanding
Officer Commanding
The Officer Commanding is the commander of a sub-unit or minor unit , principally used in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth. In other countries, the term Commanding Officer is applied to commanders of minor as well as major units.Normally an Officer Commanding is a company, squadron or battery...
No. 205 Squadron
No. 205 Squadron RAF
No. 205 Squadron was a Royal Air Force unit formed on 1 April 1918. Prior to this it had existed as No. 5 Squadron of the Royal Naval Air Service. In 1929, it became the first RAF squadron to be permanently based in Singapore, taking as its motto Pertama di Malaya . No...
in 1935. He served in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
as Deputy Director and then Director of Operations (Naval Co-operation) until 1943 when he became Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters No. 18 (Reconnaissance) Group
No. 18 Group RAF
No. 18 Group of the Royal Air Force was a group active from 1918 to 1919, and from 1938 to 1996.- 1918 - 1919 :The Group was initially formed on 1 April 1918 in No 4 Area. It was transferred to North-Eastern Area, 8 May 1918...
. He was made Air Officer Commanding RAF Gibraltar
RAF Gibraltar
Royal Air Force Station Gibraltar, better known as RAF Gibraltar and formally as North Front, is a Royal Air Force station on Gibraltar. No military aircraft are currently stationed there, but there are regular visits...
in 1944.
After the War he served as Air Officer Commanding No. 47 Group, Air Officer Commanding No. 4 Group
No. 4 Group RAF
No. 4 Group was a Royal Air Force group, originally formed in World War I, and reformed in the wake of the Second World War, mostly part of RAF Bomber Command, but ending its days in RAF Transport Command.-Formation in World War I:...
and then Air Officer Commanding No. 22 Group
No. 22 Group RAF
Number 22 Group is one of only three groups currently active in the Royal Air Force, falling under the responsibility of Deputy Commander-in-Chief in Air Command. Its current full title is Number 22 Group and it is responsible for RAF training policy and controlling the Royal Air Force College...
before being appointed Commander of British Forces Aden
British Forces Aden
British Forces Aden was the name given to the British Armed Forces stationed in the Aden Protectorate during part of the 20th century. Their purpose was to preserve the security of the Protectorate from both internal threats and external aggression.-History:...
in 1948. He went on to be Air Officer Commanding RAF East Africa before becoming Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters RAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force . Founded in 1936, it was the RAF's premier maritime arm, after the Royal Navy's secondment of the Fleet Air Arm in 1937. Naval aviation was neglected in the inter-war period, 1919–1939, and as a consequence the service did not receive...
in 1950 and then Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief at RAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command
RAF Coastal Command was a formation within the Royal Air Force . Founded in 1936, it was the RAF's premier maritime arm, after the Royal Navy's secondment of the Fleet Air Arm in 1937. Naval aviation was neglected in the inter-war period, 1919–1939, and as a consequence the service did not receive...
in 1951 and retiring in 1953.