Jon Chitty
Encyclopedia
Air Commodore
Jon Chitty, OBE
RAF
, was Commandant
of the Air Training Corps
(ATC) from 3 May 2002 until July 2005.
(photo) and left with an RAF Scholarship to undertake an Aeronautical Engineering degree at Imperial College London
from 1971 to 1974.
He then undertook officer and specialist training at RAF College Cranwell during the following year. His first posting was to RAF Kinloss
as Officer Commanding Armament Servicing Flight supporting the 3 Nimrod Squadrons.
Postings to RAF Gutersloh
and RAF Wattisham
followed before he was posted to DSGT at Cranwell as an instructor.
He left on promotion a year later to command the Armament Engineering Squadron at RAF Coningsby and was the project officer for the introduction to service of the Tornado F2. A range of tours at RAF Stanley
(Falkland Islands
), HQ Strike Command
and RAF Wattisham
were followed by promotion to Wing Commander and a return to Strike Command to lead the Tornado Role Office in September 1989.
His involvement in the fleet support and modification programmes for the Tornado squadrons involved in the Gulf War
led to his award of the OBE in the Gulf War Honours list.
He then attended the Advanced Staff Course at Bracknell before his posting to RAF Bruggen
as Officer Commanding Engineering and Supply Wing. At the end of a busy 3 years in Germany, he was promoted to group captain and posted to the DD Weapons (RAF) appointment at RAF Wyton
. He served 4 years in post before moving to the Ordnance Board as the Air Strike Division Leader in December 1999.
This tour as the UK specialist for the provision of independent safety and suitability for service advice for all air launched and ground based air defence munitions, also involved taking the UK-lead for Insensitive Munitions nationally and internationally. He left the newly formed Defence Ordnance Safety Group to take up the dual-appointment of Air Officer Commanding Air Cadets and Commandant of the Air Training Corps
, at the RAF College Cranwell, on 3 May 2002.
The appointments of Air Officer Commanding Air Cadets and Commandant ATC were split on 24 March 2003 with the former appointment passed to the Chief Executive of the Royal Air Force Training Group Defence Agency
and the latter becoming Commandant Air Cadets
.
Jon is an Advanced Instructor in scuba diving and upon leaving the Royal Air Force at the end of this tour, he founded a scuba diving equipment design and manufacture company, Venture Diving. Venture Diving has designed and brought the innovative Tank2Go twinset trolley and carrier to market. Jon also works as a consultant for a number of aerospace organisations.
Air Commodore
Air commodore is an air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Jon Chitty, OBE
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...
RAF
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...
, was Commandant
Commandant Air Cadets
Commandant Air Cadets is the title given to the Royal Air Force officer who is responsible for running the Air Cadet Organisation, embracing the Air Training Corps and the RAF Sections of the Combined Cadet Force...
of the Air Training Corps
Air Training Corps
The Air Training Corps , commonly known as the Air Cadets, is a cadet organisation based in the United Kingdom. It is a voluntary youth group which is part of the Air Cadet Organisation and the Royal Air Force . It is supported by the Ministry of Defence, with a regular RAF Officer, currently Air...
(ATC) from 3 May 2002 until July 2005.
Biography
Air Commodore Jon Chitty was brought up and educated in Sheffield. He attended King Edward VII SchoolKing Edward VII School (Sheffield)
King Edward VII School is a secondary school and language college located in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. KES, named after the reigning monarch, was formed in 1905 when Wesley College was merged with Sheffield Royal Grammar School on the site of the former on Glossop Road...
(photo) and left with an RAF Scholarship to undertake an Aeronautical Engineering degree at Imperial College London
Imperial College London
Imperial College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, specialising in science, engineering, business and medicine...
from 1971 to 1974.
He then undertook officer and specialist training at RAF College Cranwell during the following year. His first posting was to RAF Kinloss
RAF Kinloss
RAF Kinloss is a Royal Air Force station near Kinloss, on the Moray Firth in the north of Scotland. It opened on 1 April 1939 and served as an RAF training establishment during the Second World War. After the war it was handed over to Coastal Command to watch over Russian ships and submarines in...
as Officer Commanding Armament Servicing Flight supporting the 3 Nimrod Squadrons.
Postings to RAF Gutersloh
RAF Gütersloh
The former Royal Air Force Station Gütersloh, more commonly known as RAF Gütersloh, was a Royal Air Force Germany military airbase, the nearest Royal Air Force airbase to the East/West German border, in the vicinity of the town of Gütersloh. It was constructed by the Germans prior to World War II...
and RAF Wattisham
RAF Wattisham
RAF Wattisham was a Royal Air Force station located in East Anglia just outside the village of Wattisham, south of Stowmarket in Suffolk, England. During the Cold War it was a major front-line air force base...
followed before he was posted to DSGT at Cranwell as an instructor.
He left on promotion a year later to command the Armament Engineering Squadron at RAF Coningsby and was the project officer for the introduction to service of the Tornado F2. A range of tours at RAF Stanley
RAF Mount Pleasant
RAF Mount Pleasant is a military base for the Royal Air Force in the British Overseas Territory of the Falkland Islands. The facility is part of the British Forces South Atlantic Islands...
(Falkland Islands
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...
), HQ Strike Command
RAF Strike Command
The Royal Air Force's Strike Command was the military formation which controlled the majority of the United Kingdom's bomber and fighter aircraft from 1968 until 2007: it was merged with Personnel and Training Command to form the single Air Command. It latterly consisted of two formations - No. 1...
and RAF Wattisham
RAF Wattisham
RAF Wattisham was a Royal Air Force station located in East Anglia just outside the village of Wattisham, south of Stowmarket in Suffolk, England. During the Cold War it was a major front-line air force base...
were followed by promotion to Wing Commander and a return to Strike Command to lead the Tornado Role Office in September 1989.
His involvement in the fleet support and modification programmes for the Tornado squadrons involved in the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
led to his award of the OBE in the Gulf War Honours list.
He then attended the Advanced Staff Course at Bracknell before his posting to RAF Bruggen
RAF Bruggen
The former Royal Air Force Station Brüggen, more commonly known as RAF Brüggen, in Germany was a major station of the Royal Air Force until 15 June 2001. It was situated next to the village of Elmpt, approximately west of Düsseldorf near the German-Netherlands border. The base was named after...
as Officer Commanding Engineering and Supply Wing. At the end of a busy 3 years in Germany, he was promoted to group captain and posted to the DD Weapons (RAF) appointment at RAF Wyton
RAF Wyton
RAF Wyton is a Royal Air Force station near St. Ives, Cambridgeshire, England.In terms of organisation RAF Wyton is now part of the combined station RAF Brampton Wyton Henlow, a merger of Wyton with two previously separate bases, RAF Brampton and RAF Henlow. Wyton is the largest of the three. It...
. He served 4 years in post before moving to the Ordnance Board as the Air Strike Division Leader in December 1999.
This tour as the UK specialist for the provision of independent safety and suitability for service advice for all air launched and ground based air defence munitions, also involved taking the UK-lead for Insensitive Munitions nationally and internationally. He left the newly formed Defence Ordnance Safety Group to take up the dual-appointment of Air Officer Commanding Air Cadets and Commandant of the Air Training Corps
Air Training Corps
The Air Training Corps , commonly known as the Air Cadets, is a cadet organisation based in the United Kingdom. It is a voluntary youth group which is part of the Air Cadet Organisation and the Royal Air Force . It is supported by the Ministry of Defence, with a regular RAF Officer, currently Air...
, at the RAF College Cranwell, on 3 May 2002.
The appointments of Air Officer Commanding Air Cadets and Commandant ATC were split on 24 March 2003 with the former appointment passed to the Chief Executive of the Royal Air Force Training Group Defence Agency
Training Group RAF
Training Group of the Royal Air Force was the group that controlled the stations of Personnel and Training Command.- History :It was formed on 1 April 1994 from the AOC Training Units with Personnel and Training Command its controlling formation. On 30 October 2006, Training Group was renamed as...
and the latter becoming Commandant Air Cadets
Commandant Air Cadets
Commandant Air Cadets is the title given to the Royal Air Force officer who is responsible for running the Air Cadet Organisation, embracing the Air Training Corps and the RAF Sections of the Combined Cadet Force...
.
Jon is an Advanced Instructor in scuba diving and upon leaving the Royal Air Force at the end of this tour, he founded a scuba diving equipment design and manufacture company, Venture Diving. Venture Diving has designed and brought the innovative Tank2Go twinset trolley and carrier to market. Jon also works as a consultant for a number of aerospace organisations.