Geoffrey Salmond

William Geoffrey Hanson Salmond
Air Vice-Marshal Sir Geoffrey Salmond
Born	19 August 1878 Hougham, Kent, England
Died	27 April 1933 (aged 54) King Edward VII Hospital for Officers, London, England
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	Royal Air Force
Years of service	1898–1933
Rank	Air Chief Marshal
Commands held	No. 1 Squadron RFC 5th Wing RFC Middle East Brigade RFC Air Defence of Great Britain Chief of the Air Staff
Battles/wars	Second Boer War World War I
Awards	Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Distinguished Service Order Mention in Despatches (7 times)

Air Chief Marshal Sir William Geoffrey Hanson Salmond KCB, KCMG, DSO (19 August 1878 – 27 April 1933), commonly known as Sir Geoffrey Salmond, was a senior commander in the Royal Flying Corps during World War I. Remaining in the Royal Air Force after the War, he held senior appointments in the Middle East, Great Britain and India. In 1933 Salmond served as Chief of the Air Staff for only a matter of days before being taken ill and subsequently dying from cancer.

Early life

Geoffrey Salmond was born the son of Major-General Sir William Salmond and Emma Mary Salmond (née Hoyle).^[1] His siblings included a brother, John.^[1] He was educated at Wellington College in Berkshire before joining the Army.^[1]

Royal Artillery service

Salmond joined the British Army, undertaking his officer training at Royal Military Academy Woolwich around 1897.^[2] He was commissioned into the Royal Artillery on 23 June 1898^[3] and saw active service during the Second Boer War.^[2] He took part in the relief of Ladysmith and the operations on the Tugela Heights.^[4] He received he Queen's Medal and seven clasps, then on 10 November 1900 he was sent to China^[5] and gained a medal for the operations during the Boxer Rebellion there.^[4] He was seconded to study Japanese on 2 May 1905^[6] and promoted to captain on 2 December 1905.^[7] He was then appointed Adjutant with the Royal Field Artillery on 4 February 1908.^[8] Then in 1911 he attended the Staff College, Camberley.^[2]

Royal Flying Corps service

Salmond was awarded Royal Aero Club Aviator's Certificate no. 421 on 18 February 1913,^[9] and then joined the reserve of the Royal Flying Corps on 17 April 1913.^[10] He became a staff office at the War Office on 31 July 1913,^[11] a staff officer in the Directorate of Military Aeronautics on 31 August 1913 and then a staff officer at Headquarters Royal Flying Corps in France on 4 August 1914.^[12]

Salmond went on to take up the post of Officer Commanding No. 1 Squadron RFC on 26 January 1915.^[13] In the First World War the squadron operated over the Western Front and Salmond and his squadron took part in the Battle of Neuve Chapelle, including the Battle of Hill 60 and the Battle of Aubers Ridge.^[2] He was appointed a wing commander on 18 August 1915^[14] and sent to command the 5th Wing RFC in Egypt in November 1916.^[2] He was promoted to brevet lieutenant colonel on 3 June 1916.^[15]

In July 1916, Salmond was promoted to temporary brigadier-general and given command of the RFC in the Middle East.^[2] The Distinguished Service Order was conferred on him on 3 March 1917:^[16]

"for conspicuous ability and devotion to duty when personally directing the work of the Royal Flying Corps during the action. The striking success attained was largely due to his magnificent personal example."

The action referred to was during the operations in Sinai at the end of 1916.^[1] In this command he was responsible for providing air cooperation for General Jan Smuts's force in East Africa,^[4] for the forces in Salonika and Mesopotamia, for Allenby's conquest of Palestine, and for the RFC in India.^[4] He was promoted to the substantive rank of lieutenant colonel on 3 September 1918.^[17]

While holding the command of the Middle East, he had laid out an airway from Cairo to South Africa,^[1] clearing a chain of aerodromes in Central Africa. His idea was to send a demonstration flight or flights of RAF aircraft across Africa, thus providing the link of which Cecil Rhodes had dreamed in a Cape-to-Cairo railway.^[4] Salmond contemplated flights by both landplane and flying-boat. He was not destined to put his idea into execution, though his airway was used by Sir Pierre van Ryneveld and Sir Christopher Brand on their first flight to South Africa.^[4] He was appointed a Grand Officer of the Egyptian Order of the Nile on 9 November 1918,^[18] a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 1919 New Year Honours,^[19] and a Grand Commander of the Greek Order of the Redeemer on 5 April 1919.^[20] He was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George on 3 June 1919 and mentioned in despatches on account of his services in the Middle East on 28 June 1919.^[21]

Royal Air Force service

Salmond was awarded a permanent commission in the Royal Air Force as a major-general in August 1919 (shortly afterwards redesignated as an air vice marshal).^[22] On 23 February 1922 Salmond returned to Great Britain to take up the post of Director-General of Supply and Research at the Air Ministry.^[23] The following year, his post was renamed Air Member for Supply and Research and he remained as the head of Supply and Research for the RAF until late 1926.^[2] He was advanced to Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 1926 Birthday Honours.^[2]

Salmond's next appointment was as Air Officer Commanding India in December 1926.^[2] He travelled to India by aircraft, making him the first officer to travel to an overseas command by air. He was promoted to air marshal on 1 July 1929.^[24] In September 1931, Salmond returned from India to take up command of the Air Defence of Great Britain organization which was responsible for British air defences, including both fighters and bombers.^[2] He was promoted to air chief marshal several months later on 1 January 1933.^[25]

On 1 April 1933, Air Chief Marshal Salmond took over from his brother John as Chief of the Air Staff.^[26] At this stage he was already suffering from incurable cancer although it is unclear whether Salmond or his brother knew this at the time. Days later (5 April) arrangements were announced for Sir John Salmond to resume the RAF's senior post temporarily. However, Geoffrey Salmond never recovered and he died on 27 April 1933. Sir John Salmond resumed his duties as Chief of the Air Staff for several more weeks after Sir Geoffrey Salmond's death.^[2]

Family

In 1910 he married Margaret Carr, daughter of William Carr; they had a son and three daughters.^[1]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Geoffrey Salmond.

Further reading

• Baker, Anne (2003). From Biplane to Spitfire: the life of Air Chief Marshal Sir Geoffrey Salmond KCB KCMG DSO. Pen & Sword Ltd. ISBN 0-85052-980-8. 
• Probert, Henry (1991). High Commanders of the Royal Air Force. HMSO. ISBN 0-11-772635-4. 

Military offices
Preceded by C A H Longcroft	Officer Commanding No. 1 Squadron Royal Flying Corps 28 January 1915 – 19 August 1915	Succeeded by P B Joubert de la Ferté
Preceded by unknown	Officer Commanding Fifth Wing, RFC November 1915 – July 1916	Succeeded by P B Joubert de la Ferté
New title Middle East Brigade established	General Officer Commanding Middle East Brigade Post upgraded to GOC HQ RFC Middle East from October 1917 July 1916 – November 1917	Succeeded by W S Brancker
New title Palestine Brigade established	Officer Commanding Palestine Brigade October – November 1917
Preceded by W S Brancker	General Officer Commanding HQ RFC Middle East From 1 April 1918 GOC RAF Middle East Area From 18 March 1920 AOC Middle East Area December 1917 – February 1922	Succeeded by E L Ellington
Preceded by E L Ellington	RAF Director-General of Supply and Research Post renamed Air Member for Supply and Research in 1923 23 February 1922 – 27 December 1926	Succeeded by Sir John Higgins
Preceded by E L Ellington	Air Officer Commanding RAF India 1926–1931	Succeeded by Sir John Steel
Preceded by Sir Edward Ellington	Commander-in-Chief Air Defence of Great Britain 1931 – 1933	Succeeded by Sir Robert Brooke-Popham
Preceded by Sir John Salmond	Chief of the Air Staff 1933	Succeeded by Sir John Salmond

v t e Chiefs of the Air Staff Sir Hugh Trenchard Sir Frederick Sykes Sir Hugh Trenchard Sir John Salmond Sir Geoffrey Salmond Sir John Salmond Sir Edward Ellington Sir Cyril Newall Lord Portal Lord Tedder Sir John Slessor Sir William Dickson Sir Dermot Boyle Sir Thomas Pike Sir Charles Elworthy Sir John Grandy Sir Denis Spotswood Sir Andrew Humphrey Sir Neil Cameron Sir Michael Beetham Sir Keith Williamson Sir David Craig Sir Peter Harding Sir Michael Graydon Sir Richard Johns Sir Peter Squire Sir Jock Stirrup Sir Glenn Torpy Sir Stephen Dalton Sir Andrew Pulford

Authority control VIAF: 46272958

Persondata
Name	Salmond, Geoffrey
Alternative names
Short description	Royal Air Force air marshals
Date of birth	19 August 1878
Place of birth	Hougham, Kent, England
Date of death	27 April 1933
Place of death	King Edward VII Hospital for Officers, London, England