Air of Authority - A History of RAF Organisation
Francis
Leycester b:
25 Jul 1877 r:
31 May 1919
d: 17 Oct 1948
CB
- 3 Jun 1919, CMG - 1 Jan 1916,
MiD
- 21 Jan 1916, MiD
- 4 Jan 1917,
MiD
- 20 May 1918,
MiD
- 11 Jul 1919.
(Army):
- 2 Lt: 5 Sep 1896, Lt:
8 Apr 1899, Capt:
23 Feb 1901/4 Mar 1901, Maj:
1 Sep 1915, (T) Lt Col: 12 Mar 1916,
(B) Lt Col: 1
Jan 1917,
(B) Col:
3 Jun 1918.
(RAF):
- (T) Brig-Gen [Lt Col/Bt Col]:
1 Apr 1918, Col: 14 Oct 1918.
(RAFO): - (H) Gp Capt: - 7 Sep 1939 - 13 Jul 1940
xx xxx xxxx: Attended RMC Sandhurst
5 Sep 1896: Officer, 1st Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers.
4 Oct 1896: Served in Gibraltar
18 Jan 1898: Served in Egypt (1898 Sudan Expedition)
4 Oct 1898: Served in Crete
24 May 1899: Served in UK
16 Sep 1899: Served in South Africa
23 Nov 1899: Seriously wounded
xx Apr 1900: Transferred to 4th Battalion, Northumberland Fusiliers
23 Sep 1903: Attended Musketry Course, Hythe
1 Apr 1905:
28 Dec 1907: Instructor, School of Musketry.
1 Apr 1909:
1
Oct 1912:
Brigade-Major, HQ Aldershot.
5 Aug 1914: General Staff Officer 2nd Class.
2 Feb 1915: Restored to the establishment of The Northumberland Fusiliers.
28
Mar 1915: Deputy Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster-General, HQ RFC in France.
25-28 Jul 1915:
Temporary Duty in Paris
12 Mar 1916: Assistant Adjutant and Quartermaster-General, HQ RFC in France.
9 Oct 1917:
Deputy Adjutant-General,
1 Apr 1918: Senior Personnel Staff Officer, HQ RAF in the Field.
15 Aug 1918:
16-31 Aug 1918: Leave
29-31 Oct 1918:
24 Nov 1918: Returned to Home Establishment
25 Nov 1918: Deputy Master-General of Personnel
31 May 1919: Relinquished his Commission in the RAF
xx
xxx
xxxx: Airline Operator.
xx xxx 1921: Deputy Controller of Aerodromes and Licensing, Department of Civil Aviation. (Acting Controller)
7 Sep 1939: Granted honorary commission in RAFO Admin and Spec Duties Branch.
The
son of Major-General Sir Francis Festing he was a Queen's
Cadet at Sandhurst and Trenchard always considered him to
be one of his best staff officers and would have liked him to have remained in
the post war RAF. However, he decided to get together with Sir Sefton Brancker, with
whom he
formed Air Transport & Travel, one of the earliest British civilian
airlines. This airline was later absorbed into Imperial Airways, after which he joined the
Department of Civil Aviation.
This page was last updated on 28/03/21
G I Ferenczy