Extract from the The Churchill Society
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He was transferred by the Prime Minister to the Admiralty in October 1911, and when the Germans sent a gunboat to Agadir, (a Moroccan port to which France had claims), Churchill became convinced that in any major Franco-German conflict, Britain would have to ally herself with France. Time revealed this to be inspired political perception and foresight and enabled Churchill to campaign successfully in the Cabinet for the largest naval expenditure in British history.
He found the Admiralty riven with terrible feuding and set about the immediate total reform of the entire Admiralty and in the process brought the Navy to a state of instant readiness. He even learned to fly, much to the horror and anxiety of his young wife."
Twenty-nine years after he made his first solo flight, Prime Minister Winston Churchill, honorary Air Commodore, won his R.A.F. wings. Said the citation: the Prime Minister's part in the creation of the R.A.F., his "30,000 miles of flying on duty during the present war," his work as Minister of Defense "constitute unique qualifications."
Sir Winston Churchill was an Honorary Air Commodore of No. 615 squadron