First Female AOC!

[Red Line Entry]

RAF - Senior Appointments (http://www.raf.mod.uk/organisation/senior-appointments.cfm)

Congratulations to AVM Sue Gray - AOC of 38 Gp! Is the glass ceiling finally being broken?

[MPN11]

Also interesting to note that the 1* ATC and ABM appointees are both female!

Air Cdre CHRISTINA ELLIOT CR ATC 22TRGGP DGT
Air Cdre WENDY MILLINGTON WJ ABM DCOS SUPPORT - OAC GXS 0010 (Ramstein)

By heck, the World has changed.

[Secret1]

OMG!!!!!!! :mad:

[Wander00]

Wasn't "Aunty" Joan Hopkins the first female 1* AOC Air Battle management, or whatever it was called.

[air pig]

Wander 00:

The PMRAFNS whilst a stand alone branch of the RAF, they had the first female 1* equivent in 1948 Air Commandant Dame Helen Cargill and our first Air Commodore was Air Commodore Metcalfe in 1978 followed by my ultimate boss in 1982 Air Commodore Harris.

[RAFEngO74to09]

AVM Gray was previously DE&S Director of Combat Air.

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/second-female-soars-to-the-top-in-raf

Here is an interesting article from a few years ago:

No glass ceiling for female officers | History and Policy (http://www.historyandpolicy.org/opinion-articles/articles/no-glass-ceiling-for-female-officers)

[MPN11]

Wander00 ... There was a rumour [likely true in this case] that Joan Hopkins was offered the post [and 1* rank] of DWRAF and declined it on the basis that she was not willing to be a "token female 1*". She was indeed subsequently promoted within her chosen Branch of GD(G)FC ... or at least, at that rank, of simply GD(G).

[Wander00]

MPN11 - I was her OC Admin Sqn at the time - she was, and she did - her language on the topic was quite colourful!

[MPN11]

Her language was often colourful, as I recall from a landline conversation with her in Singapore! Glad to have the rumour validated :ok:

[Basil]

By heck, the World has changed.
Yes, did for me when I looked around and saw our statuesque brunette operating FO sitting cross-legged on the centre jump-seat wearing her baby-doll pyjamas :E

I think I was once in 38Gp when they had aeroplanes.

[CoffmanStarter]

Wander, MPN11 ...

I'm sure you will have seen this before ... What a very impressive lady :ok:

BBC East 1984

RAF Neatishead : Fighter Controller (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=SI36_iEtOS8)

[Wander00]

Hi Coff - Thanks, I have seen it, in fact I was involved in the admin side, as I was her OC Admin Sqn at the time. Her "In Memoriam" on this site a couple of years back was pretty impressive too.

[radar101]

Excellent video!!


:8 My favourite radar alltime - Type 85


:8 Lots of shots of 56 Sqn


Pity they spent so long looking at the Tornado GR - not relevant but I suppose the F2 wasn't there yet

[MPN11]

T84/T85 grinding at 4 rpm was scary when used for ATC, but I do accept that gave it the range. It was our backup to the T82, which was a bit more nimble ;)

[Ken Scott]

Is it just me or do there seem to be an awful lot of VSOs for such a reduced Air Force with not many aircraft?

[earswentpop]

Damn that glass ceiling. It's about time we saw a few cracks through it.

[Chugalug2]

CS:-

I'm sure you will have seen this before ... What a very impressive lady

Well I hadn't, and thank you for posting it, CS! A very impressive Senior Officer, "All hell has broken out on the Continent...I do not intend to lose an Air Defence battle!". Deliciously non PC commentary too, "She doesn't like children much, she tolerates them", as she steals herself to confront the infants of a Station School.

Impressive too for its portrayal of a time when we had an Air Force that exceeded critical mass, to confront and defeat those who would harm us. It all seems so long ago...

[Wander00]

Chug - and then neither does Phil the Greek. Early in theGW1 when the Royal were getting flak for not "supporting our boys (and girls I guess)" I was rung on a Thursday and asked if we would take a visit from him on TUESDAY! Staish (Reg McK) is in Germany so rang to give him the good news, and got the inevitable "fix it". So I did, first port of call the nursery school. HRH grinding teeth.


Roll 10 years or so and I am representing R Lym YC at Princess Royal's birthday bash at Windsor. D of E approaches group I am with and people start to introduce themselves. Before I could say anything he grins and says "We have met before, at Wyton, and you took me to the nursery school". Said to minder "That was a good brief". No says the flunky, a good memory, he never forgets a face". Thought that was me for the Tower.

[AnglianAV8R]

@earswentpop That's a keyboard you owe me :D