Maurice Heath
Encyclopedia
Air Marshal
Sir Maurice Lionel Heath KBE
CB
CVO
DL
(12 August 1909 - 9 July 1998) was a senior Royal Air Force
officer who became Commander of British Forces Arabian Peninsula
.
in Kent
, Heath joined the Royal Air Force as a cadet in 1927. He served in World War II
on the staff at the Deputy Directorate of Armament Training before becoming Station Commander at RAF Metheringham
. He became Officer Commanding the Central Gunnery School in 1948, Officer Commanding the Bomber Command Bombing School in 1952 and Deputy Air Secretary in 1954. He was appointed Commander of British Forces Arabian Peninsula
in 1957 before moving on to be Commandant at the RAF Staff College, Bracknell
in 1959 and Chief of Staff at Headquarters Allied Air Forces Central Europe in 1962 before retiring in 1965.
In retirement he became a working director of a London firm of estate agents as well as Deputy Lieutenant
of West Sussex
.
Air Marshal
Air marshal is a three-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
Sir Maurice Lionel Heath KBE
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...
CB
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
CVO
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
DL
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
(12 August 1909 - 9 July 1998) was a senior Royal Air Force
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...
officer who became Commander of British Forces Arabian Peninsula
British Forces Aden
British Forces Aden was the name given to the British Armed Forces stationed in the Aden Protectorate during part of the 20th century. Their purpose was to preserve the security of the Protectorate from both internal threats and external aggression.-History:...
.
RAF career
Educated at Sutton Valence SchoolSutton Valence School
Sutton Valence School is an English independent school near Maidstone in southeast England. It has about 520 pupils. It is a co-educational school with a boarding option . The three boarding houses are Westminster, St Margaret's and Sutton and, for those in the first and second form, Beresford...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, Heath joined the Royal Air Force as a cadet in 1927. He served in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
on the staff at the Deputy Directorate of Armament Training before becoming Station Commander at RAF Metheringham
RAF Metheringham
RAF Metheringham was a Royal Air Force station situated between the villages of Metheringham and Martin and south east of the county town Lincoln, Lincolnshire, England....
. He became Officer Commanding the Central Gunnery School in 1948, Officer Commanding the Bomber Command Bombing School in 1952 and Deputy Air Secretary in 1954. He was appointed Commander of British Forces Arabian Peninsula
British Forces Aden
British Forces Aden was the name given to the British Armed Forces stationed in the Aden Protectorate during part of the 20th century. Their purpose was to preserve the security of the Protectorate from both internal threats and external aggression.-History:...
in 1957 before moving on to be Commandant at the RAF Staff College, Bracknell
RAF Staff College, Bracknell
The RAF Staff College at Bracknell was a Royal Air Force staff college active for most of the second half of the 20th century. Its role was the training of staff officers in the administrative, staff and policy aspects of air force matters...
in 1959 and Chief of Staff at Headquarters Allied Air Forces Central Europe in 1962 before retiring in 1965.
In retirement he became a working director of a London firm of estate agents as well as Deputy Lieutenant
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
of West Sussex
West Sussex
West Sussex is a county in the south of England, bordering onto East Sussex , Hampshire and Surrey. The county of Sussex has been divided into East and West since the 12th century, and obtained separate county councils in 1888, but it remained a single ceremonial county until 1974 and the coming...
.