John Salmond

John Maitland Salmond
Air Marshal Sir John Salmond in 1925
Born	(1881-07-17)17 July 1881 London, England
Died	16 April 1968(1968-04-16) (aged 86) Eastbourne, England
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army (1901–18) Royal Air Force (1918–43)
Years of service	1901–33
Rank	Marshal of the Royal Air Force
Commands held	Chief of the Air Staff (1930–33) Air Member for Personnel (1929–30) Air Defence of Great Britain (1925–28) Iraq Command (1922–24) Inland Area (1920–22) Southern Area (1919–20) VI Brigade RFC (1916–17) V Brigade RFC (1916) II Brigade RFC (1916) 2nd Wing RFC (1915–16) No. 3 Squadron RFC (1914–15) No. 7 Squadron RFC (1914)
Battles/wars	Second Boer War First World War Second World War
Awards	Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Distinguished Service Order & Bar Mentioned in Despatches (7) Officer of the Legion of Honour (France) Croix de guerre (France) Commander of the Order of the Crown of Italy Commander of the Order of Leopold (Belgium) Croix de guerre (Belgium) Order of the White Eagle (Russia) Distinguished Service Medal (United States)

Marshal of the Royal Air Force Sir John Maitland Salmond, GCB, CMG, CVO, DSO & Bar (17 July 1881 – 16 April 1968) was a British military officer who rose to high rank in the Royal Flying Corps and then the Royal Air Force. During the First World War he served as a squadron commander, a wing commander and then as General Officer Commanding the RAF on the Western Front towards the end of the war. He went on to be Air Officer Commanding British Forces in Iraq in the early 1920s when he halted a Turkish invasion and sought to put down a Kurdish uprising against King Faisal, the British-sponsored ruler of Iraq. He was Chief of the Air Staff in the early 1930s and bitterly opposed the position taken by British politicians at the World Disarmament Conference in Geneva, which would have led to the UK's complete aerial disarmament. In the event the talks broke down when Adolf Hitler withdrew from the Conference in October 1933.

John Salmond was born the son of Major General Sir William Salmond and Emma Mary Salmond (née Hoyle). His siblings included a brother, Geoffrey, and sister, Gwen. After first being taught by a series of governesses he then attended Miss Dixon's School in Thurloe Square, London. At the age of nine Salmond was sent to Aysgarth Preparatory School in Yorkshire. In 1894, he went up to Wellington College and in 1900 he attended the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.