Arthur Tedder, 1st Baron Tedder


The Lord Tedder

Tedder on the Italian coast in December 1943.
Born(1890-07-11)11 July 1890
Glengoyne, Scotland
Died3 June 1967(1967-06-03) (aged 76)
Banstead, England
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service / branchBritish Army (1906–18)
Royal Air Force (1918–51)
Years of service1906–1951
RankMarshal of the Royal Air Force
CommandsChief of the Air Staff (1946–1950)
Mediterranean Allied Air Forces (1943–1944)
Mediterranean Air Command (1943)
RAF Middle East Command (1941–1943)
RAF Far East (1936–1938)
No. 2 Flying Training School (1924–1926)
No. 207 Squadron (1920–1923)
No. 274 Squadron (1919–1920)
38th Wing (1918–1919)
No. 67 Squadron (1917–1918)
No. 70 Squadron (1917)
Battles / wars
AwardsKnight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Mentioned in Despatches (2)
Silver Medal of Military Valor (Italy)
Order of Polonia Restituta (Poland)
Legion of Merit (United States)
Distinguished Service Medal (United States)
Legion of Honour (France)
Croix de guerre (France)
Croix de guerre (Belgium)
Other workChancellor, University of Cambridge
Vice-Chairman, BBC Board of Governors
President, Standard Triumph Ltd
Deputy President, National Rifle Association
President of Surrey County Cricket Club 1953-58

Marshal of the Royal Air Force Arthur William Tedder, 1st Baron Tedder, GCB (11 July 1890 – 3 June 1967) was a Scottish Royal Air Force officer and peer. He was a pilot and squadron commander in the Royal Flying Corps in the First World War and he went on to serve as a senior officer in the Royal Air Force (RAF) during the inter-war years when he served in Turkey, Great Britain and the Far East.

During World War II, as Air Officer Commanding of the RAF Middle East Command, Tedder directed RAF air operations in the Mediterranean and North Africa, including the evacuation of Crete and Operation Crusader in North Africa. His bombing tactics became known as the "Tedder Carpet". Later in the war Tedder took command of the Mediterranean Air Command and in that role was closely involved in the planning of the Allied invasion of Sicily and the Allied invasion of Italy. When Operation Overlord—the invasion of France—came to be planned, Tedder was appointed Deputy Supreme Commander at Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force under General Dwight D. Eisenhower.

After the war, Tedder served as Chief of the Air Staff, in which role he advocated increased recruitment in the face of many airmen leaving the RAF, doubled the size of RAF Fighter Command and implemented arrangements for the Berlin Airlift in 1948. He also held senior positions in business and academia.