Sir Colin Thomas Hannah | |
|---|---|
 Official RAAF portrait of Sir Colin Hannah | |
| 19th Governor of Queensland | |
| In office 21 March 1972 – 20 March 1977 | |
| Monarch | Elizabeth II |
| Premier | Sir Joh Bjelke-Petersen |
| Preceded by | Sir Alan Mansfield |
| Succeeded by | Sir James Ramsay |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 22 December 1914 Menzies, Western Australia |
| Died | 22 May 1978 (aged 63) Surfers Paradise, Queensland |
| Profession | Air Force officer |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Australia |
| Branch/service | Royal Australian Air Force |
| Years of service | 1935–1972 |
| Rank | Air Marshal |
| Commands | No. 6 Squadron (1943) No. 71 Wing (1944) Western Area Command (1945–1946) RAAF Amberley (1949–1951) Operational Command (1965–1967) Support Command (1968–1969) Chief of the Air Staff (1970–1972) |
| Battles/wars | World War II Malayan Emergency Vietnam War |
| Awards | Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companion of the Order of the Bath |
Air Marshal Sir Colin Thomas Hannah, KCMG, KCVO, KBE, CB (22 December 1914 – 22 May 1978) was a senior commander in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and a Governor of Queensland. Born in Western Australia, he was a member of the Militia before joining the RAAF in 1935. After graduating as a pilot, Hannah served in Nos. 22 and 23 Squadrons from 1936 to 1939. During the early years of World War II, he was the RAAF's Deputy Director of Armament. He then saw action in the South West Pacific as commander of No. 6 Squadron and, later, No. 71 Wing, operating Bristol Beaufort bombers. By 1944, he had risen to the rank of group captain, and at the end of the war was in charge of Western Area Command in Perth.
Hannah commanded RAAF Station Amberley, Queensland, in 1949–50, and saw service during the Malayan Emergency as senior air staff officer at RAF Far East Air Force Headquarters, Singapore, from 1956 to 1959. His other post-war appointments included Deputy Chief of the Air Staff from 1961 to 1965, Air Officer Commanding (AOC) Operational Command from 1965 to 1967, and AOC Support Command from 1968 to 1969. In January 1970, he was promoted to air marshal and became Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), the RAAF's senior position. Knighted in 1971, Hannah concluded his three-year appointment as CAS a year early, in March 1972, to become Governor of Queensland. He attracted controversy in this role after making comments critical of the Federal government of the day, and the British government refused to agree to his term being extended. Hannah retired in March 1977, and died the following year.