Hazelton Nicholl
Air Vice Marshal Sir Hazelton Robson Nicholl, KBE, CB (14 January 1882 – 14 August 1956) was a Royal Air Force officer who served as Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief RAF Middle East from 1938 to 1939.
Sir Hazelton Nicholl | |
|---|---|
| Born | 14 January 1882 |
| Died | 14 August 1956 (aged 74) |
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/ | British Army Royal Air Force |
| Years of service | 1899–c.1904 1915–1942 |
| Rank | Air Vice Marshal |
| Commands held | RAF Middle East (1938–39) Central Area (1934–35) No. 23 Group (1933–34) RAF Calshot (1932–33) No. 70 Squadron (1926–29) 41st Wing (1918–19) No. 110 Squadron (1917–18) No. 84 Squadron (1917) |
| Battles/wars | Second Boer War First World War Second World War |
| Awards | Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire Companion of the Order of the Bath Mentioned in Despatches Knight of the Legion of Honour (France) |
Military career
Nicholl served as a private soldier in the London Scottish Volunteers in the Second Boer War and then transferred to the South Rhodesia Volunteers in 1903.[1] He was commissioned into the Royal Flying Corps Special Reserve in 1915 during the First World War and served as a pilot with No. 8 Squadron before instructing at the Central Flying School and then becoming Officer Commanding No. 84 Squadron and subsequently Officer Commanding No. 110 Squadron on the Western Front.[1]
After the war, Nicholl became a Staff Officer at the Air Ministry before being appointed Officer Commanding No. 70 Squadron in 1926.[1] He was made Deputy Director of Training and then Deputy Director of Personal Services before becoming Deputy Director of Manning at the Air Ministry in 1931.[1] He went on to be Station Commander at RAF Calshot in 1932, Air Officer Commanding No. 23 Group in 1933 and Air Officer Commanding Central Area in 1934.[1] After that he was made a Member of the Air Board of the Royal Australian Air Force in 1935, Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief RAF Middle East in 1938 and Air Officer for Administration at Headquarters Fighter Command in 1939, the post he held in the early years of the Second World War.[1] He retired in 1942.[1]
Later life
Nicholl retired to Scotland and became Controller of the RAF Benevolent Fund.[2]
References
- Air of Authority – A History of RAF Organisation – Air Vice-Marshal Sir Hazelton Nicholl
- Correspondence Flight International, 31 August 1956
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Stanley Goble |
Air Member for Personnel (RAAF) 1935–1937 |
Succeeded by Stanley Goble |
| Preceded by Cuthbert MacLean |
Air Officer Commanding RAF Middle East 1938–1939 |
Succeeded by Sir William Mitchell |