ItsGaffa has announced his intent to resign as Chief of the Air Staff and subsequent head of the Royal Air Force.
Following a meeting with the Chief of Defence Staff, HRH the Duke of York, the outgoing Air Chief Marshal released his resignation publicly, sharing that his time as Chief of Air Staff was “centred around survival, and that’s difficult to conform to when I am an innovator.”
Before stepping up to become the Air Chief Marshal, Gaffa served as a Warrant Officer and before a Junior CO, where he brought “an overhauled fleet, events, plans, ideas and concepts”. In his resignation, he reflected on this, where he “unfortunately lost the time to give whilst battling the constant challenges, so I have had to focus on the essentials to keep us moving forward.”
The Royal Air Force plays an important role in the UK’s military structure. Reflecting on his time in the role as Air Chief Marshal, he shared that the last year has been a difficult one for the RAF, and how “rebuilding a strong base is a lengthy process”, and whilst “I like to think that base is about stable once again, it needs a new pair of hands to build it on any further.”
Gaffe’s resignation statement is accessible here.
In a follow up press release, the Ministry of Defence thanked the outgoing Air Chief Marshal for his long service to the Royal Air Force, where His Royal Highness appreciated him for taking on the responsibility when “the Royal Air Force was without a leader for quite some time” and acknowledged him for being honoured as a Companion of the Order of the Bath (CB), awarded by His Majesty the King for his service.
In the MoD statement, the Chief of Defence Staff confirmed Air Commodore AaronGLydford as the new Chief of Air Staff.
