Gavin Parker
Gavin Parker | |
---|---|
Born | Salisbury, Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe) | 22 February 1969
Allegiance | United Kingdom |
Service | Royal Air Force |
Years of service | 1990–2020 |
Rank | Air Vice-Marshal |
Commands | No. 2 Group (2015–17) RAF Leuchars (2011–13) |
Battles / wars | War in Afghanistan |
Awards | Companion of the Order of the Bath Officer of the Order of the British Empire |
Air Vice-Marshal Gavin Douglas Anthony Parker, CB, OBE is a retired senior Royal Air Force officer and was the Head of the British Defence Staff and Defence Attaché in Washington, D.C.
Early life and education
[edit]Parker was born on 22 February 1969 in Salisbury, Rhodesia (now Harare, Zimbabwe). He studied physics at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in the United Kingdom and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1990. He later studied at King's College London, graduating with a Master of Arts degree in defence studies in 2006.[1]
RAF career
[edit]Parker was commissioned into the Royal Air Force (RAF) on 30 September 1990.[2] He became Air Officer Scotland and station commander at RAF Leuchars in 2011, Assistant Chief of Staff, Plans and Policy at the Ministry of Defence in 2013,[3] and Air Officer Commanding No. 2 Group in 2015.[4] After that he became Head of the British Defence Staff and Defence Attaché in Washington, D.C. in August 2017.[3] Parker was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 2019 Birthday Honours,[5] and retired from the RAF on 29 September 2020.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ "Parker, Air Vice-Marshal Gavin Douglas Anthony, (born 22 Feb. 1969), Defence Attaché and Head of the British Defence Staff, Washington DC, 2017–20". Who's Who 2021. Oxford University Press. 1 December 2020.
- ^ "No. 52339". The London Gazette (Supplement). 19 November 1990. p. 17945.
- ^ a b "Ministry of Defence and Senior Tri-Service Appointments" (PDF). Retrieved 4 December 2017.
- ^ "Senior RAF Appointments" (PDF). Retrieved 4 November 2016.
- ^ "No. 62666". The London Gazette (Supplement). 8 June 2019. p. B3.
- ^ "No. 63164". The London Gazette (Supplement). 3 November 2020. p. 18606.