Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant passages that answer the question.
Query: Who is the current head of the Royal Air Force?
The Chief of the Air Staff (CAS) is the professional head of the Royal Air Force and a member of both the Chiefs of Staff Committee and the Air Force Board. The post was created in 1918 with Major General Sir Hugh Trenchard as the first incumbent. The current and 29th Chief of the Air Staff is Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Hillier, who succeeded Sir Andrew Pulford in July 2016.[2][3]
Hayward lived and worked in the United Kingdom from 2004 to 2012 first teaching strategy and operational art at the Joint Services Command and Staff College. In November 2005 he became the head of the newly created Air Power Studies Division, a specialist unit of Defence Studies academics established by the Royal Air Force and King's College London at the Royal Air Force College, Cranwell. Hayward was appointed Dean of the RAF College, Cranwell in April 2007. He was a Director of the Royal Air Force Centre for Air Power Studies, the Air Force's national thinktank. He was also a member of the CAS Air Power Workshop, a small and highly select working group of scholars and other theorists convened by the Chief of Air Staff (the head of the Royal Air Force.)
The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; French: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower".[3] The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Canadian Armed Forces. As of 2013, the Royal Canadian Air Force consists of 14,500 Regular Force and 2,600 Primary Reserve personnel, supported by 2,500 civilians, and operates 258 manned aircraft and 9 unmanned aerial vehicles[1][4]. Lieutenant-General Al Meinzinger is the current Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force and Chief of the Air Force Staff.[5]
The Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters ( or the RTARF HQ, is the "mostly ornamental" joint headquarters of the Royal Thai Armed Forces, which is composed of the Royal Thai Army, the Royal Thai Navy and Royal Thai Marine Corps, and the Royal Thai Air Force. Formerly the Supreme Command Headquarters (, the name was changed in February 2008. The headquarters is divided into two branches: the "Command Group" and the "Joint Group". The headquarters is headed by the Chief of Defence Forces (, currently General Surapong Suwan-ath of the Royal Thai Army. The chief is supported by several departments and directorates, including four deputy chiefs. The headquarters is under the responsibility of the Ministry of Defence of Thailand and the Defence Minister.
The Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Air Force (), currently Air Chief Marshal Chaiyapruek Tishyasarin, who is headquartered in Bangkok. 
The academy's history began in 1921 in the Kalijati District of Subang Regency, West Java. The Dutch East Indies government officially opened the first military flying school in a makeshift airfield in the district for potential pilots in the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force on 1 August 1921. The school moved to Bandung in 1939, and during Japanese occupation in 1942 there had been a number of native-born alumni who had previously trained in the Koninklijke Militaire Academie. One of them was the future first Chief of the Air Staff of the Air Force, then Flying Officer Suryadi Suryadarma of the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army Air Force who would in the independence era (and the Indonesian National Revolution) would be instrumental in the formation of the young air force. Assisted by Agustinus Adisucipto, another ML-KNIL veteran who served in the independence forces, the academy opened its doors on its current campus, what is now the Adisutjipto Air Force Base, on 15 November 1945, assuming its current name in the 1950s and in the 1960s its present-day 4-year officer cadet course for air officer cadets.
The officer appointed to command the Royal Thai Air Force has been promoted to the rank of air chief marshal () since c. 1950. From 1950 to 2012 there have been 18 Royal Thai Air Force commanders who have held the rank. The present commander is Air Chief Marshal Prachin Chantong who is supported by the Deputy Commander-in-Chief (currently Air Chief Marshal Kanaphan Sanguansat) and the Assistant Commander-in-Chief (currently Air Chief Marshal M.L. Suthirat Kasemsan). In the event that an air force officer is appointed to the position of Chief of Defence Forces (formerly Supreme Commander), then he has always held the rank of air chief marshal. The last air chief marshal to be appointed Supreme Commander was Air Chief Marshal Voranat Aphichari who retired in 1994.
The Royal Air Force Air Cadets (RAFAC) is the youth organisation sponsored by the Royal Air Force that manages both the Air Training Corps and RAF Sections of the Combined Cadet Force. The organisation is headed by a former serving RAF officer, Commandant Air Cadets. The current commandant is Air Commodore Dawn McCafferty.
The Commander of the Air Force is the professional head of the Sri Lanka Air Force. The current Commander of the Air Force is Air Marshal Kapila Jayampathy. It is a position comparable to that of Chief of the Air Staff of the Royal Air Force. The Chief of Staff of the Air Force acts as a deputy commander within the command structure.
Commandant Air Cadets is the title given to the Royal Air Force officer who is responsible for running the Royal Air Force Air Cadets, embracing the Air Training Corps (ATC) and the RAF Sections of the Combined Cadet Force (CCF RAF). The current Commandant Air Cadets is Air Commodore Dawn McCafferty.
This list of RAF Stations is a list of all current Royal Air Force stations (military air bases), airfields, and administrative headquarters of the Royal Air Force. Also included are airfields operated by the Ministry of Defence but no longer considered as RAF stations, MOD air weapons ranges and stations operated by the US Visiting Forces.
The Indian Air Force's rank structure is based on that of the Royal Air Force. The highest rank attainable in the Indian Air Force is Marshal of the Indian Air Force, conferred by the President of India after exceptional service during wartime. MIAF Arjan Singh was the only officer to have achieved this rank. The head of the Indian Air Force is the Chief of the Air Staff, who holds the rank of Air Chief Marshal. The current Chief of the Air Staff is Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa, appointed on 31 December 2016, following the retirement of Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha.
The Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force is the institutional head of the Royal Canadian Air Force. Starting with the Canadian Air Force in 1920, air force commanders have had several titles: Officer Commanding, Director, Senior Air Officer, Chief of the Air Staff, and Commander. In August 2011, with the restoration of the Royal Canadian Air Force name, the title "Chief of the Air Staff" was changed to "Commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force."
The rank of air chief marshal is the most senior rank within the Royal Australian Air Force to which, excluding ceremonial appointments, any officer has ever been promoted. Only the five-star rank of Marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force is higher, but it has only been held in a ceremonial capacity. As there are currently no appointments in the Australian Defence Force (ADF) at the five-star level, there is no prospect of a RAAF officer achieving the rank in a professional (i.e. non-ceremonial) capacity. Additionally, Marshal of the Royal Australian Air Force is generally considered to be a marshal rank as opposed to an air marshal rank and so the only two individuals ever to hold the rank, King George VI and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, are not listed in a separate section. With the current structure of the ADF, the rank of air chief marshal is only held when an officer of the RAAF is appointed as Chief of the Defence Force. As of June 2018, only four officers have obtained the rank of air chief marshal in the RAAF, the first being Sir Frederick Scherger in 1965 who was also the first non-Army officer in the Australian military to reach four-star rank. Mark Binskin is the recently promoted of the four, having been advanced to air chief marshal in June 2014.
The largest operator of the new model is the U.S. Air Force, which has ordered the aircraft in increasing numbers. Current operators of the C-130J are the USAF (including the Air Force Reserve Command and the Air National Guard), United States Marine Corps (being their fourth variant after KC-130F, KC-130R and KC-130T,) United States Coast Guard, Royal Air Force, Indian Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Australian Air Force, Royal Danish Air Force, Royal Norwegian Air Force, Israeli Air Force, and the Italian Air Force. As of July 2010, a total of 200 units have been produced of the 284 on order at that time.
The rank structure of the Indian Air Force is based on that of the Royal Air Force. The highest rank attainable in the IAF is Marshal of the Indian Air Force, conferred by the President of India after exceptional service during wartime. MIAF Arjan Singh is the only officer to have achieved this rank. The head of the Indian Air Force is the Chief of the Air Staff, who holds the rank of Air Chief Marshal.
The Royal Air Force Police (RAFP) is the service police branch of the Royal Air Force, headed by the Provost Marshal of the Royal Air Force. Its headquarters are at RAF Honington and it deploys throughout the world to support RAF and UK defence missions.
The Royal Auxiliary Air Force (RAuxAF), formerly the Auxiliary Air Force (AAF), together with the Air Force Reserve, is a component of Her Majesty's Reserve Air Forces (Reserve Forces Act 1996, Part 1, Para 1,(2),(c)). It provides a primary reinforcement capability for the regular service, and consists of paid volunteers who give up some of their weekends, evenings and holidays to train at one of a number of squadrons around the United Kingdom. Its current mission is to provide trained personnel in support of the regular RAF. Queen Elizabeth II is Air Commodore-in-Chief of the RAuxAF.
The current aviator badge of the Royal Air Force has been in use since the Second World War. The badge consists of a winged crown and wreath, beneath which are the letters "RAF". The Royal Air Force also uses a "half wing" version to denote Aviation Observers.
The current aviator badge of the Belgian Air Force is:
The aviator badge of the Royal Danish Air Force is:
The emblem of the People's Liberation Army Air Force is:
The aviator badges of the French Air Force/ and French Navy/ are:
The GBU-12 Paveway II is an American aerial laser-guided bomb, based on the Mk 82 500-pound general-purpose bomb, but with the addition of a nose-mounted laser seeker and fins for guidance. A member of the Paveway series of weapons, Paveway II entered into service c. 1976. It is currently in service with the Royal Australian Air Force, Royal Saudi Air Force, U.S. Air Force, US Navy, US Marine Corps, Royal Canadian Air Force, Royal Malaysian Air Force, Philippine Air Force, Colombian Air Force, Swedish Air Force, and various NATO air forces.
The Ministry of Defense (Arabic: وزارة الدفاع‎), a ministry in Saudi Arabia that is responsible for the protection of the national security, interests and sovereignty of the country from the external threats as well as the working with all ministries of the state to achieve national security and stability. The current minister of defense is Prince Mohammad bin Salman who was appointed on 23 January 2015. The Ministry includes five armed forces; The Royal Saudi Land Forces (RSLF) ,The Royal Saudi Air Forces (RSAF), The Royal Saudi Naval Forces, The Royal Saudi Air Defense Forces (RSADF) and The Royal Saudi Strategic Missiles Force.
Many aircraft types have served in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) since it was formed in March 1921. This is a list of RAAF aircraft, those types that have served and been retired by the RAAF. It also includes aircraft of the Australian Flying Corps, Australian Air Corps and Australian Air Force. The aircraft are listed in alphabetic order of their RAAF type name, and then in mark order within that type. For the current aircraft of the RAAF, refer to the list of current Royal Australian Air Force aircraft.
King's alumni in the military include the current Chairman of the NATO Military Committee Petr Pavel, Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe Sir Adrian Bradshaw, the former head of the British Army Lord Harding, head of the Singapore Armed Forces Neo Kian Hong, head of the Nigerian Armed Forces Ola Ibrahim, head of the Maltese Armed Forces Martin Xuereb, head of the Malaysian Army Md Hashim bin Hussein, head of the Pakistan Air Force Sohail Aman, head of the Sri Lankan Air Force Harsha Abeywickrama and two heads of the Indian Air Force, Pratap Chandra Lal and Sir Richard Peirse; three Commandant Generals of the Royal Marines, Ed Davis, Andy Salmon, and Sir Robert Fry, and two recipients of the Victoria Cross, Ferdinand Le Quesne and Mark Sever Bell.
Over the following decades most countries with any substantial military capability established their own independent air forces.The South African Air Force was formed on 1 February 1920 and the Royal Australian Air Force was formed shortly afterwards on 31 March 1921, although it was not until 1922 that the head of the Service was titled as Chief of the Air Staff, placing him on a par with his Australian Army and Navy counterparts. The Canadian Air Force was formed at the end of World War I, and was abolished and reorganized several times between 1918 and 1924. It became the permanent Royal Canadian Air Force when it received the "Royal" title by royal proclamation on 1 April 1924. It did not however become independent of the Canadian Army until 1938 when its head was also designated as Chief of the Air Staff. Similarly, the Royal New Zealand Air Force was established in 1923 as the New Zealand Permanent Air Force but did not become independent of the New Zealand Army until 1937. Other British-influenced countries also established their own independent air forces. For example, the Royal Egyptian Air Force was created in 1937 when Egyptian military aviation was separated from Army command.The Afghan Air Force was established on 22 August 1924,with support of The Soviet Union and Great Britain, but the civil war destroyed most of the planes and it wasn't until 1937,when King Mohammed Nadir Shah took power and reestablished the Afghan air Force.
This is a list of the current Royal Australian Air Force aircraft in operation: