RAF Association History

It began in the Sergeants’ Mess at RAF Andover in 1929 with the ‘Comrades of the Royal Air Force’ and a conversation between three men, Vernon Goodhand, Joe Pearce and Warrant Officer Bartlett. Their conversation focussed on the numerous small organisations that had grown up since the end of WW1 to keep former members of squadrons and units in touch with each other. They debated whether it was time that one great organisation dedicated to this work and to the welfare of serving and ex-serving RAF personnel should not now be born.

By 1930 a provisional committee was formed, the title ‘Comrades of the Royal Air Forces’ was adopted and three months later the first general meeting was held at the Queen’s Hotel, Leicester Square, London. Air Ministry support for the ‘Comrades’ came in 1933 when the Air Council officially recognised the organisation and Lord Trenchard accepted the Presidency.

The new Association was to make rapid progress in the early thirties, although membership remained fairly small. Benevolent schemes began and Christmas hampers were sent to unemployed members in those difficult days.

One very important event in the Association’s history came in 1936 when King George V gave his patronage, the Association has been honoured with Royal patronage ever since.

The size of the RAF remained modest until the effects of the re-armament programme began to be felt in 1938. However, the strength of the ‘comrades’ never grew beyond 10,000 in pre-war days.

The outbreak of war in 1939 and the re-forming of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force in July of that year, led to the Women’s Royal Air Force Old Comrades Association (that had been formed in 1919) opening its membership to all ranks of the new women’s service. The two old comrades’ organisations for airmen and airwomen were amalgamated in 1941, with a combined membership of nearly 20,000.

By 1943, with more than a million serving in the RAF, it became clear that if the Association was to play an effective role in the post-war era, it would need to be organised on a much sounder basis. The Association’s Central Committee, in studying the organisation’s future role, concluded that its aims and objectives should be extended beyond its original purpose.

1943 also marks the year that the name was changed to The Royal Air Forces Association. A National council, under the chairmanship of ACM Sir John Steel was formed to replace the Central committee of CRAFA. Its first meeting was on 24 August 1943 in a London hotel and Lord Trenchard, as President, gave the address of welcome.

The foundations of the present structure were laid in the remaining wartime years, so that when demobilisation began in 1945 the Association was able to cope with the situation. Welfare officers, employment officials and legal advisers were appointed both at national headquarters and at Branch level and, at the Air Ministry’s invitations, officials went to Release Centres to tell those being demobbed how the Association could help them.

The growth of membership reached a peak around this time. In 1947 there were about 200,000 members with some 565 Branches throughout the UK and in some overseas territories. Enrolment of members reached the staggering total of 10,000 a month! There was a danger that the organisation would be swamped and it was decided to distribute much of the administrative work over nine separate areas, each with its own HQ.

Today The RAF Association still has a wide network of around 480 Branches worldwide with a membership of 70,000. However, enrolment has not maintained at the dizzy levels of the 1940’s and we now have a major challenge encouraging serving RAF personnel to support their Association. Much work by our Membership department is being done to talk with all new recruits and sign up new members at the end of the initial training.

Our Homes

February 1958 saw the opening at Lytham St Annes, Lancashire of the Association’s first convalescent and rest home, named Richard Peck House in honour of Air Marshal Sir Richard Peck, who had become President of the RAF Association in 1949. We continue to run this home today in conjunction with our sister charity, The RAF Benevolent Fund.

In 1962 the Association acquired Sussexdown in Storrington, West Sussex as part of a plan to have a residential wing as well as providing convalescent facilities. This home has been the subject of a major review and to secure a viable future will change its status from a nursing home to a residential care home and has now been transferred in a long-term lease to a not-for-profit organisation, namely Care South who will continue to provide long term residential care as well as short term respite and welfare breaks. The ex-RAF will receive nomination rights for applications made to the home.

During 1996 a second convalescent and respite care home opened in Rothbury, near Newcastle upon Tyne and in 1998 a third, Flowerdown House in Weston Super Mare, Flowerdown also has a Malcolm Appartment that can be utilised by families. These facilities continue to assist the RAF Family in association with ourselves and The RAF Benevolent Fund.

What We Do

We provide friendship and welfare support to serving and ex-serving members of the RAF and their families. Each year we help tens of thousands of people by offering a wide range of welfare services that include home and hospital visits from a volunteer field force; long-term residential care; short-term convalescent and respite breaks; sheltered housing’ resettlement advice and advice on war pensions.

Continuing to branch out in many directions, the Association is striving to diversify in its support to our members by enhancing the services we provide. New initiatives include the initiation of a new website entitled RAF-Comrade-Contact (http://www.raf-comrade-contact.co.uk/) which will reunite RAF personnel and encourages members to chat and submit stories and information through the website; opening of internet facilities on RAF bases, most recently at RAF Cottesmore called Mokarabia which hopes to encourage a safe and welcoming atmosphere for personnel to meet and talk to loved ones through the internet facilities provided.

The People We Help

There is a widely held perception that we only help airmen and airwomen who fought in World War II. Nothing could be further from the truth! As well as supporting the whole RAF Family we are increasingly supporting those people who are serving and have served in more recent conflicts in Korea, Borneo, the Falklands, the Gulf War, Northern Ireland, Bosnia, Kosovo and the latest conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan.

How We Fund Our Work

The RAF Association receives no Government funding so we are entirely dependant on the generosity of the public and our own members to raise the funds that will enable us to continue our work for the RAF family. The demand on our resources continues to grow.

117½ Loughborough Road, Leicester, LE4 5ND Phone: 0116 266 5224 Fax: 0116 266 5012
Registered Charity 226686 (England & Wales) - SC037673 (Scotland)    © Copyright The RAF Association 2012

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