Air Chief Marshal Sir Mike Wigston retired as Chief of the Air Staff in 2023, after a 37-year career in the Royal Air Force. Commissioned on a University Cadetship in 1986, studying Engineering Science at Oriel College Oxford, Sir Mike completed his pilot training in 1992 on the Tornado GR1. His frontline experience included: operational deployments enforcing the no-fly zones in Iraq; command of 12 (Bomber) Squadron, flying the Tornado GR4; and appointments in operational headquarters in Qatar, Iraq, and Afghanistan. Senior Royal Air Force positions included: Assistant Chief of the Air Staff, responsible for the strategic coherence of the Royal Air Force and oversight of the 2018 RAF100 centenary programme; and Deputy Commander Capability, delivering all aspects of Royal Air Force capability including people, equipment, infrastructure and training. As Chief of the Air Staff, Sir Mike set the strategic direction for the Royal Air Force, including oversight of global air and space operations. He led through the pandemic and over a period when the Royal Air Force was more engaged and busier than at any time in a generation: protecting the UK's skies and space; the air evacuations from Kabul and Sudan; the continuing fight against violent extremists in Iraq and Syria; and bolstering NATO and supporting Ukraine, in the face of Russian aggression. Sir Mike is a Visiting Professor at the Freeman Air and Space Power Institute, within King's College London's School of Security Studies.
