Records of the Air Members for Supply and Research

Records of the Air Members for Supply and Research relating to supplies for and research into military aviation. There are no records for the period 1932-1946.

Records of the Directorate of Works and Buildings are in AIR 59 and AIR 74. Reports of the Directorate of Research, etc are in AIR 60

Some further files of the Air Members for Supply and Research are in:

AVIA 8

Topics

Air Force

Research

When the Air Ministry was set up in 1918 it had no responsibility for the design and supply of aircraft which were the concern of the Ministry of Munitions. The Air Ministry was responsible for the supply of the rest of its equipment, for maintenance and for quartermaster's services, which were dealt with by the Controller General of Equipment, who had a seat on the Air Council.

A Directorate of Research was established in April 1919. In January 1920 responsibility for aircraft design and production was transferred from the Ministry of Munitions to the Air Ministry, where the Director General of Supply and Research, who had become a member of the Air Council during the previous year, became responsible for questions of research and supply relating to aircraft, airships, armaments and instruments and for aeronautical inspection. At the same time the post of Controller General of Equipment was reduced to the rank of director and placed under the Chief of Air Staff.

In June 1922 the Director General of Supply and Research was renamed 'Air Member for Supply and Research' and took over from the Chief of the Air Staff superintendence of the Directorate of Equipment. In April 1924 the Directorate of Research was renamed the Directorate of Research and Technical Development. It was, in fact, a joint directorate with separate directors of Scientific Research and Technical Development. The latter was not solely concerned with development, being responsible also for radio and armament research. In 1938 the directorate came under the control of a new Director General of Research and Development.

Earlier, in 1935, the Department of the Air Member for Supply and Research had been divided into two: equipment and stores then became the responsibility of the Air member for Supply and Organisation who also took over organisation and works and buildings from the Chief of Air Staff; at the same time scientific research and technical development, repair and maintenance became the concern of an Air Member for Research and Development. The expanding aircraft production programme after 1935 was at first the responsibility of the Air Member for Supply and Organisation, but in 1938 it passed to a civilian Director General of Production.

In 1944 responsibility for aeronautical inspection overseas was returned to the Air Ministry from the Ministry of Aircraft Production. This was extended in April 1946 to the inspection of all Royal Air Force units both at home and overseas. In 1947 the new post of Air Member for Technical Services was created to take over from the Air Member for Supply and Organisation his responsibilities for inspection, signals and radio; he also had responsibility for technical training. This post was abolished in 1951 and its duties reverted to their former departments.

In April 1963 the functions of the Directorate General of Works, under the air member for Supply and Organisation, passed to the Ministry of Public Building and Works.