Career
Black was commissioned into the Royal Air Force in 1950. He became officer commanding Number. 111 Squadron Royal Air Force in 1964, Leader of the Lightning Display Team in 1965 and Commander of the Lightning Operational Conversion Unit in 1967.
He went on to be officer commanding Number.
After that he became Commander of the Harrier Field Force at Royal Air Force Germany in 1972, Group Captain Operations at Headquarters Number. 38 Group Royal Air Force in 1974 and Group Captain Operations at Headquarters Number.
11 Group Royal Air Force in 1978. In February 1983 Black was appointed as the 18th Commandant of the Royal Observer Corps, an appointment he held until September 1984.
Between 1987 and 1992 Black was the senior defence advisor at Ferranti Defence Systems in Edinburgh, moving to an appointment as Director of Military Business for Marconi Electronic Business Systems from 1993 until 1999.
He then spent a year as the Defence Advisor to the Sensor Division of British Aerospace, transferring to the BAe Systems Avionics division in 2000. Since 2000 Black has been the Defence Consultant for Selex. Black was elected a Fellow of the Institute of Management in 1977 and a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautics Society in 2000.
