Patrick Hine

Background

Hine was born near Southampton, and was educated at Peter Symonds School in Winchester.

Career

Most notably, he was joint commander of all British forces during the Gulf War. He entered the Royal Air Force on a National Service commission as an acting pilot officer on probation on 22 March 1951, and was regraded as a pilot officer on 6 February 1952. He was commissioned as a pilot officer on 14 October 1952 (seniority from 6 February 1952), and promoted to flying officer on 20 March 1953.

He was appointed to a permanent commission in the Royal Air Force on 1 October 1953, in the rank of flying officer

As a junior officer, Hine flew the Gloster Meteor and then the Hawker Hunter. He was promoted to flight lieutenant on 20 September 1956.

From 1957 to 1959 he performed on the Black Arrows, then the Royal Air Force’s aerobatics display team He was awarded the Queen"s Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air in the 1960 Birthday Honours List.

He was promoted to squadron leader on 1 July 1962 and appointed Officer Commanding Number.

92 Squadron. On 1 January 1968, he was promoted to wing commander, and was promoted to group captain on 1 January 1972. On 1 July 1975, he was promoted to air commodore and was appointed Director of Public Relations for the Royal Air Force. He was made Senior Air Staff Officer at Headquarters Royal Air Force Germany in 1979.

He was promoted to air vice-marshal on 1 January 1980 and was appointed Assistant Chief of the Air Staff (Policy) at the Ministry of Defence the next year.

He became Commander of the Second Tactical Air Force and Commander-in-Chief of Royal Air Force Germany in 1983. Promoted to acting air marshal by June 1983, he was knighted with a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 1983 Birthday Honours List. Promoted to air chief marshal on 1 July 1985, he became Vice-Chief of the Defence Staff that year.

In late 1987 he was appointed Air Member for Supply and Organisation.

Hine was appointed Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Strike Command in 1988. He was Joint Commander of all British forces during the Gulf War.

Hine retired from the Royal Air Force in 1991 and subsequently became a military advisor to British Aerospace from which he retired in April 1999. Two years earlier, in 1997, Hine was made the King of Arms of the Order of the British Empire, making him the herald to the Order of the British Empire.

His home course is Brokenhurst Manor Golf Club in Hampshire, where he is the Club President.

Achievements

• A distinguished Amateur golfer, he was an England Boy International in 1948 and 1949 and won the Hampshire County Championship, the Carris Trophy and the Brabazon Trophy in 1949. He was promoted to a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in the 1989 New Year Honours List. He was appointed a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire in the 1991 Birthday Honours List.

Membership

He became a member of The Royal and Ancient Golf Club in 1995 and in May 2010 he was nominated to be the Captain of the R&A for the year 2010-2011.