The Chief of the Air Staff[1] (Swedish: Chefen för flygstaben, CFS, or Flygstabschef) is the professional head of the Swedish Air Staff. The post was created in 1936 with lieutenant colonel Bengt Nordenskiöld as the first incumbent. The post disappeared in 1994 and was reintroduced in 2019 when the new Air Staff was established.
| Chief of the Air Staff | |
|---|---|
| Chefen för flygstaben | |
 | |
Incumbent Colonel Dennis Hedström since 1 June 2019 | |
| Ministry of Defence | |
| Type | Chief of the Air Staff |
| Abbreviation | CFS |
| Reports to | Chief of Air Force |
| Seat | Banérgatan 62-64, Stockholm (1943–1981) Lidingövägen 24, Stockholm (1981–1994) Ärna Air Base (2019–) |
| Term length | No fixed term |
| Formation | 1936, 2019 |
| First holder | Lieutenant Colonel Bengt Nordenskiöld (1936) Colonel Anders Persson (2019) |
| Final holder | Major General Bernt Östh |
| Abolished | 1994 |
| Unofficial names | Flygstabschef |
| Deputy | Vice Chief of the Air Staff (1943–1966) |
History
The Chief of the Air Staff was from 1936 to 1994 the second most senior member of the Swedish Air Force after the Chief of the Air Force and headed the Air Staff. The position was initially held by a colonel (1937–1943) and later by a major general (1943–1994). When the Air Staff was disbanded in 1994, the office was eliminated. In 2019, the Air Staff was re-established and a Chief of the Air Staff was appointed again, this time held by a colonel.
Between 1943 and 1966, the post of Vice Chief of the Air Staff existed. According to the rules of procedure for the Air Staff issued on 1 March 1962, the Vice Chief of the Air Staff (and the Inspector of the Control and Reporting System and the Inspector of the Flying Safety Service) were given responsibility for various departments and other organizational units within the Air Staff's areas of activity so that these executives in effect subsequently served as section heads.[2]
Chiefs of the Air Staff
Chiefs of the Air Staff (1936–1994)
| No. | Portrait | Chief of the Air Staff | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Chief of the Air Force | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colonel[a] Bengt Nordenskiöld (1891–1983) | 1 July 1936 | 1942 | 5–6 years | Torsten Friis | [3] | |
| 2 | Major general[b] Axel Ljungdahl (1897–1995) | 1942 | 1947 | 4–5 years | Bengt Nordenskiöld | - | |
| 3 | Major general[c] Gustaf Adolf Westring (1900–1963) | 1947 | 1957 | 9–10 years | Bengt Nordenskiöld Axel Ljungdahl | - | |
| 4 | Major general Lennart Peyron (1909–1981) | 1957 | 1960 | 2–3 years | Axel Ljungdahl | - | |
| 5 | Major general Stig Norén (1908–1996) | 1960 | 1964 | 3–4 years | Torsten Rapp Lage Thunberg | - | |
| 6 | Major general Gösta Odqvist (1913–2005) | 1964 | 1966 | 1–2 years | Lage Thunberg | - | |
| 7 | Major general Claës-Henrik Nordenskiöld (1917–2003) | 1966 | 1970 | 3–4 years | Lage Thunberg Stig Norén | - | |
| 8 | Major general Dick Stenberg (1921–2004) | 1 April 1970 | 30 September 1973 | 3 years, 182 days | Stig Norén | [4] | |
| 9 | Major general Hans Neij (1921–1985) | 1973 | 30 September 1978 | 4–5 years | Dick Stenberg | [5] | |
| 10 | Major general Erik Nygren (1923–1999) | 1 October 1978 | 30 September 1980 | 1 year, 365 days | Dick Stenberg | [5] | |
| 11 | Major general Evert Båge (1925–2021) | 1 October 1980 | 30 September 1984 | 3 years, 182 days | Dick Stenberg Sven-Olof Olson | [5][6] | |
| 12 | Major general Bengt Lönnbom (born 1933) | 1 April 1984 | 1987 | 2–3 years | Sven-Olof Olson | [6] | |
| 13 | Major general Bert Stenfeldt (1933–2023) | 1987 | 30 September 1990 | 2–3 years | Sven-Olof Olson Lars-Erik Englund | [7] | |
| 14 | Major general Bernt Östh (born 1936) | 1 October 1990 | 1994 | 3–4 years | Lars-Erik Englund | [8] | |
| - | Senior colonel Kjell Nilsson (1943–2018) Acting | 1993 | 1994 | 0–1 years | Lars-Erik Englund | - |
Chiefs of the Air Staff (2019–present)
| No. | Portrait | Chief of the Air Staff | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Chief of Air Force | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colonel Anders Persson (born 1968) | 1 January 2019 | 30 September 2019 | 272 days | Mats Helgesson | [9] | |
| 2 | Colonel Anders Jönsson (born ?) | 1 October 2019 | 31 May 2020 | 243 days | Carl-Johan Edström | [10][11] | |
| 3 | Colonel Dennis Hedström (born ?) | 1 June 2020 | 31 August 2025 | 3 years, 365 days | Carl-Johan Edström Jonas Wikman | [12][13] |
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Vice Chiefs of the Air Staff
| No. | Portrait | Vice/Deputy Chief of the Air Staff | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Chiefs of the Air Staff | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colonel Karl Silfverberg (1899–1978) | 1943 | 1948 | 4–5 years | Axel Ljungdahl Gustaf Adolf Westring | - | |
| 2 | Colonel Torsten Rapp (1905–1993) | 1 October 1948 | 1951 | 2–3 years | Gustaf Adolf Westring | [14] | |
| 3 | Colonel Greger Falk (1910–1990) | 1951 | 1953 | 1–2 years | Gustaf Adolf Westring | - | |
| 4 | Colonel Stig Möller (1911–2002) | 1953 | 1959 | 5–6 years | Gustaf Adolf Westring Lennart Peyron | - | |
| 5 | Colonel Gösta Odqvist (1913–2005) | 1959 | 1961 | 1–2 years | Lennart Peyron Stig Norén | - | |
| 6 | Colonel Nils Personne (1918–2013) | 1961 | 1966 | 4–5 years | Stig Norén Gösta Odqvist | - |
Footnotes
References
- Böhme, Klaus-Richard (1990–1991). "Bengt G Nordenskiöld". Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (in Swedish). Vol. 27. National Archives of Sweden. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
- Gullberg, Ingvar E. (1977). Svensk-engelsk fackordbok för näringsliv, förvaltning, undervisning och forskning [A Swedish-English dictionary of technical terms used in business, industry, administration, education and research] (in Swedish) (2nd ed.). Stockholm: Norstedt. ISBN 91-1-775052-0. SELIBR 8345587.
- Norén, Stig (1995–1997). "B Torsten Rapp". Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (in Swedish). Vol. 29. National Archives of Sweden. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
- Scheiderbauer, Sven (2007–2011). "Dick Stenberg". Svenskt biografiskt lexikon (in Swedish). Vol. 33. National Archives of Sweden. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
- Wennerholm, Bertil, ed. (2015). Så kom JAS-projektet till: vittnesseminarium kring beslutsprocessen om JAS 39 1979-1983 : 11 november 2013. Forskningsprojektet Försvaret och det kalla kriget (FOKK), 1652-5388 ; 45 (in Swedish). Stockholm: Forskningsprojektet Försvaret och det kalla kriget (FoKK. ISBN 9789198049886. SELIBR 18205009.
Web
- Ullman, Angela (2 October 2019). "Ny flygvapenchef tog befälet" (in Swedish). Swedish Armed Forces. Retrieved 18 August 2020.