Harv Smyth
Sir Harvey Smyth, is a senior British Royal Air Force officer, who has been Chief of the Air Staff since August 2025.
Previously, he served as Air Officer Commanding No. 1 Group, Director Space, in the Ministry of Defence, Air and Space Commander, Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff .
Early life and education
Smyth grew up in Northern Ireland during The Troubles. He was educated at Lurgan College, a non-denominational grammar school in Lurgan, County Armagh. He received a Sixth Form scholarship from the Royal Air Force, and was a member of the Army Cadets while at school.RAF career
Smyth joined the RAF in 1991, being commissioned as an acting pilot officer on 9 May. His rank was made substantive on 9 May 1992 and advanced to flying officer twelve months later, before he was posted to the Harrier Force in 1995. He was advanced to flight lieutenant on 9 November 1996. Smyth served with No. 1 Squadron as weapons instructor from 1999, and was promoted squadron leader on 1 July 2001. As a Harrier pilot, he flew operational missions over Bosnia, Kosovo, Serbia, Iraq and Afghanistan.Smyth served in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, for which he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Smyth was promoted to wing commander on 1 January 2006, and commanded No. 4 Squadron from 1 September 2008 to 31 March 2010.
Smyth was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2011 New Year Honours, was subsequently advanced to group captain, and appointed the United Kingdom's National Director of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II procurement programme in Washington, D.C. He was aide-de-camp to The Queen from 13 December 2013 to 30 July 2015.
Air officer
As an air commodore, Smyth was appointed Honorary Colonel of the 2nd Battalion, Army Cadet Force from 1 June 2016, and attended the Higher Command and Staff Course at the Defence Academy of the United Kingdom in 2017. Following a stint as the Combined Air and Space Operations Centre Director at the Al Udeid Air Base in Doha, Smyth was promoted air vice-marshal and appointed Air Officer Commanding No. 1 Group in July 2018. He was awarded the United States' Legion of Merit, and was granted permission to wear the award by the Queen on 5 April 2019.Smyth was appointed as the first Director Space in February 2020, and was succeeded in command of No. 1 Group by Air Vice-Marshal Allan Marshall. Reporting on Smyth's new post, Defense News wrote that "up to 25 civilians and military personnel involved in finance, policy and capabilities will support the new space directorate" in the Ministry of Defence's Main Building. It also wrote that No. 23 Squadron RAF had been reformed, as a space squadron, "responsible for day-to-day space command-and-control" and the remote control and manoeuvring of satellites. Smyth was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in the 2020 Birthday Honours. He was promoted to air marshal on 26 August 2022, on his appointment as Deputy Commander Operations. In December 2023, it was announced that he would be the next Deputy Chief of the Defence Staff ; he succeeded Sir Roland Walker in the role in March 2024.
In July 2025, the Ministry of Defence announced that Smyth be the next Chief of the Air Staff. He was promoted to air chief marshal and took up the post on 29 August 2025, in succession to Sir Richard Knighton, thereby becoming head of the RAF. He was appointed an aide-de-camp to the King on the same day.
He was advanced to Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 2026 New Year Honours.
Honours and decorations
| Ribbon | Description | Notes |
| Most Honourable Order of the Bath | Appointed Knight Commander in 2026; appointed Companion in 2020 | |
| Most Excellent Order of the British Empire | Appointed Officer in 2011 | |
| Distinguished Flying Cross | 2003 | |
| General Service Medal | With clasp | |
| NATO Medal for the Former Yugoslavia | With clasp | |
| NATO Medal for Kosovo | With clasp | |
| Iraq Medal | With rosette | |
| Operational Service Medal for Afghanistan | With clasp | |
| Operational Service Medal Iraq and Syria | ||
| Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal | 6 February 2002 | |
| Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal | 6 February 2012 | |
| Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal | 6 February 2022 | |
| King Charles III Coronation Medal | 6 May 2023 | |
| Royal Air Force Long Service and Good Conduct Medal | With 1 bar | |
| Officer of the Legion of Merit | Appointed in 2019 |