Tap Jones

Jones was born in Widnes, Lancashire (now Cheshire), the third of four sons of Lieutenant Colonel Albert Jones. His father was the borough medical officer. Jones spent time in India as a child, where his brothers nicknamed him "Doolally Tap" (meaning "slightly mad"). He retained the nickname "Tap" for the rest of his life. After grammar school, he studied medicine at Liverpool University, where he met his future wife. His three brothers all became doctors, like their father, but Jones soon switched to veterinary science. He was a keen sportsman, representing the university and Lancashire at rugby union. He also enjoyed shooting and the outdoor life, but he showed little interest in his studies. ==Royal Air Force==

Edward joined the RAF in 1935. He trained as a pilot at Netheravon and joined "B" Flight of No. 17 Squadron he was promoted to Acting Group Captain in May 1943, and joined the staff preparing tactical fighter operations for D-Day. His group, No. 83 Group, transferred to France shortly after D-Day, and moved eastwards with the front line. He stayed with the Group during the whole campaign in Northwest Europe as Group Captain Operations and being appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in December 1944, when he returned to operational duties, taking command of No. 121 Wing with its four squadrons of Typhoon fighters, based at Volkel in the Netherlands. He was appointed a Commander of the Dutch Order of Orange-Nassau in 1945. ==Post-war career==

Jones had a succession of mainly operational appointments in Europe after the War. Unusually, he never served a post in the Air Ministry or the Ministry of Defence. He served at the School of Land/Air Warfare and commanded No. 2 Wing, No. 1 Initial Training School at RAF Jurby following which he commanded No. 202 Advanced Flying School at RAF Valley, Anglesey. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1956. He served at the Headquarters of the Second Tactical Air Force and with the Air Task Force during the Suez Crisis. He took command of RAF Wyton in 1957, the home base of the RAF's strategic reconnaissance forces. He was promoted to acting air commodore in January 1959, and took command of the Central Reconnaissance Establishment. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1960. He commanded RAF forces in Germany from 1961 to 1963, then spent two years as Senior RAF Officer at the Imperial Defence College. He took command of air forces in Malta as Deputy Commander-in-Chief (Air) of Allied Forces in the Mediterranean in 1965. He was promoted to air marshal in November 1966, and took up the position of Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief Near East Air Force (including responsibility for British Forces Cyprus and Administration of the Sovereign Base Areas). He was advanced to Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in 1967, and retired from the RAF in August 1969. He continued to enjoy sport in his retirement. ==Family==

He married Margery Thurston Hatfield in 1938. His wife died in 2002. He was survived by their two sons. ==References==