On 21 January 1963 Palin joined the Royal Air Force, being granted a permanent commission as a flying officer, with seniority from 1 November 1961. He was promoted to
flight lieutenant on 1 May 1964, and to
squadron leader on 1 January 1970. He served as
Officer Commanding No. 43 Squadron. On 3 June 1972 he was awarded the
Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air. On 1 January 1975 he was promoted to
wing commander. In the
1979 New Year Honours Palin was made an
Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE). He was promoted to
group captain on 1 January 1980. He then served as
Aide-de-Camp to The Queen from 11 December 1981 until 10 December 1982. He was promoted to
air commodore on 1 January 1984, and to
air vice marshal on 1 January 1986. He served as
Air Officer Commanding,
No. 11 Group from July 1987 until March 1989, and was promoted to
air marshal on 14 April to serve as Commander-in-Chief
RAF Germany and
Second Tactical Air Force. In the
1989 Birthday Honours he was made a
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath (KCB). Palin then served as
Air Member for Personnel from 1991 ==References==