Dalton was commissioned as a University Cadet on 16 September 1973, before being regraded as a
pilot officer following graduation on 15 July 1976. Dalton was promoted to
flying officer on 15 January 1977, and then
flight lieutenant on 15 October 1977. He was posted to
No. 41 Squadron at
RAF Coltishall flying the
SEPECAT Jaguar on three tours, operating from the UK and
Germany in both ground attack and tactical reconnaissance roles. and awarded a
Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air in the
1987 New Year Honours. of
RAF Germany in the late 70s, a type flown by Dalton on three tours in the UK and Germany Following the Advanced Staff Course, training to fly the
Panavia Tornado, Dalton commanded
XIII Squadron. and in 1997 took command of
RAF Coltishall and the RAF's Jaguar force. he was appointed Head of the
Eurofighter Typhoon Programme Assurance Group at the
Ministry of Defence. Dalton was appointed Director Information Superiority. He was appointed a
Companion of the Order of the Bath in the
2006 New Year Honours. On 1 May 2007, Dalton was promoted to
air marshal, and appointed Deputy Commander-in-Chief Personnel at
Air Command and
Air Member for Personnel. In the
2009 Birthday Honours he was appointed
Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath. He was promoted to
air chief marshal and appointed
Chief of the Air Staff, and
Air Aide-de-Camp to
Queen Elizabeth II, on 31 July 2009. Dalton was appointed
Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath in the
2012 Birthday Honours. In light of the
Libyan conflict, Dalton warned that there "was a heck of a lot to be doing" and that the military was nearing the point of "exhaustion". On 24 June 2011
The Daily Telegraph confirmed that Dalton, in common with the
First Sea Lord and the
Chief of the General Staff, would lose his position on the
Defence Board, the highest non-ministerial Ministry of Defence committee, which makes decisions on all aspect of military policy. He retired in July 2013. Dalton was appointed as Honorary Air Commodore to the RAF Regiment on 21 September 2013, in succession to Air Chief Marshal
Sir Richard Johns. He became Vice President of the
Yorkshire Air Museum in 2009 before taking up the post of President in 2015. ==Lieutenant Governor of Jersey==