Australian air force officer
Air Vice Marshal
Stephen Leslie Meredith
,
AO
,
DSM
is a retired senior officer of the
Royal Australian Air Force
(RAAF). He joined the RAAF as a
navigator
in 1986. He has commanded
No. 6 Squadron RAAF
(2006?08),
No. 42 Wing RAAF
(2008?10), the
Aerospace Operational Support Group RAAF
(2014?16) and the
Combined Air Operations Centre
(2017), and has served on operations in the
Gulf War
,
War in Afghanistan
and in the
International military intervention against ISIL
. He served as
Head Force Integration
from 2017 to 2019, before being appointed
Deputy Chief of Air Force
from July 2019 to January 2023.
RAAF career
[
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]
Meredith joined the
Royal Australian Air Force
(RAAF) as an
officer cadet
in 1986 and trained as a
navigator
.
[1]
On the completion of his training, he was posted to
No. 37 Squadron RAAF
at
RAAF Base Richmond
, serving aboard
Lockheed C-130 Hercules
transport aircraft.
[2]
[3]
In December 1990, Meredith was among a detachment from No. 37 Squadron deployed in support of
Australia's contribution to the Gulf War
.
[4]
Following his return to Australia in 1991, he completed a conversion course on the
General Dynamics F-111 Aardvark
and was posted to
No. 1 Squadron RAAF
at
RAAF Base Amberley
.
[2]
[3]
[5]
Meredith was posted as an instructor navigator in
No. 6 Squadron RAAF
from 1995 and, on promotion to
squadron leader
, was assigned to the
Defence Material Organisation
in 1998. He returned to No. 6 Squadron as
executive officer
in 1999, graduated from the
Australian Command and Staff College
in 2002, and was posted as staff officer to the
Deputy Chief of Air Force
. Promoted
wing commander
, he was made Deputy Director of Combat Enablers in the Capability Development Group in 2003. He was next appointed executive officer of
No. 82 Wing RAAF
in January 2006, before assuming command of No. 6 Squadron from December that year. While in command of No. 6 Squadron, Meredith oversaw the retirement of the F-111G.
[2]
[3]
Promoted
group captain
in 2008, Meredith was appointed Officer Commanding
No. 42 Wing RAAF
. In this role, he was part of the team that introduced the
Boeing E-7A Wedgetail
into Australian service. Following wing command, Meredith deployed to the Middle East as a Battle Director in the
Combined Air Operations Centre
as part of
Operation Slipper
, Australia's contribution to the
War in Afghanistan
. He returned to Australia as chief of staff to the
Chief of the Defence Force
, completed the Defence and Strategic Studies Course at the
Australian Defence College
in 2013 and, promoted
air commodore
, was appointed
Deputy Air Commander
. He was then posted as Commander
Aerospace Operational Support Group RAAF
in December 2014 and as the first commander of the
Air Warfare Centre RAAF
from January 2016.
[2]
[3]
In recognition of his "inspirational leadership, remarkable managerial skill, and extraordinary systems thinking" in these roles, Meredith was appointed a
Member of the Order of Australia
in the
2016 Australia Day Honours
.
[6]
In January 2017, Meredith redeployed to the Middle East as Director of the Combined Air Operations Centre. His "distinguished leadership" during the six-month posting was recognised with the award of the
Distinguished Service Medal
in the
2018 Queen's Birthday Honours
.
[7]
Following his return to Australia, Meredith was promoted
air vice marshal
and appointed Head Force Integration in the
Vice Chief of the Defence Force Group
in December 2017. After eighteen months in this joint service role, he succeeded Air Vice Marshal
Gavin Turnbull
as Deputy Chief of Air Force on 1 July 2019.
[2]
[3]
Meredith relinquished the position in January 2023 and, for his "distinguished service" in this and previous posts, he was promoted to
Officer of the Order of Australia
in the
2023 King's Birthday Honours
. The citation for the award described Meredith as an "an Aviator of rare skill and ability" who had "been masterful at managing governance across the Royal Australian Air Force".
[8]
Personal life
[
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]
Meredith is married to Sue and has two children. He is an enthusiastic fisherman and a fan of the
Brumbies
rugby team.
[2]
[3]
References
[
edit
]