Calvin George Bailey, MBE (born 1977–1978) is a British Labour Party politician and former Royal Air Force officer, who has been Member of Parliament (MP) for Leyton and Wanstead since 2024.
Early life and education
editMilitary service
editOn 3 October 1999, Bailey was commissioned in the Royal Air Force with the rank of pilot officer.[2] He was promoted to flying officer on 3 April 2000,[3] and to flight lieutenant on 3 April 2001.[4]
In 2013, he was awarded the Air Medal by the President of the United States "in recognition of meritorious, gallant and distinguished services during coalition operations in Afghanistan".[5] In February 2015, he was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in the field during the period 1 October 2013 to 30 June 2014".[6] He received the Royal Air Force Long Service and Good Conduct Medal in 2018.
Bailey was promoted to wing commander on 30 August 2016.[7] In 2020, he was officer commanding No. 903 Expeditionary Air Wing as part of Operation Shader.[8] In May 2021, he became officer commanding No. LXX (70) Squadron RAF which operated the Airbus A400M Atlas.[9] He was the detachment commander of the deployed Air Mobility Forces during Operation Pitting, the UK's military operation to evacuate British nationals and eligible Afghans from Kabul Airport, Afghanistan.[10] It was his decision to double the number of passengers taken per flight, as the risk of overloading the aircraft was outweighing by the risk to the lives of those who would have been left behind.[11]
Political career
editOn 4 July 2024, Bailey was elected Member of Parliament (MP) for Leyton and Wanstead.[12]
References
edit- ^ Adu, Aletha (3 June 2024). "'I'm compelled by service': ex-military Labour candidate Calvin Bailey". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
- ^ "No. 55776". The London Gazette (Supplement). 29 February 2000. p. 2278.
- ^ "No. 55848". The London Gazette (Supplement). 16 May 2000. p. 5368.
- ^ "No. 55848". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 May 2001. p. 5800.
- ^ "No. 60456". The London Gazette (Supplement). 22 March 2013. p. 5741.
- ^ "No. 61155". The London Gazette (Supplement). 26 February 2015. pp. 3472–3473.
- ^ "No. 61829". The London Gazette (Supplement). 24 January 2017. p. 1415.
- ^ "Reflections on Six Years of Operation SHADER". raf.mod.uk. Royal Air Force. 1 September 2020. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
- ^ "New Officer Commanding for LXX Squadron". raf.mod.uk. Royal Air Force. 18 May 2021. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
- ^ "Recording: The RAF Experience During Op PITTING". rusi.org. The Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
Wing Commander Calvin Bailey, the Detachment Commander of the deployed Air Mobility Forces as part of Op PITTING overseeing the flying operations
- ^ Steafel, Eleanor (2 July 2023). "'If we get overrun now, I'm dead': the RAF aviators scarred by the Kabul airlift". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 4 July 2023. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
- ^ "Leyton and Wanstead - General election results 2024". BBC News. Retrieved 5 July 2024.