Air Marshal William Sholto Douglas (1893 - 1969) was educated at Tonbridge and Oxford. He joined the Army in 1914. He transferred to the Royal Flying Corps as an observer, then became a pilot. Over the Western Front he flew fighters and by 1918 had commanded two squadrons. Between the wars he was a Royal Air Force instructor and was interested in flying training.

In 1936 Douglas moved to the Air Ministry and by early 1940 he was Deputy Chief of the Air Staff. He worked closely with Hugh Dowding during the Battle of Britain. Douglas believed that fighters should operate in large numbers and became embroiled in the Big Wing controversy with Dowding, whom he replaced as head of RAF Fighter Command in November 1940.

Douglas later served in many roles, planning fighter sweeps over France and working in the Middle-East and RAF Coastal Command. He was a potential Chief of the Air Staff, but instead went to Germany after World War II, where he became Military Governor of the British Zone before resigning in 1947.

He was granted a peerage and became chairman of British European Airways until 1964.