Greger Falk
Major General Kurt Bengt Greger Fredrik H:son Falk (13 March 1910 – 20 January 1990) was a Swedish Air Force officer. His senior commands include positions as the Inspector of the Control and Reporting System (1953–1957), the Vice Chief of the Air Staff (1951–1953), commanding officer of the Fourth Air Group (1957–1961), as well as Vice Chief and then Chief of the Royal Swedish Air Force Materiel Administration (1961–1967).
Greger Falk | |
|---|---|
Falk as colonel (circa 1953–57) | |
| Birth name | Kurt Bengt Greger Fredrik H:son Falk |
| Born | 13 March 1910 Visby, Sweden |
| Died | 20 January 1990 (aged 76) Djursholm, Sweden |
| Allegiance | Sweden |
| Service/ | Swedish Air Force |
| Years of service | 1931–1967 |
| Rank | Major General |
| Commands held |
|
| Battles/wars | Winter War |
Early life edit
Falk was born on 13 March 1910 in Visby, Sweden, the son of Major General Hjalmar Falk and his wife Kerstin Söderberg.[1] He had one sister, Sonja Anne-Louise (born 13 August 1911).[2] He passed studentexamen in Stockholm in 1928.[1]
Career edit
Falk was commissioned as an officer in 1931 and was assigned as a second lieutenant to Norrbotten Regiment in Boden. He transferred to the Swedish Air Force where he became a lieutenant in 1936, and captain in 1940.[1] During 1939–1940, Falk participated as a volunteer soldier in the Swedish Voluntary Air Force (F 19) at the Salla Front in Finland during the Winter War.[3] Falk attended the Royal Swedish Air Force Staff College in 1943,[1] and served as teacher in the art of air warfare at the Royal Swedish Army Staff College in 1943,[4] and was promoted to major in 1944.[1] He was appointed head of the Organisation Department in the Air Staff in 1944.[5]
Falk was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1947 and was appointed commanding officer of the Södermanland Wing in 1949. He was promoted to colonel in 1951 and served as Vice Chief of the Air Staff in 1951. Falk was appointed Inspector of the Control and Reporting System of the Swedish Air Force in 1953 and attended the Swedish National Defence College in 1954. He was commanding officer of the Fourth Air Group (Fjärde flygeskadern, E 4) in 1957, attended the Swedish National Defence College in 1959, and was promoted to major general in 1959. He served as Vice Chief of the Royal Swedish Air Force Materiel Administration from 1961 to 1963 and as chief of the same from 1963 to 1967.[1] In his capacity as Vice Chief and Chief of the Royal Swedish Air Force Materiel Administration, he was a member of the Administration Board of the Swedish Armed Forces from 1961 to 1967.[6][7][8]
Falk served as military adviser at the Instituut voor Tuinbouwtechniek, the Netherlands from 1967, as board member of the Swedish National Defence Research Institute and National Aeronautical Research Institute from 1961 to 1967.[1] After Falk retired from the air force, he worked as a consultant for Standard Radio & Telefon AB from 1967 to 1975.[9]
Personal life edit
In 1936, Falk married Margit Holmberg (1917–1994), the daughter of factory manager Harald Holmberg and Annie (née Wersén). They had two children: Monica (born 1938) and Ingela (born 1942).[1]
Death edit
Falk died on 20 January 1990 in Djursholm, Sweden, and was interred at Djursholm Cemetery in Djursholm.[10]
Dates of rank edit
- 1931 – Second lieutenant
- 1936 – Lieutenant
- 1940 – Captain
- 1944 – Major
- 1947 – Lieutenant colonel
- 1951 – Colonel
- 1959 – Major general
Awards and decorations edit
Swedish edit
- Commander 1st Class of the Order of the Sword (6 June 1957)[11]
- Commander of the Order of the Sword (5 June 1954)[12]
- Knight of the Order of the Sword (1946)[13]
- Knight of the Order of Vasa (1948)[14]
Foreign edit
- Knight of the Order of the Dannebrog[1]
- 4th Class of the Order of the Cross of Liberty with swords[1]
Honours edit
- Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of War Sciences (1952)[1]
Bibliography edit
- Falk, Greger; Bruun, C-E; Temmes, K J (1988). En krönika om F19: den svenska frivilliga flygflottiljen i Finland under vinterkriget 1939-1940. Flyghistorisk revy, 0345-3413 ; 33 (in Swedish). Stockholm: Svensk flyghistorisk fören. SELIBR 8212840.
References edit
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Davidsson, Åke, ed. (1968). Vem är vem? [Who's Who?] (in Swedish). Vol. 5, Norrland : supplement, register (2nd ed.). Stockholm: Vem är vem bokförlag. p. 626. SELIBR 53513.
- ^ Sydow, Waldemar von, ed. (1935). Publicistklubbens porträttmatrikel 1936: med biografiska uppgifter om publicistklubbens medlemmar ; på uppdrag av Publicistklubbens styrelse (in Swedish). Stockholm: Publicistklubben. p. 157. SELIBR 314977.
- ^ "Kurt Bengt Greger Fredrik Hjalmarsson - Falk". www.gotlandsforsvarshistoria.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 14 September 2023.
- ^ Sveriges statskalender för året 1945 (PDF) (in Swedish). Uppsala: Fritzes offentliga publikationer. 1945. p. 380.
- ^ Sveriges statskalender för året 1945 (PDF) (in Swedish). Uppsala: Fritzes offentliga publikationer. 1945. p. 117.
- ^ Kungl. Maj:ts instruktion för försvarets förvaltningsdirektion, SFS 1959:546, p. 1388.
- ^ Kungl. Maj:ts kungörelse om ändrad lydelse av 7 och 8 §§ instruktionen den 11 december 1959 (nr 546) för försvarets förvaltningsdirektion, SFS 1963:291, p. 636.
- ^ Kungl. Maj:ts instruktion för försvarets förvaltningsdirektion, SFS 1965:832, p. 1996.
- ^ Vem är det: svensk biografisk handbok. 1985 [Who is it: Swedish biographical handbook. 1985] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Norstedt. 1984. p. 321. ISBN 91-1-843222-0. SELIBR 3681527.
- ^ "Falk, Kurt Bengt Greger* Fredrik". www.svenskagravar.se (in Swedish). Retrieved 14 September 2023.
- ^ Sveriges statskalender för skottåret 1968 (PDF) (in Swedish). Uppsala: Fritzes offentliga publikationer. 1968. p. 95.
- ^ Sveriges statskalender för skottåret 1956 (PDF) (in Swedish). Uppsala: Fritzes offentliga publikationer. 1956. p. 12.
- ^ Sveriges statskalender för året 1950 (PDF) (in Swedish). Stockholm: Fritzes offentliga publikationer. 1950. p. 22.
- ^ Sveriges statskalender för året 1950 (PDF) (in Swedish). Stockholm: Fritzes offentliga publikationer. 1950. p. 171.