MOD Service Records for a Multi-Service Military Man

[Old Mother Reilly]

I am looking into the history of a man whose Medal Index Card (WW1) bears a Territorial number, then a Royal Engineers number, followed by an RAF number.  He remained in service post-war and was still in the RAF Regiment in 1925.  Things get a bit cloudy then as he may have transferred to MOD Police or back to the Army.  He was certainly posted abroad.  By the time the 1939 Register was compiled he was out of the services BUT was Sergeant Quartermaster with an Anti-Aircraft battery (Royal Artillery).  My question is, who will have his service records?  Will it be the Army or RAF - or both?

[GrahamSimons]

Neither. It'll be the Ministry of Defence: see https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/requests-for-personal-data-and-service-records

[Old Mother Reilly]

Sorry if I was unclear.  The MOD require that you fill in a general enquiry form and one other for either the Army or the RAF.  (One of the forms also asks about Territorial service.)  My question is which form/s to fill in, as the man in question appears to have served in both the Army and the RAF?

[GrahamSimons]

I'd go with both, with a covering letter giving all the information that you have that might help trace him.

[Old Mother Reilly]

Thank you, GrahamSimons. 

I'd be interested to hear from anyone else who has experience of looking for service records for a person who served in more than one branch of the military, in the interests of not wasting peoples time - or my money on unnecessary searches!