 Cunningham relinquished his RAF commission officially on 1 August 1946, retaining the rank of group captain, but remaining in the re-constituted Auxiliary Air Force with the permanent rank of squadron leader.He reformed his old auxiliary squadron at the request of the Air Ministry in 1946 but took no active part in its running, serving as a reserve officer in the Royal Auxiliary Air Force until his retirement as a reserve squadron leader on 1 August 1967.At de Havilland he was awarded a salary of £1,500 in a company that had expanded enormously during the war.