 Hancock 's initial postings after qualifying as a pilot were to Nos. 1 and 3 Squadrons . It was , however , common practice for Duntroon graduates to be given staff positions in the Air Force because of their training in administration , and Hancock was no exception . He spent most of the 1930s in a succession of posts at RAAF Headquarters in Melbourne . From 1931 to 1935 , he served as Deputy Director of Operations and Intelligence . He married Joan Butler on 26 May 1932 ; the couple had two sons and a daughter . By 1935 , Hancock had been promoted to flight lieutenant and appointed Staff Officer to the Chief of the Air Staff . In 1937 he was posted to Britain to attend the RAF Staff College , Andover . Like other Commonwealth air forces , the RAAF maintained close technological and educational ties with the Royal Air Force , and Hancock was one of 30 Australian officers to pass through Andover before the outbreak of World War II . Returning to Australia in 1938 , he was promoted to squadron leader and became Director of Works and Buildings , commonly known as " Works and Bricks " , at RAAF Headquarters . 
