The real turning point in David Brunt 's career came in 1916 when he enlisted in the Royal Engineers (meteorological section) . In the war years he did important work related to atmos- pherical conditions at low levels in chemical warfare and at higher levels when he became meteorologist to the Air Force . He was often mentioned in despatches . He became an expert forecaster and after demobilisation he accepted an invitation to enter the Meteorological Office which in 1921 became the Air Ministry . He did not allow his official duties to interrupt his personal research, and he accepted Sir Napier Shaw 's invitation to join him in his duties as part-time professor of meteorology at the Imperial College of Science and Technology , London . This led, after the retirement of Sir Napier Shaw , to Brunt becoming the first full-time professor of meteorology in Britain . He held the chair from 1934 to 1952 and two years later he was elected a Fellow of the college.

During his academic career he wrote 58 scientific papers and five important books — Combination of observations ( 1917 ), Meteorology ( 1928 ), Physical and dynamical meteorology ( 1934 ), Weather science for everybody ( 1936 ) and Weather study ( 1942 ). He was president of the Royal Meteorological Society , 1942-44 , and received both their Buchan prize and Symons gold medal . He was president of the Physical Society , 1945-47 . He had many interests closely related to meteorology in its wider application. He was chairman of the British Gliding Association , 1935-46 , and chairman of the Electricity Supply Research Council , 1952-59 . He was elected F.R.S. in 1939 , and in 1944 was awarded its royal medal . He rendered great service to this famous scientific society as its very efficient secretary 1948-57 , and as vice-president 1949-57 . He received a knighthood in 1949 and K.B.E. in 1959 .

Sir David Brunt was undoubtedly the most distinguished meteorologist in Britain in the first half of the twentieth century when the subject was changing from being almost a descriptive science to becoming a science increasingly based on mathematical concepts, and at the same time changing from a reliance on ground based observations to data from the upper atmosphere. He received the Sc.D. degree (Cambridge) in 1940 , and later an honorary D.Sc. degree from the University of London in 1960 , and a similar distinction from the University of Wales in 1951 . He d. 5 Feb. 1965 .