==Early career==

[[File:P01152.001McCauleyDuntroon1919.jpg|left|thumb|260px|McCauley (second from left, second row) with fellow cadets in his graduation class at the Royal Military College, Duntroon, December 1919|alt=Group portrait of 38 men in military uniforms with peaked caps]]

Born in [[Sydney]] on 18&nbsp;March 1899, McCauley went to school at [[St Joseph's College, Hunters Hill]], before entering the [[Royal Military College, Duntroon]], in 1916. He graduated as a [[lieutenant]] in 1919, and spent the next four years in staff positions with the [[Australian Military Forces|Permanent Military Forces]], including a posting to Britain.<ref name="Dennis">Dennis et al., ''Oxford Military History of Australia'', p. 334</ref><ref name="AM">[http://airpower.airforce.gov.au/Contents/About-APDC/About-APDC/Office-of-Air-Force-History/Air-Marshals-of-the-RAAF/134/Air-Marshals.aspx Air Marshals] at [[Royal Australian Air Force]]. Retrieved on 10 April 2011.</ref> In January 1924, he transferred to the [[Royal Australian Air Force]] as a [[flying officer]], undertaking the pilots' course at [[RAAF Williams|RAAF Point Cook]], Victoria.<ref name="SWPA">Stephens, ''The RAAF in the Southwest Pacific Area'', pp. 23–26</ref><ref>Coulthard-Clark, ''The Third Brother'', p. 192</ref> He was nicknamed "Black Jack" in tribute to his dark looks, but a "shaky reputation" as an aviator also earned him the epithet "Crasher".<ref name="Going Solo pp.41-44">Stephens, ''Going Solo'', pp. 41–44</ref><ref name="Coulthard-Clark">Coulthard-Clark, ''The Third Brother'', p. 446</ref> On 10&nbsp;November 1925, he married Murielle Burke; the couple had a son and two daughters.<ref name="Draper">Draper, ''Who's Who in Australia 1983'', p. 546</ref> By 1926, McCauley was back in Britain, studying at the [[Old Royal Naval College|Royal Navy College, Greenwich]], and the RAF Armament and Gunnery School. He returned to Australia in 1928, and was assigned to the staff of RAAF Headquarters, [[Melbourne]].<ref name="Dennis"/><ref name="AM"/>

Promoted to [[squadron leader]], McCauley was posted a third time to Britain in 1933, graduating from [[RAF Staff College, Andover]], and qualifying as a [[flight instructor]] at [[Central Flying School]], [[RAF Wittering|Wittering]]. The following year he was attached to the [[Air Ministry]] in London.<ref name="Dennis"/><ref name="High Fliers">Stephens; Isaacs, ''High Fliers'', pp. 119–121</ref> Returning to Australia in 1935, McCauley joined the RAAF's Directorate of Training. That September, he initiated a requirement for all air bases to draw up plans for local defence. He also inaugurated development of operational-level policy for the Air Force, ordering units to draft doctrine relevant to their combat roles, such as "Striking" for [[No. 1 Squadron RAAF|No.&nbsp;1 Squadron]] and "Army Co-operation" for [[No. 3 Squadron RAAF|No.&nbsp;3 Squadron]]. Described as "a great leader, with a great deal of force", McCauley took over as Director of Training in 1936.<ref name="Coulthard-Clark"/> He gained his [[Bachelor of Commerce]] degree at [[University of Melbourne|Melbourne University]] the same year, having studied part-time since 1929.<ref name="Dennis"/> His tertiary qualification was unusual for a general duties officer in the pre-war Air Force, whose pilots were generally said to have "valued little beyond flying ability".<ref>Stephens, ''The Royal Australian Air Force'', p. 55</ref> By 1939 he had been raised to [[Wing Commander (rank)|wing commander]] and was commanding officer and chief flying instructor of the cadet wing at Point Cook.<ref name="Dennis"/><ref>{{cite news |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article12136917 |title=Teaching blind flying |newspaper=[[The Argus (Australia)|The Argus]]|location=Melbourne|date=8 June 1939 |accessdate=on 10 April 2011 |page=3 |publisher=[[National Library of Australia]]}}</ref>