Although Coningham was born in Australia, he was raised in New Zealand.

Educated Terrace School and Wellington College.

Joined the New Zealand forces on the outbreak of war in 1914. He first served with the Wellington Regiment in Samoa

Later he ended up at Gallipoli with the Canterbury Mounted Rifles. At some point in 1916, he contracted typhoid fever, invalided and was discharged from the NZEF.

Determined not to sit out the rest of the war, after he had sufficiently recovered, he traveled to England and joined the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) late in 1916.

Flight Commander with 32 Squadron, RFC in 1917.

Officer Commanding (OC) of 92 Squadron, RFC, in 1918.

The actual number of enemy aircraft he shot down in WWI differs depending on the source. According to Haigh & Polaschek, it was only 9 confirmed victories; according to the Aerodrome.com website, it was 14; and according to the RAF Web biography, it was 19. The Aerodrome.com website gives a detailed list of his victories.

Air Officer Commanding (AOC) of 4 Group, Bomber Command, Royal Air Force (RAF) 1939-41.

AOC 1 Tactical Air Force (TAF), North Africa, Sicily, Italy, 1943-44.

Coningham appeared on the cover of Time Magazine on 14 August 1944.

AOC 2 TAF, invasion of northwest Europe and Germany, 1944-45.

Commander-in-Chief of Flying Training Command, RAF, 1945-47.

While en route to Bermuda on board a British South American Airways flight, the aircraft on which Coningham was travelling, BSAAC "Star Tiger", disappeared in the area known as the Bermuda Triangle. On board the "Star Tiger" was fellow NZer Brian McMillan (see separate Cenotaph record for more information).

Date of death may have been 29 January or 30 January 1948.

Haigh & Polaschek give Coningham's birthdate as 19 January 1895. Other sources give his birthdate as 11 March 1895. AWMM