Arthur Francis Turner (known as "Attie") was born 23 June 1912, the son of Engineer Rear-Admiral A W J Turner and Mrs A M Turner (née Lochrane). He was educated at Stonyhurst College and joined the Royal Navy in 1931, completing a four year course at the Royal Naval Engineering College (RNEC) at Keyham, Devonport.

During the Second World War Turner travelled to Halifax, Nova Scotia, to commission and bring back HMS Newark to the United Kingdom; then spent a period at the RNEC and at HMS Condor (the Royal Naval Air Station at Arbroath), before joining the aircraft carrier Indomitable in 1944 as air engineer officer. Indomitable was the carrier squadron flagship in the British Pacific Fleet and Turner's department maintained a very high aircraft serviceability rate for the fleet's strikes. Turner was mentioned twice in despatches.

After the Second World War, Turner planned the Royal Australian Navy's Fleet Air Arm. From 1954 Turner served in the Engineer in Chief's department at Bath, laying the foundation for the Navy's planned maintenance organisation. His other positions included: Captain Superintendent of the Royal Naval Aircraft Yard at Donibristle (1956-58); Director of Aircraft Maintenance and Planning in London; Chief Staff Officer (Technical) on the Central Staff, Mediterranean (1962-64); Director-General Aircraft (Navy) at the Ministry of Defence (1966-67); Chief of Fleet Support, Ministry of Defence (1967-71). In 1970 Turner made naval history by becoming the first officer of a non-executive branch to reach the rank of full Admiral. He was one of the Navy's first specialists in naval aeronautical engineering and pioneered the introduction of planned maintenance to improve the reliability of the fleet's machinery.

Turner married Elizabeth Clare de Trafford in 1963 and they had two sons. Turner died on 26 October 1991.