Complex sentence: Salmond became Commander of the Training Brigade in July 1916 and then, as General Officer Commanding Training Division from August 1917, he opened many more flying schools, laid down minimum training standards and introduced new modern teaching methods.
Split into simpler sentences: Salmond became Commander of the Training Brigade in July 1916 and then General Officer Commanding Training Division in August 1917. In that capacity he opened many more flying schools, laid down minimum training standards and introduced new modern teaching methods.