Life beyond Radford

I am a Commander in the Royal Australian Navy and Commanding Officer of the ANZAC class frigate, HMAS Ballarat.

I joined the Navy by starting at ADFA in 1991, straight after leaving Radford College. I graduated from ADFA in 1993, and have since worked my way through a number of postings and positions, as well as a few promotions. I qualified as a Navigation sub-specialist in large and deep draft Navy ships in 1999, and as a Principal Warfare Officer in 2003. I have served in many different ships and visited most countries around the world. A highlight was as second-in-command of HMAS Toowoomba (another ANZAC class frigate), deployed to the Middle East in early 2007. During that time we spent six months protecting critical oil infrastructure from insurgents operating near the Iran and Iraq sea border.

I studied a Navy Command and Staff course in Indonesia (conducted in Bahasa Indonesian) for 12 months in 2009 and have commanded two ANZAC class frigates, HMAS Arunta and recently taken command of HMAS Ballarat.

I was awarded a Conspicuous Service Medal (CSM) in the 2014 Queen’s Birthday Honours for my work as the Fleet Executive Officer of Sea Training Group from 2012–2013.

I married Carla in 2003 and we have three children aged between 11 and 6. The family lives in Bondi Junction, Sydney, while I work wherever my ship is based – currently in Western Australia. I commute between WA andSydney to see the family about once every three weeks or so when the ship is in port.

I loved my time at Radford College. It has changed so much since 1985, when it was a brand-new school within a building site, with only Y7–9 classes, one small oval and a standard-sized bus to school from Woden (getting a seat was not a problem!) The way the school looks now, and how busy it is, is fantastic. Suffice it to say all three of my children are registered on the waiting list to hopefully attend Radford when we move back to Canberra in my future career.