Military Veterans Podcast

Ben enlisted in the British Army in 2005, joining the Royal Corps of Signals. During the course of 16 years of service, Ben attained the rank of Sergeant (Sgt). In this episode, Ben recounts his journey into the British Army, detailing the training phases he underwent before joining his first unit. He deployed to Afghanistan soon after, which marked the beginning of his interest in joining the UK Special Forces and attempting the renowned Selection course. Despite a medical withdrawal on Sele...

Original Episode: Ep 032 - Sgt William Taylor from 10th January 2023. In this Viewpoint: William talks about how his book 'On Full Automatic: Surviving 13 Months in Vietnam' came about, and how when writing this book, it was helpful and healing for him on a personal level. William - aka Bill - also shares some good advice for people thinking of joining the military, and also some good advice for veterans out there, especially on how to cope with PTSD. Watch Full Episode on YouTube: Part 1: yo...

In 2008, Gerry enlisted in the Royal Air Force (RAF) as an Aerospace Systems Operator and served for nine years, attaining the rank of Corporal (Cpl). In this episode, Gerry discusses his decision to join the Royal Air Force (RAF) and his subsequent training to become an Aerospace Systems Operator. He provides insights into the operational locations of this trade, including RAF Boulmer, where he spent the majority of his career, and RAF Brize Norton, where he had notable encounters with the R...

Aaron joined the United States Navy (USN) in 1999 as a Mess Management Specialist (Cook), and later transferred to the United States Army (USA) as an Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) Specialist, serving for a combined 14 years. Aaron reached the rank of Staff Sergeant (SSG). In this episode Aaron talks about his time joining the U.S. Navy, and graduating Navy Boot Camp, before completing the Navy “A” School for his trade. Aaron shares his first duty station out in Naples, Italy, which lead t...

Jo joined the British Army in 1995 and served for 24 years in the Royal Logistic Corps (RLC), reaching the rank of Staff Sergeant (SSgt). In this episode, Jo talks about joining up and going through training, which was during the terrible times at Deepcut, but after getting through this part of training, she moved onto the famous driver training school, being the Defence School of Transport (DST) Leconfield. She shares being part of multiple regiments, which included tours of Northern Irelan...

Ian joined the Royal Navy in 1975, and served for 16 years as part of the Fleet Air Arm (FAA), reaching the rank of Leading Aircraft Engineering Mechanic (Weapons Electrical) (LAEM(WL)). In this episode Ian talks about his journey in joining the Royal Navy, and what it was like being one of the last courses to go through basic training, at HMS Ganges. He also shares some insights into life at RNAS Lee-on-Solent (HMS Daedalus), RNAS Yeovilton (HMS Heron), and deploying on HMS Sirius (F40). I...

Tony joined the British Army in 1995, as a Probationary 2nd Lieutenant on a Short Service Limited Commission, and later joined both the Regular and Reserve services. He served a total of 19 years, reaching the rank of Major (Maj). In this episode Tony talks about growing up and his ambition to join the British Army, sharing his journey with courses at Sandhurst on multiple occasions, and being part of Regular Army units as an officer. This included over seeing tasks for the 2001 country wide...

Gary joined the Royal Regiment of Artillery (RA) in the British Army twice, once in 1999 and again in 2004. He served for 12 years in total, reaching the rank of Bombardier (Bdr). In this episode Gary talks about his journey in joining the British Army, and why he left and then rejoined a few years later. He shares his time completing many courses, which prepared him for operational tours of Iraq and 2 deployments to Afghanistan. These tours saw him be part of a Close Protection Team, a Tact...