How many years out?
How many years out?
Rather more than I realised, 36 to be nearly exact! 20 or so in aviation, then 15 in oil and gas condition monitoring, reliability related studies and maintenance planning. Retired last year, pushed along by a number of health issues.
Since leaving I have always kept an eye on defence related matters, and have followed the fortunes and disasters wrought on all our Forces by enemies and politicians alike.
The attitudes of commitment, loyalty and integrity taught all those years ago at Halton may no longer be fashionable in some quarters, but they lifted me out of what could have been a very mediocre life in Tyneside's declining industries, and took me to places that many would struggle to find in an atlas.
During my time I experienced boredom, on occasion had the crap scared out of me, was more than once roasting under a Middle East sun, then back to being cold, wet and dog tired, but corny as it may sound would do it all again. Well, some of it anyway.
