Saturday 24 August 2019


Women in the Armed Forces

Life in the Forces is famously tough. Even so, for these high-flying women it is also a dream career.

Flight Lieutenant 
Juliette Fleming
RAF fast jet pilot
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Flight Lieutenant Juliette Fleming RAF fast jet pilot Photo: THOM ATKINSON
Lieutenant Amy Webb
Royal Navy warfare officer
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Lieutenant Amy Webb Royal Navy warfare officer  Photo: THOM ATKINSON
Sarah Marriott
Army combat medic technician
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Corporal Sarah Marriott Army combat medic technician Photo: THOM ATKINSON

Flight Lieutenant Juliette Fleming, 31, RAF fast jet pilot

I always had a strong relationship with the skies. My parents split up when I was four, and my dad moved to Doncaster. Sometimes he flew down to pick me up in Suffolk, because he was a flight instructor.

I'd sit at the controls with him, and he bought me a flying lesson for my 17th birthday. Afterwards he said it was something I should pursue as I had good handling skills.

I loved the feeling of being in the air. I also love horses, and flying's a similar feeling. I become a different person. After that lesson I felt someone had switched on a light bulb.

Soon I passed the selection tests for the RAF and started officer training. Only two girls passed the training, but we don't get singled out as girls and I've personally never experienced any sexism.

But women do change the dynamic of a group or a squadron: they help dilute the testosterone. We bring balance to a situation, but, at the end of the day, I'm a voice on the radio, doing the same job as any man.

My career's taken me all over the world, working on the front line in Iraq in 2008 and Afghanistan in 2009. I provide close air support to the guys doing foot patrol. We're their eyes in the sky.

The secondary role is checking routes for missions happening the next day. Dropping a weapon is an absolute last resort, and before that we'd do several shows of force, swooping low over the enemy to draw them out, or let them hide giving our guys a chance to get to safety.

We're often called upon to support guys being fired at, which is nerve-racking. You have to develop a fast mental picture of where everyone is, like you're brain's a radar map. Sometimes I feel my heart going through all my clothes, and it's a huge adrenalin rush.

When we're on operations, and things get tough, we pick each other up, maybe with a bit of banter, and lots of jokes. We're all pretty close. I often fly with my friend Nicky.

It's important you trust the person you're going to war with. We shared a room, and when we fly we always have a chat and a giggle, often laughing about pictures of celebrities in Hello!, just like any girls. We try to keep things light-hearted.

I consider myself a girly girl in a male world, rather than a tomboy. I try to feminise the uniform, but there are strict controls and it's hard to glam up a flying suit, so all I can do is wear perfume. The guys usually say, "Jules must be in the room as it smells nice."

I like J'adore by Dior. I wear my hair back and no make-up, but I always wear my engagement and wedding rings and a feminine watch.

My husband, Ollie, is a pilot. We're on different squadrons, and one of us is often away. We're both very laid-back, though I can't say it's not been hard, especially when he was away at Christmas.

But we communicate a lot. I often send him a quick email, even just a sentence, so he knows that I'm OK and thinking of him. There's a lot of trust between us, and we have a good life outside the military to stop us going mad: I ride horses and Ollie loves hockey.

I'd like kids one day, but I think I'm too selfish at the moment as it would disrupt the work we love.

Lieutenant Amy Webb, 27, Royal Navy warfare officer

I always knew I wanted to be in the Royal Navy and joined the Sea Scouts as a kid, which I loved, especially visiting naval bases.

The Navy sponsored me through Oxford University doing geography and international relations, and then a masters at Cambridge. Afterwards I started training as a warfare officer.

My job involves driving the ship and telling the quartermaster where to steer, as well as stopping boats and fishermen from straying into protected areas.

We also launch and recover helicopters, and identify all contacts in the area using radars, intelligence and helicopters. This information is shared with other ships and sent back to the UK.

I rarely feel in danger, but the work definitely makes me anxious. If a boat is somewhere it shouldn't be we'll drive at it very fast with flashlights on, and sometimes fire a flare. Most people turn back when they see a 5,000-ton warship driving at them.

I've been involved with counter-piracy and counter-narcotics operations in the Caribbean, escorting merchants through dangerous waters, and carrying food and aid to ships.

As a woman I'm good at multitasking, which is essential for this job. You have to be able to do lots of tasks simultaneously: driving the ship, checking other shipping around you, talking to the captain, managing the team on the bridge, landing a helicopter and often talking on two different radios at the same time.

We live in small quarters, although I usually have my own cabin or share with another woman. The ratio of men to women varies a lot; on my first ship it was about 10 per cent women. On the second I was only one of two women.

The ships with a higher ratio of men, the stag ships, are more serious than the ones with women on them. I think most guys prefer a mixed ship, as a male ship can get very competitive. It's nice having female company.

I like living on a boat, although I miss greenery. I go running on the upper decks if it's a big boat. We have a good social life as we're a close-knit community and make our own entertainment.

Different departments take it in turns to put on film or quiz nights, or we might have a flight-deck barbecue. You can get bored quickly, so it's important to keep organising things like that.

I always take a few little luxuries with me to sea, like some posh coffee with a percolator, and nice tea bags, although the food on the ship is good.

I wear uniform most of the time on the ship as it makes getting dressed simpler. It's quite a manly uniform of combat trousers and boots, with strict regulations, but I like wearing gold studs and maybe some mascara and perfume. We never go out in uniform, but when we get the time off it's nice to put on a skirt.

It's hard being away so much, although all my old friends are interested in what I do, and my parents are great. I can't keep them off the ships, and my dad probably knows more about the Navy than I do! It's difficult when you have to miss out on weddings and family events: this job is a lifestyle choice.

I'm single now but boyfriends have to be very understanding. I was seeing someone in the Navy for a bit but we hardly saw each other, so it didn't work out. I know women who do combine this with a family, but I'm not considering it right now, as I'm trying to get in as much travel as possible.

I don't get lonely but sometimes I crave time to myself. Going to sea means being able to get along with lots of different people and not taking yourself too seriously. I love the travelling and the responsibility, as well as the banter and laughs that you get on a ship. It suits me perfectly.

Corporal Sarah Marriott, 30, Army combat medic technician

I've just come back from Afghanistan. I lived at a small camp with eight male British soldiers whose job was to train a group of Afghan National Army soldiers. Wherever the infantry boys go, I go too.

Unless I joined the SAS, my work couldn't get more front-line. It's like that of a paramedic. I specialise in battlefield trauma and life support.

I qualified in 2002, and was deployed to Iraq in 2003, my first operational tour as a private soldier. I worked as a medic for a tank regiment, using an armoured ambulance to patrol with the tanks.

I was deployed back to Iraq again in 2007 with the 1st Regiment Royal Horse Artillery for six months. This time I went on foot patrols or travelled in the Mastiffs [armoured vehicles].

It's claustrophobic work, as the vehicles are cramped, and I was in there with six guys, plus kit. No one complains, even when you're stuck in a tank, sweating and dirty, for 14 days straight.

I like the guys. It's important to have a giggle together, even when things are tough. Humour's important.

I deal with extreme injuries of civilians and soldiers, but I've had good training, which helps me deal with it and not fall apart, even when I'm treating someone with his legs blown off. Soldiers lose their legs, and their lives, and that's hard to deal with. If I know I've done everything I can, I won't beat myself up afterwards.

Being under fire is surreal. When it first happened I remember thinking, "Oh dear, that's a bit close," but I carried on for a minute before I did anything.

You don't think about yourself; I need to think about the guys, check they are all right and work out if we need to evacuate or pull back. There isn't time to be scared.

We have a lot of contact with the Afghan population, often treating their injuries. The feedback is largely positive, but they're wary, too. On patrol I always have my hair hidden. When they realise I'm a woman they look shocked, and the kids sometimes laugh at me, but I'm treated well, just the same as the guys.

It's a different world, though: the Afghan women stay indoors unless completely covered. The feminist in me wants to get them out, but that's their life. When they realise I'm a girl they'll often want to look at my hair and hands. They are fascinated to see a woman working.

We work and live together at the camp, taking turns to cook. There's not much
to do to relax, apart from watch films. We were lucky to have a river to wash
in, otherwise we use portable showers. It's hard to be feminine, but my mum sent me face packs.

I see the Army as a long-term career. I want to get married and have kids one day, and the Army does everything it can to make this work.

My partner's in the Army. Having a relationship outside would be hard. I hope one day we'll get posted to the same base, but that sort of thing you can't predict.

I miss him and my family. I can go without anything, but being apart from the people I love is the hardest part of this job. There's nothing else I don't like about the job: I get paid to travel the world and meet amazing people. It's a fantastic experience.

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