From 1992 Burridge served in the Ministry of Defence, initially as Deputy Director of Force Doctrine (RAF) and later becoming the Director of Force Development in the Central Staff before being made Principal Staff Officer to the Chief of the Defence Staff in 1994 in the rank of air commodore. In 1997 he attended the Cabinet Office Top Management Programme and then later in the year became a Defence Fellow at King's College London. In 1998 he attended the Higher Command and Staff Course being promoted to air vice marshal on 1 July 1998. In January 2000 he became Commandant of the Joint Services Command and Staff College, subsequently moving the College into a Public Private Partnership at Shrivenham. On 12 February 2002, Burridge was promoted to air marshal and appointed Deputy Commander-in-Chief, Strike Command.