3e RHC — Women in defence

May 17

May 17 Regimental Sergeant-Major Julie

Julie, a meteorologist in the 3rd combat helicopter regiment laughs when I ask her why she didn’t join either the air force or the navy. “The army was an obvious choice for me because my grandfather and my father were both career soldiers,” she explains. But she knew nothing about meteorology and it was the armed forces recruitment centre (CIRFA) in Strasbourg “that first introduced me to the idea of becoming a meteorologist”, the young Alsatian recounts. She followed up on their suggestion to spend a week in meteorological immersion to discover what the job was about and she was hooked…

Feb 1

Feb 1 Regimental Sergeant-Major Kathleen

Christina Mackenzie

Army

Don’t think that registering with your local job centre is a waste of time. Because this is how Kathleen – somewhat unusually for someone in the military – began her career in the army when she was almost 27 years old. Today she’s an air-traffic controller and instructor in the 3rd Combat Helicopter Regiment of the French Army…

Dec 14

Dec 14 Sergeant Myriam

Christina Mackenzie

Army

Even though she'd dreamt of enlisting in the army since childhood, Myriam, who clearly likes planning ahead, decided to first train as a cook “for after the army.” Aware that a soldier can retire and have plenty of time left for a second career, she thought that with a professional diploma in catering she would always find work (except during a pandemic, but let's hope that this is a once a century event). Today she's an army firefighter team leader…

Based in Paris, FRANCE, WOMBAT is a blog by CHRISTINA MACKENZIE. Her posts PORTRAY WOMEN THE WORLD OVER WHO'VE CHOSEN TO SERVE THEIR RESPECTIVE COUNTRIES IN THE DEFENCE SECTOR.