HMS Tracker

Military experience

Brian Drewett was educated at The Henry Box School, Witney, Oxfordshire and joined the Royal Navy in June 2004 as a Direct Graduate Entry Warfare Officer after he read for a degree in Exploration Geology at Cardiff University, a brief spell as a teacher and after he read for a Masters in Global Security at the Royal Military College of Science.

After initial training at Britannia Royal Naval College, where he was privileged to be the College Senior Sub Lieutenant and a recipient of the Commodore’s award, he undertook Common Fleet Time training in HMS Manchester. He later moved to HMS Chiddingfold, Gibraltar Squadron and HMS Nottingham for his Specialist Fleet Time. He was awarded the Queens Binoculars’ for outstanding overall performance during Naval General Training.

Completing his Junior Warfare Officer’s Course in October 2006, winning the Beaufort Wharton prize for navigation, he went onto complete the Small Ship Navigating Officer’s course before taking up his appointment in November 2006 as the Navigating Officer of HMS Bangor.

Taking part in a crew swap, he completed a tour in the Gulf as the Navigating Officer of HMS Ramsey before returning to complete Fleet Navigating Officer’s Course in June 2008.

A short but busy appointment to HMS Gloucester followed as OOW2, before moving to HMS Edinburgh in November 2008 to take up the duties as Navigating Officer. Taking her into her final refit in June 2009, he was selected for the Personnel Exchange Programme and the unique position of serving as the Navigating Officer onboard the USS Winston S. Churchill, an Arleigh Burke Class guided missile destroyer.

Serving as Destroyer Squadron Two Six and Force Navigating Officer, he deployed as part of Carrier Strike Group Ten to the Gulf for 7 months supporting operations in Afghanistan, returning to the US late 2010.

As a Welshman he enjoys Rugby, both playing and vocally watching his beloved national side, cricket, soccer and golf with varying degrees of success whilst trying to renovate his house; time and finances prevailing. He assumed command of Oxford URNU and HMS Tracker in April 2011.