Captain Trevor Gulley, the Commanding Officer of HMS Sultan, said a fond farewell to HMS Sultan recently, ending his 34 year career in the Royal Navy in style.
In keeping with tradition, Capt Gulley was given a ride around the establishment in Sultan’s own Super Sentinel steam lorry as the ship’s company lined the route to wish him well.
The 55-year-old leaves HMS Sultan after over five years within the establishment, firstly serving as the Commandant of the Defence College of Technical Training’s Defence School of Marine Engineering, and then, additionally, over the past 3 years, as the Commanding Officer of HMS Sultan.
Capt Gulley joined the Royal Navy in 1982 after completing a Naval Architect Technician Apprenticeship at Devonport Royal Dockyard.
A Marine Engineer by trade, Capt Gulley has served on a number of warships, including HM Ships Invincible and Bulwark. He has held staff appointments in Bath, Portsmouth and in Naples and has twice worked in a training role on the staff of Flag Officer Sea Training in Plymouth.
In June 2014 he was appointed an Aide-de-Camp to Her Majesty The Queen and just a year later he was recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours as he was made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (OBE).
Capt Gulley received his OBE in recognition of his work at the helm of the Royal Navy’s Marine Engineering training, where he has been a tireless champion for his branch and Service and his achievements will leave a lasting legacy.
As Capt Gulley formally handed over responsibilities for both roles to Capt Peter Towell OBE he said, “It has been a huge honour and privilege to be the Commanding Officer at HMS Sultan and Commandant of the Defence School of Marine Engineering over the past five and a half years.”
“The success and reputation for excellence at HMS Sultan rests very firmly with the many staff, both military and civilian, who work so tirelessly to train Royal Navy Air and Marine Engineer Officers and Technicians. I wish to express my heartfelt thanks to all staff for their loyalty and dedication throughout my tenure.”
“Equally, and in recognition of the close links between the establishment and the Gosport Borough, I would also like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to the people of Gosport who have continued to support this site at the numerous events hosted at HMS Sultan.”
“As a proud Cornishman I’ve enjoyed a wide and varied career with the Royal Navy. There have been so many highlights throughout the past 34 years and I look forward to many more with all of the fresh challenges that being ‘a civvy’ brings.”
Capt Gulley was educated at the three local schools in Torpoint and still lives in the town with his Brazilian wife, Priscilla, who accompanied him as he said his final goodbyes.
HMS Sultan is home to the headquarters of the Defence College of Technical Training (DCTT), which includes the Defence School of Marine Engineering (DSMarE) and the Royal Naval Air Engineering and Survival School (RNAESS), part of the Defence School of Aeronautical Engineering (DSAE).
A number of other units reside within the boundaries of HMS Sultan, they include: the Defence Business Services, the Admiralty Interview Board (AIB) and the Nuclear Department which is a component of the Defence Academy, College of Management and Technology (DA-CMT) which has its HQ in Shrivenham.
