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(Latest update: 22 January 2026.)
22 January 2026: Rtn Warwick Aldham: Job talk
Today Warwick Aldham, who is an Australian living in Chelmsford, told us about his career.
When he left school his father persuaded him to become an engineer. He joined the officer training school of the Royal Australian Air Force, where he was able to study for a Bachelor of Engineering (Aeronautical) degree alongside his RAAF training. He stayed with the RAAF for 15 years, retiring as a Squadron Leader.
After his training he was posted to Air Movement Training and Development, which he reckoned was not an ideal start to his RAAF career. There he was involved in developing safe and effective means of transporting a range of heavy equipment on military aircraft. They not only had to be transported. They also had to be delivered safely to the ground, which could mean dropping them from 10ft above ground level to sending them down from a much higher level by parachute.He also took part in the recovery of crashed military aircraft in Papua New Guinea. He said that, on the recovery of one downed fixed-wing aircraft, he warned the helicopter crew not to fly no faster than 45 knots to avoid the rescued aircraft catching the air and taking flight itself. He then fell asleep in the helicopter, to be woken up by someone saying to him “Wake up, Warwick. We have a problem.” The helicopter pilot had decided to go faster than 45 knots, only to have the plane dangling below the helicopter flip on to its side.
The RAAF later sent him to Cranfield University in the UK to study for a Master of Science degree (in thermodynamics and aircraft design). On his return to Australia he took part in crash investigations before moving to Amberley, Queensland, where he was involved in the overhaul, test and reinstallation of F111 bomber engines.
On leaving the RAAF he was able to use his gas turbine knowledge to work for a number of companies, including being Director of Gas Projects for Snowy Hydro Limited. As the name implies, they had previously concentrated on hydro-powered turbines. He introduced a number of gas-powered turbine innovations to Australia and managed gas turbine projects in Brazil, which had until them relied predominantly on hydro power.
He moved to the UK some ten years after retiring, having got to know the country when he was at Cranfield and many of his brother’s family living in Birmingham.
Despite his successful career, somehow he never felt that engineering was for him. After his talk one of our members asked him what, on reflection, he thought would have been more suitable. He said he thought he would rather have liked to be a pharmacist.
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