Corporal Jess Aitken, of 1 Combat Communications Squadron, swapped sunny skies for icy terrain when she travelled from her hometown of Boonah, Queensland, for this year's Exercise Red Flag Alaska.
Growing up in rural Queensland with her father and grandparents, Corporal Aitken's grandfather was a former Air Force member who built and flew his own aircraft.
This connection to aviation, combined with a chance encounter with a Defence Force Recruiting online pop-up advertisement, sparked her interest in joining the Air Force.
"I started working at 13 in a local shop and always knew I wanted to jump into a career right after school," Corporal Aitken said.
"After seeing that pop-up ad and talking with my grandfather, who had served in the Air Force, I decided to apply. I was accepted into the RAAF at 17, and it's been a great fit for me ever since."
Corporal Aitken played a crucial role as a network technician at Red Flag Alaska, one of the most significant and challenging joint training exercises in the world.
As part of the ICT (information and communications technology) team, she was responsible for ensuring the deployed network infrastructure was operational. Her work involved setting up and maintaining secure communication channels, including deployed networks, radios and other critical ICT services.
"The main role of our job is to provide ICT services for everyone, from maintenance teams to pilots and operations staff," Corporal Aitken said.
"We deploy with all our secure equipment to make sure that people can communicate safely without any threats."
'It's really rewarding to see others from my home town find the same passion and opportunity in the Air Force that I did.'
Red Flag Alaska presented unique challenges, particularly with the extreme distances involved in deploying to its location.
"Setting up a secure network on the complete opposite side of the world isn't easy," Corporal Aitken said.
"We spend weeks beforehand configuring everything, from circuit diagrams to networking set-ups, to ensure everything works perfectly once we're on the ground."
Despite the challenges, Corporal Aitken said working with a diverse group of people, including teams from other squadrons and international allies, was a positive experience.
"One of the highlights for me has been the opportunity to network with new people and learn about what they do," she said.
"It's been a great experience overall, and I'm really proud of the work our team has done here."
Her passion for the Air Force did not just stop with her own journey. After joining, Corporal Aitken became a point of contact for many in her small town, inspiring others to make a career in Air Force.
"It's really rewarding to see others from my home town find the same passion and opportunity in the Air Force that I did," she said.
Looking to the future, Corporal Aitken is excited about the possibilities within Air Force.
"I'm driven to keep moving up the ranks and exploring new opportunities. I might not stay in IT forever, but Air Force has been an amazing career for me so far," she said.
"These exercises make all the hard work worth it, and I'm looking forward to what comes next."
