Lieutenant Jack Hawkins' decision to join Navy was an easy one, despite his hometown of Port Stephens having a large Army and Air Force presence nearby.
"I knew I wanted to join the military but wasn't sure which branch initially and growing up by the beach I thought 'I'll go with the water I think'," he said.
"My whole family grew up near the ocean. My old man is a surfer as well, so I was keen to stay working by the coast, which the Navy provides."
He was a surfer from a young age and a beach lifeguard before joining Navy as a surface warfare officer in January 2020.
"I knew I wanted to be in a forward leaning operational role," he said.
"Surface warfare officer really appealed to me, driving and fighting warships sounded pretty cool, so that's what I fell into."
His favourite posting was as an officer of the watch on board HMAS Hobart, where he conducted two regional presence deployments, Operations Resolute and Argos, and a number of domestic exercises.
He recently traded the sun and sands of Australia's beaches for those in the Middle East, where he is deployed on Operation Manitou in Bahrain.
He works with representatives from 11 nations to contribute to maritime security operations in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb and Gulf of Aden, as part of Combined Task Force 153, which is one of five task forces under the 46-nation Combined Maritime Forces.
'It's awesome to see how other navies operate. It's actually quite impressive how well we can integrate together.'
Working in a combined service and multinational team was an educational experience.
"It's awesome to see how other navies operate. It's actually quite impressive how well we can integrate together," he said.
"I think its great exposure for the Army and RAAF members as well to see, not how the Australian Navy works per se, but how international navies conduct large campaigns."
Although the sea was always the calling, Lieutenant Hawkins will post to RAAF Williamtown to train as an air battle manager, providing the fighter controller role on behalf of Navy.
In preparation for the role, he conducted a tour of 77 and 2 Squadrons and watched joint strike fighters scramble during exercise Tasman Shield in 2023.
"I aspire to be an air warfare officer. Being able to undertake time as a fighter controller prior will give me a really broad range of air warfare experience," he said.
"We have received lots of new capabilities in Defence such as the SM-6 missile and F-35A aircraft, so it's really exciting."
The posting will also bring his career in full circle back home, 20 minutes from the beaches he grew up next to in Port Stephens.
"I've loved every minute of my career. One day you could be driving ships, then deployed to the Middle East doing something completely different and returning home to learn how to control aircraft," he said.
