JOHN SHIELDS was born and brought up near Edinburgh. He joined the RAF in 1989 and, following initial officer and navigator training, was posted to the Tornado F3 in 1991, the force was responsible for air defence of the United Kingdom, the Falkland Islands and preparing for global contingent operations. Spanning a flying career of 18 years, John has accumulated over 2,500 hours on the Tornado F3 with tours across the UK and in the Falkland Islands as a squadron navigator, weapons instructor and commander. More recently, John’s career has focussed on Professional Military Education in the UK and the USA, both as a student and as an instructor.