Sarah Holt was commissioned into the RAF in 2007 as an Engineering Officer and qualified as a Bomb Disposal Operator. Promoted to Squadron Leader in 2016, she served as Senior Engineering Officer on XI(Fighter) Squadron leading 150 personnel. In 2022 she was promoted to Wing Commander and is now responsible for Commanding Air Wing Engineering at RAF Brize Norton, and manages airworthiness across the Air Mobility fleets. As Air Mobility Chief Air Engineer she also leads the quality management system, assuring maintenance standards and providing engineering and technical advice to senior officers.

In a diverse career, she has served as the Armament Explosives specialist in the Falkland Islands, provided close air security with the Typhoon aircraft Quick Reaction Alert for the London 2012 Olympics, coordinated military support and equipment donations to Ukraine and facilitated the non-combatant evacuation of Afghanistan.

Tell us about your professional journey since leaving Downe House.

I was commissioned into the RAF in 2007 as an Engineering Officer, completing Initial Officer Training at RAF Cranwell before qualifying as a Bomb Disposal Operator with 5131 (Bomb Disposal) Squadron. Early assignments included supporting UK and deployed operations, serving as the Armament Explosives specialist in the Falkland Islands and contributing to frontline Typhoon operations with XI(Fighter) Squadron during Operation ELLAMY, UK Quick Reaction Alert duties and the London 2012 Olympics. I subsequently broadened my experience through roles in Defence Equipment and Support as the E3D Sentry Propulsion Manager, managing a £58M portfolio and providing airworthiness oversight, and at Air Command, leading airworthiness and safety assurance audits across RAF fleets and stations. Following promotion to Squadron Leader in 2016, I led Defence-wide EOD and Search training transformation before returning to frontline aviation, serving as the Senior Engineering Officer on XI(Fighter) Squadron and later as Deputy Continuing Airworthiness Manager for the A400M fleet. These roles included leading 150 personnel, supporting Middle East operations in Cyprus and Baltic Air Policing in Estonia, assuring fleet airworthiness and enabling critical global air mobility operational outputs, including Operation PITTING, the Afghanistan non-combatant evacuation.

Promoted to Wing Commander in 2022, I attended the Advanced Command and Staff Course before joining Task Force KINDRED, coordinating military support and equipment donations to Ukraine. I subsequently moved to Defence Equipment and Support as an Operations Manager responsible for the digital systems, contracted support and capability integration required to sustain the A400M force. My responsibilities encompass engineering governance, safety assurance, personnel development and the delivery of capability upgrades, ensuring aircraft and associated systems remain combat-ready and available for operational tasking. Alongside my professional career, I have benefited from the RAF’s commitment to personal development, academic study and sport, representing the RAF in rowing and performing with the RAF Spitfires Choir at national events.

Can you describe your current role and what a typical day looks like?

Currently on maternity leave, in November I will commence my next role as Officer Commanding Air Wing Engineering at RAF Brize Norton. In this role I will have various distinctly different responsibilities on the Air Mobility Force. As the Military Continuing Airworthiness Manager, I am responsible for managing all continuing airworthiness across the Air Mobility fleets. In addition, I am the Chief Air Engineer, leading the quality management system, assuring maintenance standards and providing engineering and technical advice to the Duty Holder chain of senior officers.

A normal day looks like a lot of meetings as the portfolio of responsibility is vast covering multiple aircraft types, a plethora of parachuting equipment and associated survival equipment. Each platform and equipment type comes with a different support structure and contracted support solutions, requiring me to work closely with organisation including Airbus, Boeing and Serco, in addition to military staff and MOD organisations. The Air Mobility Force is involved in operations globally supporting all 3 services and you never quite know what each day will have in store, particularly given current global affairs. Maintaining airworthiness and engineering standards is critical to ensuring we have a fleet of aircraft ready to respond to what the UK government requires of it, including strategic and tactical airlift, and air-to-air refuelling. When issues arise which don’t quite align with what the manuals say then it is for me and my team to assess the issue, understand it from a technical perspective and make risk-based decisions on actions to be taken to recover airworthiness for that aircraft or equipment.

What has been the highlight of your career so far?

There have been many highlights which I think is the nature of life in the military. One that springs to mind is sitting in the backseat of a Typhoon fast jet aircraft as we trailed the Squadron back from Cyprus to the UK. As a Junior Engineering Officer at the time, I was lucky to experience air-to-air refuelling enroute home and then combat air manoeuvres once we made it back into UK airspace. This was an incredible experience after a long and tough deployment!

What has been the biggest professional challenge you have faced, and how did you overcome it?

Balancing professional integrity with the operational pressures that are associated with delivering front line operations. I have experienced this challenge at all stages of my career. As an engineer officer you are often the final barrier to getting an aircraft onto the flight line to meet a tasking. This can come with significant amounts of pressure as we are an organisation that wants to deliver and are used to taking risk.

My approach is to take a moment to consider the situation, sometimes this means stepping away from any chaos that may be unfolding which can be unnerving for those around you. Once you understand the situation you can then start to ask questions to support your problem solving and risk assessment, to come up with a solution. Taking risk isn’t necessarily bad; however, it is vital that the risk is correctly assessed and held at the right levels, sometimes that means having to escalate decision making up the command chain.

What skills and personal qualities do you think help someone excel in your field?

Adaptable and resilient – You need to be able to perform in complex, high-pressure and rapidly changing environments. In the military we develop these skills through regularly pushing ourselves out of our comfort zone. This may be through technical training, daily in your role or on courses such as adventurous training.

Analytical and decisive – You must have the ability to use your technical knowledge to undertake sound decision-making under operational scrutiny. You learn the basics of this in your academic studies; you are already developing the foundation of this in your lessons at school! Throughout your career you continue to develop these skills.

Problem solving – Having the ability to assess a situation and consider alternative options to come up with solutions. You may not always have the resources available to you to fix a problem, problem solving is considering how you can go about achieving the desired outcome without having all the resources you need.

Collaborative – You need the skills to build strong relationships across diverse stakeholder communities and services. In all walks of life, but particularly in the military, you are a small cog in a much bigger machine. You must be able to work as part of a team and collaborate with those in your immediate team and beyond.

Inclusive and empathetic – As a leader of teams from a range of organisations, military, civil servants and contractors, you need to appreciate the strengths everyone brings, and the different challenges and pressures they face.

What advice would you give to someone hoping to follow in your footsteps?

Life in the military is more than a career, it is a lifestyle choice. My time in the RAF is an extension of my days at Downe House. I live as part of a community, can continue to pursue my personal interests and studies but ultimately work hard and can challenge myself mentally and physically. I’ve moved around and spent over 700 days out of the country which can take a toll on family life. I’ve worked with state-of-the-art and dated technology, both of which present their own challenges as an engineer and ensure work never becomes boring. Every day I can identify how my role is directly contributing to society and security of the UK, and I am always proud of this. I would encourage anyone to consider the military and specifically the RAF. You join an organisation and can pursue many different paths which are not available in civilian life. It also provides you with experience and expertise which are transferrable into civilian organisations.

What are your hopes and aspirations for the future?

I will continue to serve in the RAF whilst it works for my family and presents a challenge to me. After 19 years in the RAF, service is at the core of what motivates me, and any role I move to outside of the RAF would need to motivate me in that way.