A Royal Naval sailor has been presented with an award for an exemplary career including as an engineer helping train Royal Fleet Auxiliary, Royal Navy and other navies.
Warrant Officer1 Steve Partridge, 45, was presented with a Meritorious Service Medal y Second Sea Lord Vice Admiral David Steel on board HMS Victory (Nelson’s former flagship) in Portsmouth.
Steve works on the staff of Flag Officer Sea Training, at HM Naval Base, Devonport, Plymouth.
Presentation on Monday 9th September 2013 on board HMS Victory, Portsmouth. The medal will be presented by the 2nd Sea Lord in an official ceremony, followed by a tour of HMS Victory and Lunch at Admiralty House. He originates from Plymouth and now lives in Wirral with his wife Debbie.
Steve, who has been in the Navy since he was 16 in 1984, is part of the marine engineering sea training team and his job is as a ‘sea rider’ which means he joins ships under training at sea off the SW coast to coach and mentor personnel.
He specifically deals with Royal Fleet Auxiliary crews or from foreign navies to attain the maximum degree of effectiveness in all aspects of the marine engineering departments’ responsibilities.
Steve said:
“I examine in detail and report on administration, training management, operation and maintenance of machinery, fire-fighting within machinery spaces and machinery damage control.
“On the majority of occasions I travel by either boat or helicopter as part of a team out to the ships at sea in the Plymouth areas, but there are times when I visit ships on deployment around the world which require a tailored training package.’’
He said the highlights of his career were his first Gulf deployment on HMS Battleaxe in 1987, anti-drug patrolling in the West Indies on HMS Sheffield in 2001 and working with the Royal Marines throughout numerous exercises and operations whilst on HMS Albion in 2005-2007:
Previous medals and awards he has received: 1987- General Service Medal Clasp Gulf, 2002 – Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee Medal, 1995 – NATO Medal with Clasp former Yugoslavia 2001 – Long Service and Good Conduct Medal (Royal Navy), 01-Jun-2012 – Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee Medal 2012.
Steve has fund raised for numerous Navy-related charities, including Help For Heroes, Hounds For Heroes, Royal Navy Royal Marines Charity, BLESMA (for those who have lost limbs), Help Our Wounded Royal Marines (HOW).
He has competed as a Brickwoods Field Gunner and in cycling, swimming and rugby and volunteers as an instructor at Drake Sea Cadets in HM Naval Base, Devonport.
[mappress] Press Release, October 01, 2013; Image: Royal Navy