#OurVeterans Pete Nugent
Peter Nugent, ‘Nug’ to his friends, left the Australian Defence Force for a number of reasons.
‘Firstly, I love Adelaide and wanted to establish roots here,’ he says. ‘My family was very settled.
‘Secondly, I had been fortunate to do all of the best jobs as an engineer that Air Force had to offer and at 38 years of age, I decided it was a good time for a career move and to do something new.’
In his 20-year career with the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Peter had a range of unique opportunities, from graduating National Test Pilot School in the United States, to sub-unit Command as Senior Engineering Officer at No. 10 Squadron and even as a project manager for space-based capability.
After leaving the RAAF, Peter began working for AeroPM – the 2020 Prime Minister’s Veteran Employer of the Year – which specialises in re-investing the fantastic skills of our veterans back into Defence acquisition with challenging, meaningful roles. More than 80% of the company’s workforce are veterans and many continue in a reserve capacity too.
For Peter, the biggest challenge was looking after his health during his transition. He found that participating in events like the March On campaign, organised by Soldier On, provided the benefit of extra exercise, which made him feel healthier and happier. AeroPM values the efforts of Soldier On too; they were the inaugural platinum sponsor of this not-for-profit agency.
In his new career, Peter is passionate about helping his fellow veterans find their feet in the civilian jobs market and he is one of the mentors selected for the Veteran SA Mentoring Program to be launched next month.
More Our Veterans stories are available on the DVA website.
#OurVeterans #SoldierON #AeroPM
