Stuart Skeates

Stuart Skeates
Stuart Skeates in Helmand Province, Afghanistan in 2013
Born	1966
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1989 – present
Rank	Major General
Commands held	Standing Joint Force Commander Royal Military Academy Sandhurst 19th Light Brigade 26th Regiment Royal Artillery
Battles/wars	The Troubles Gulf War Bosnian War Iraq War War in Afghanistan
Awards	Commander of the Order of the British Empire

Major General Stuart Richard Skeates CBE (born 1966) is a British Army officer who serves as Standing Joint Force Commander.

Military career

Educated at King's College London (BA History, 1988; MA Defence Studies, 1999) and Cranfield University (MA, 1998), Skeates was commissioned into the Royal Artillery in 1989.^[1] He served in the Gulf War and in the Bosnian War, took part in the invasion of Iraq in 2003 and then served as Military Assistant to the General Officer Commanding Northern Ireland in the final years of Operation Banner.^[2] He became Commanding Officer of 26th Regiment Royal Artillery in Gütersloh, then Deputy Commander of 52nd Brigade (deployed as Task Force Helmand) and then Deputy Assistant Chief of Staff Operations for Afghanistan and Pakistan at Permanent Joint Headquarters.^[2] He became Commander of 19th Light Brigade in December 2009, Deputy Commander of I Marine Expeditionary Force (Forward) in 2011 and Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in August 2013.^[3] He was appointed as Standing Joint Force Commander on 24 June 2015.^[4]

References

1. The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 51524. p. 12499. 7 November 1988. Retrieved 13 July 2013.
2. Leaders US Marine Corps
3. Army Commands
4. The Times, 2015, "Senior Military Apppointments", The Times, 24 June 2015, p.55