Noel Schmidt was awarded a Conspicious Service Cross for his outstanding performance as Director General Technical Airworthiness with the Australian Defence Force. He has consistently demonstrated outstanding engineering skill and leadership and is considered to be one of Australia’s top engineers.

Vice Admiral David Shackleton is a former Chief of the Royal Australian Navy and a distinguished member of Australia’s defence community. David has great strengths in strategic policy and force structure development and is highly respected for his acumen and grasp of future technical and other challenges in the national security environment.