THE GIFTED AMATEUR (Part 1 of 2)

Born a Welshman, Nigel grew up in the coal mining valleys of South Wales, in the United Kingdom during the 1960s and 70s. An avid motorcyclist, musician and aviation professional, Nigel joined the Royal Air Force (RAF) at age 16 and served for twenty-seven years as an Aero Systems Engineer. In 2004 Nigel retired for the first time and emigrated with his family to the other side of the world to join the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF). Nigel officially became a Kiwi in 2007 and completed twelve years active service in the RNZAF. In 2016 Nigel retired a second time on completion of his tour of duty as the Defence Advisor to Canada and Air Attaché to the United States of America, located in the New Zealand Embassy in Washington D.C. Rather than return to New Zealand, Nigel married his American Fiancée, Carol, and started his own consultancy business www.nigelsainsburyconsulting.com and now lives in Fairfax, Virginia. A citizen of both the United Kingdom and New Zealand, Nigel hopes to add the USA to his list of citizenship countries by 2022