#140 Mike Armstrong

Angus Hordern interviews Afghanistan veteran and artist Mike Armstrong.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Michael Armstrong joined the Australian Defence Force in 1998 as an aircraft technician. He went on to serve as a signals officer, deploying with 2 RAR to Timor and with the 2nd Commando Regiment to Afghanistan. He was on the last plane out of Afghanistan in Rotation XX. Throughout his time in the army Mike also taught as a hand-to-hand combat instructor, drawing on his martial arts background. He moved to work in Cyber before medically discharging. Today he keeps connected with the veteran community through his VOICES OF VETERANS artwork. 

The episode referenced at the end of the podcast is #97 Paul Cale.

#97 Paul Cale

Alex Lloyd interviews 2nd Commando Regiment veteran and renowned martial artist Paul Cale.

Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Paul Cale is a veteran of the 2nd Commando Regiment and a black belt in eight different styles of martial arts. He has been involved with the Australian Army for 30 years, either as a soldier or a preferred contractor, as he is today. As a commando, he was deployed five times on combat tours to Afghanistan and Iraq, and at home served as a team leader in Tactical Assault Group East. Paul’s personal hand-to-hand combat experiences in theatres of war, and those of his fellow commandos, have guided his development of the Kinetic Fighting system. Today he is the CEO of Kinetic Fighting Pty Ltd. Paul is a world leader in close-combat and personal protection training. Alex Lloyd spoke with Paul over Zoom about his military service and martial arts career.

Paul returned to the podcast in Christmas on the Line Vol III.