Lieutenant Colonel Craig Kingston

Picture above taken at the Blessing of the Memorial Wall function during the Centenary Celebrations.

Lieutenant Colonel Kingston was born and educated at St Virgil’s College in Hobart and enlisted into the Australian Army in January 1985 as a Vehicle Mechanic Apprentice at the Army Apprentice School, Bonegilla. After completing his apprenticeship, he entered the Royal Military College in January 1990.  Upon graduation in June 1991 he joined the Royal Australian Corps of Military Police. 

As a Junior Officer he served in a wide variety of training and command roles including the Australian Defence Force Academy as a Leadership Instructor. In 2000 he was deployed as a military observer for the United Nations Truce Supervision Organisation (UNTSO) mission in the Middle East where he spent 12 months working in South Lebanon. 

Upon return to Australia in 2001 he was promoted to major to command the 1st Military Police Company in Townsville. During this appointment he was heavily involved in the planning and execution of the border protection operation across the north of Australia and he was also deployed to Timor Leste (East Timor) on several occasions.           

In 2003 he was posted to Army Headquarters in Canberra before attending Philippines Army Command and Staff Course in 2004, as well as undertaking a stint as the Assistant Defence Attaché in the Australian Embassy. Upon return to Australia in 2005 he assumed the position of Senior Instructor at the Command, Staff and Operations Training Centre in Canungra.  Later that year he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel to assume the appointment as the Commanding Officer and Chief Instructor of the Australian Army Warrant Officer and Non Commissioned Officer Academy. 

In January 2008, after 23 years of regular Army service, Lieutenant Colonel Kingston transferred to the Army Reserve and was appointed as the Deputy Commander of the Land Warfare Centre, Canungra. 

Since that time he has undertaken specialist support roles in Defence’s Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group, Headquarters Forces Command and he is currently posted to Army Headquarters as a Liaison Officer. He has served the Australian Army overseas in representational and operational postings in the UK, Turkey, USA, Lebanon, Israel, Timor Leste, Cambodia and the Philippines.

Upon leaving full time service with the Army he held senior roles on major construction projects with Thiess, Bechtel and Origin Energy in a variety of operations, human resources and commercial roles. He is currently the President of the Gold Coast Legacy Club with an avid interest in veteran health and community issues.