Joining the Royal Navy in 1972 aged 15, Billy Bean served in a variety of surface warships as a seaman and radar plotter. Progressing through the ranks he was decorated for his service in the Falklands War of 1982 and was commissioned in 1985 at Britannia Royal Naval College Dartmouth before returning to sea to gain his Bridge Watch-keeping and Ocean Navigation certificates. Later qualifying as a Principal Warfare Officer specialising in anti-surface warfare he served in destroyers and aircraft carriers and again, saw action in the Gulf War of 1991.
Leaving the Service in 1998 as a Lieutenant Commander, Billy was appointed as a Training Manager for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) with the main role of managing the Institution’s full mission simulator at the headquarters in Poole Dorset. In addition to this he managed a fleet of mobile training staff deployed throughout the institution.
Gaining a Certificate in Further Education and Training from Bournemouth College in 2005, and later a Certificate of Education, he was appointed as Senior Lecturer (Simulation) at Warsash Maritime Academy in 2007 lecturing on short courses. Following a period of study, he was awarded a Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Post Compulsory Education and Training and was appointed as Principal Lecturer (Simulation) in August 2009.
About to embark on further studies for a master’s degree, Billy is a keen archer and lives with his wife and two young children in Hampshire.