In 1962 at the age of 18 he enlisted with the British Army's Welsh Guards, which he served with for 4 years. At the age of 22 he applied to join the Special Air Service Regiment, and having passed its selection course was transferred into it, and went on to have an extensive career with its squadrons for almost 20 years around the world, including in service in Northern Ireland during Operation Banner, Oman, Malaya, Africa and Latin America.