Bruce joined the British Army's Parachute Regiment as a private in 1973 at the age of 17, and served with the regiment in Northern Ireland in the mid-1970s in Operation Banner. From 1978 he spent four years with The Red Devils Display Team, participating in test-jumping, international exhibitions and competitions. At the time of his death in 2002, with nearly 30 years in military and civilian parachuting, Bruce had logged over 8500 parachute jumps. His parachute log books show that he learnt his basic parachuting skills at Sibson Airfield, Peterborough from 1974 to 1978 prior to joining The Red Devils (Parachute Regiment) Display Team and achieved his D Rating in April 1979).