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Apprenticeships: My path to success
24th Jun 2026
Aaron Cobb, winning accolades for his warship work
When I was 16, a team from Fleet Maintenance & Repair Organisation, later BAE Systems, came to my school to talk to us about apprenticeships, specifically warships. There’s something mesmerising about vast grey ships fitted with missiles and guns, so I took the application pack home.
Little did I know that that single decision would set me on a 30-year career supporting the ships of the Royal Navy.
In 1997, I began my apprenticeship as a plater/fabricator in Portsmouth. It gave me the opportunity to continue my education while learning a skilled trade on the job. Over the next three years, I worked on a wide range of platforms including CVS, Type 22/23 frigates and Type 42 destroyers, and was able to experience other parts of the business, including procurement, planning and design. It was there that something clicked: I realised I wanted to understand why