Life on the Line

2nd Commando Regiment veterans, friends and family share their memories of the late Tim Aplin. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Private Timothy Aplin was serving with the Special Operations Task Group when he tragically lost his life in a helicopter crash, on Monday 21 June 2010. Scott Palmer, Ben Chuck and a US serviceman also lost their lives i...

Alex Lloyd speaks with author Aaron Patrick about The Last Battle, his new book. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. A new book by Aaron Patrick details the actions in the Battle of Shah Wali Kot, from Chenartu to the village of Tizak. In conversation with his publisher, podcast host Alex Lloyd, Aaron details the heroism of the 2nd Commando Regiment...

Alex Lloyd interviews SAS veteran Harry Moffitt for a third time. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Anthony 'Harry' Moffitt served in the Australian Defence Force for almost thirty years, most of which was spent with Australia's elite Special Air Service Regiment as a Team Commander and Team Specialist. He has served in eleven active deployments,...

Alex Lloyd interviews World War II veterans Frederick and Marjorie Logan. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Frederick and Marjorie Logan are both veterans of World War II. Fred served in an artillery regiment and fought against the Japanese in the Battle of Slater’s Knoll, in Bougainville, 1945. After the war, he served in the NSW Police Force for...

Alex Lloyd interviews 2nd Commando Regiment veteran Scott Ryder, author of FORGED IN FIRE . Scott Ryder served for 22 years with the Australian Army, including 16 years as an operator with the 2nd Commando Regiment. He served in East Timor and multiple tours of Afghanistan and Iraq. He holds numerous commendations and a Masters of Business, and he works in veteran charities to improve the lives of...

Alex Lloyd speaks with the Chair of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, Nick Kaldas. On 8 July 2021, the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide was established by the Governor-General. After years of receiving testimony from veterans and other relevant witnesses, the Commission’s work is nearly over. An Interim Report was delivered in August 2022, and a Final Report i...

Alex Lloyd interviews SAS veteran Mark Wales for a third time.  Mark Wales is a veteran of the Special Air Service Regiment, and this is the SASR veteran's third appearance on the podcast. Alex Lloyd first interviewed Mark in 2018, Season 2, about his life in the military and life after service. In 2021, Season 5, Mark came back on the show to discuss his memoir, SURVIVOR: LIFE IN THE SAS and shar...

Alex Lloyd interviews SASR and 2nd Commando Regiment veteran Peter Rudland. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Peter Rudland is a veteran of the Special Air Service Regiment and the Commandos, 4RAR(Commando) and when they became the 2nd Commando Regiment. Over a long career in Special Forces, Peter deployed to Cambodia, Timor, Iraq and Afghanistan....

Tony Park interviews World War II veteran Peter Whitehead. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Peter Whitehead, born in 1923, is a veteran of World War II. He tried to join the Royal Australian Navy when war broke out but was rejected, instead becoming a ‘rough rider’ with the 2nd Remount Unit based at Holsworthy, in Sydney. After breaking in thousa...

Veterans of Season 7 share their stories of a Christmas in uniform. Life on the Line tracks down Australian war veterans and records their stories. Veterans of Season 7 share with the Thistle Productions team their experiences of Christmas in uniform, from deployments overseas and back home in Australia. Featured guests include John White, Rod Henderson, Mark Direen, Rebecca and Ashley Semmens, Ra...

Alex Lloyd interviews SASR veteran Doug Sheridan in the Season 7 finale.  Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Doug Sheridan is a veteran of the Special Air Service Regiment. He served for 33 years in the Australian Army, full-time and reserve. This included various deployments with the United Nations, the SASR and the Australian Federal Police to th...

Sharon Mascall-Dare interviews Namibia, Iraq and Timor veteran Doug Langrehr. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Doug Langrehr began his career, now spanning close to four decades, as an engineer in the Australian Army. He served on operations in Namibia, Iraq and Timor. His military career culminated in moving to New York to work with the United N...

Thomas Kaye interviews 2nd Commando Regiment veteran and dog handler Steve Moharic. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Steve Moharic is an Australian Army veteran. He was a paratrooper, a shooter in the 2nd Commando Regiment, and then a dog handler within the Commandos. He and his four-legged best mate Guge saw a lot together. Steve spoke with Thom...

Angus Hordern interviews Vietnam veteran and RSL NSW President Ray James. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Ray James is a veteran of the Vietnam War and is currently the President of NSW RSL. He served in the Royal Australian Navy on HMAS Sydney, the Vung Tau ferry. He was also on HMAS Melbourne when it collided with the USS Frank E. Evans in 196...

Alex Lloyd speaks with founder of the veterans charity Working Spirit , Army and RAAF veteran Karyn Hinder. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and tells their story. This is a bonus episode focused on the veterans-run charity Working Spirit, in a conversation with its founder. Karyn Hinder is an army and air force veteran with over 25 years of service. She has deployed to Ti...

Thomas Kaye interviews Afghanistan veteran Joel Sardi.  Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Joel Sardi is a veteran of the Australian Army. He served for 5 years and deployed to Afghanistan as a rifleman at 7 RAR. Shortly after coming home, Joel had an accident, leaving him as a C-5 quadriplegic. Joel spoke to Thomas Kaye over Zoom about his time in...

Sharon Mascall-Dare interviews Timor and Bougainville veteran, Lily Mulholland. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Lily Mulholland served in the Australian Defence Force for 24 years as a public affairs officer. She has deployed to Timor, Bougainville and the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games on Operation Gold. During her time in the army, she also underto...

Angus Hordern interviews Afghanistan veteran and Federal MP Phillip Thompson. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Phillip Thompson is the Federal Member for Herbert and an Australian Army veteran. He deployed to Timor and Afghanistan, and was blown up by an improvised explosive device. He represented Australia at the Invictus Games in 2014 and now r...

Alex Lloyd interviews navy veterans Rebecca and Ashley Semmens. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Rebecca Semmens served in the Royal Australian Navy for 18 years, and was medically discharged in 2020 at the rank of Chief Petty Officer. Bec was a medic, and deployed to Timor and Afghanistan. Her husband, Ashley Semmens, was a Clearance Diver, also...

Thomas Kaye interviews Special Air Service Regiment veteran Mark Direen.  Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Mark Direen deployed multiple times to Afghanistan as a member of the SASR. He experienced long range reconnaissance missions, more kinetic operations and was injured by an improvised explosive device. He also worked at the Australian Embass...

Sharon Mascall-Dare interviews army veteran Rob Manton. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Rob Manton served in the Australian Army for 30 years. His time in uniform saw multiple command appointments, an operational deployment to Iraq, and advisory and peacekeeping roles with the United Nations. Today, he’s the Chair of the Veterans Advisory Counci...

Angus Hordern interviews Afghanistan veteran and artist Mike Armstrong. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Michael Armstrong joined the Australian Defence Force in 1998 as an aircraft technician. He went on to serve as a signals officer, deploying with 2 RAR to Timor and with the 2nd Commando Regiment to Afghanistan. He was on the last plane out of...

Alex Lloyd interviews former sniper team leader Ryan Shaw. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Ryan Shaw joined the Australian Defence Force in 2006. During his 14-year career in the military he was a sniper team leader, deployed to Timor and Afghanistan, and worked in border protection. Today he’s the Director of Gaythorne RSL, in Brisbane, where h...

Angus Hordern interviews Army Aviation veteran Rod Henderson. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. Rod Henderson is an Australian Army veteran. He has served as an infantryman and in Army Aviation, working with Black Hawks and Chinooks, including as a door gunner. Rod has deployed on warlike and humanitarian operations to Timor, Pakistan, New Guinea...

Alex Lloyd interviews Vietnam War veteran John White. Life on the Line tracks down Australian military veterans and records their stories. John White was an officer in the Australian Army during the Vietnam War. He was decorated for outstanding gallantry in the 1968 Battle of Ngok Tavak in South Vietnam. In the first episode of Season 7, Alex Lloyd spoke with John at Gaythorne RSL in Brisbane. Thi...