When Lieutenant Zane Teh, a member of 16th Aviation Support Battalion (16 ASB), enlisted in the Army, it marked an almost seamless transition from higher education into a military profession.
The 24-year-old from Melbourne joined the Australian Defence Force courtesy of a program that supports students financially in exchange for full-time service upon graduation.
Defence University Sponsorship (DUS) covers tuition fees for accredited degrees and pays an annual salary in return for an equal number of years spent in uniform plus one, with a three-year minimum.
Lieutenant Teh heard about DUS in high school while attending a university open day, and took up the offer two years into an Aerospace Engineering degree at Monash University.
"Army paid for the final two years I was at university, which meant I only had two years' worth of HECS [Higher Education Contribution Scheme] debt," Lieutenant Teh said.
"I'd always been interested in the military and had a passion for engineering, so it was a natural progression.
"I'd 100 per cent recommend it. There was lots of admin to begin with, but the benefits are excellent and you're guaranteed a job in the field that you've studied in. It gives you that vocational surety."
Lieutenant Teh's initial posting was to the Royal Australian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers Aircraft Maintenance School at Oakey.
"I did most of my employment training in that first year and got to do multiple courses including SSO [specialist service officer] and LOBC [logistics officer basic course]."
In 2025, he posted into 16 ASB at Townsville as a learning engineering officer (LEO). The unit was created earlier that year to concentrate maintenance and logistics operations for Army Aviation's growing fleet of helicopters.
With on-the-job experience and training, Lieutenant Teh will become a qualified electrical and mechanical engineering aviation officer, overseeing a team of technicians that support the design, testing and maintenance of the CH-47F Chinooks and AH-64E Apaches.
'I'd 100 per cent recommend it ... the benefits are excellent and you're guaranteed a job in the field that you've studied in. It gives you that vocational surety.'
A member of 5th Workshop Company, his current duties revolve around the technical management of aircraft servicing and repair.
"Basically it's all about looking after the people who fix the aircraft. It's a bit like being a project manager," Lieutenant Teh said.
"We do deep-level maintenance, the kind of work that can take weeks to complete. It is my job to do the technical reports on defects or damage, which then go to the Cargo Helicopter Maintenance Unit in Brisbane, which provides technical advice as required.
"In many ways I act as the middle man. If the tradies have a problem they can't deal with, I write it up and send a report to the SPO [System Program Office] and they come back with instructions on how to fix it."
When he isn't in the workshop, the Malaysian-born LEO is a regular at the athletics track in his secondary role as the unit sports officer.
Having completed the ADF fitness leaders' course, he helps conduct personal training sessions and encourages participation in Defence sporting competitions.
"I'm not really that sports-minded, but I'm very fitness-focused," Lieutenant Teh said.
"Strength training is something I really enjoy and I spend lots of time in the gym."
He recently earned the skills-at-arms badge for marksmanship, something not common in the aviation space.
"It came up as an opportunity last year. It meant a couple of weeks at the WTSS [Weapons Training Simulation System] and training serials with some good coaching. Then we spent three days on the range and I got the badge on day three," Lieutenant Teh said.
Somehow, he has also found time to study for a Master's of Systems Engineering through the Australian Defence Force Academy's postgraduate scheme, a part-time online course delivered by UNSW Canberra.
