Sgt 'H' Higgins
Royal Marines

Sgt ‘H’ Higgins passed out of commando training in 1983 and since then spent his entire service career in the Third Commando Brigade Royal Marines. His first draft was to K Company 42 Commando Royal Marines where he spent a very successful four years becoming AWT (Arctic Warfare Trained), JWT (Jungle Warfare Trained) and completed two tour in Northern Ireland. He joined 40 Commando Royal Marines, or ‘The Sunshine Boys’ as they were known at that time, and took part in a cross training exercise in the Mediterranean with Special Forces. Sgt Higgins enjoyed the exercise and experience immensely has very fond memories of Portugal! His return to the UK was followed by a draft to 45 Commando Royal Marines in Scotland. Sgt Higgins served ten years in 45 Commando qualifying as a sniper and JWI (Jungle Warfare Instructor).

During the Gulf War he was involved in Operation Haven where 45 Commando helped the Kurdish people return to their homes from the hills where they were taking sanctuary. Sgt Higgins returned to Belize, where he had undertaken his jungle training, for six months as a member of the last Operational Tour the British Forces carried out. He returned to the UK, suntanned and with just enough time to unpack his kit, before going back to Northern Ireland during the cease-fire. In 1998 the Corps called for Sgt Higgins’s professional skills at the Commando Training Centre Royal Marines where he served for two years prior to joining Headquarters Band Service.

During his two years at CTCRM he helped train over 210 men to successfully pass for duty. In his new post as one of the training team at the Royal Marines School of Music he is responsible for the daily instruction of the recruits in the skills that they need such as map reading, signals, field craft and weapon training he said “It is now my turn to help keep the skills and standards within the Corps with your sons and daughters”.