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Keith Taylor RN
Captain Taylor joined the Royal Navy in May 1991 as a Weapon Engineer Artificer. Following technical training in HMS COLLINGWOOD and sea training in HMS NEWCASTLE he was Commissioned and joined BRNC Dartmouth in April 1994.
Following Initial Officer training and System Engineering and Management Course at HMS COLLINGWOOD, he was Appointed as the Deputy Weapon Engineer Officer in HMS RICHMOND. He saw the ship complete her first docking period and subsequent deployments to the Mediterranean (SNFM) and the US for Harpoon test firings and Sonar 2170 development trials. From 2002-2004 he was employed in the MCMV IPT, with oversight of MCM Command Systems and acceptance into service of NAUTIS 3 in the Hunt Class. In 2004 he completed the Guided Weapons MSc at RMCS Shrivenham and was subsequently employed within DSTL as a Military Advisor, primarily focused on small boat (FIAC) and ASM threats. Promoted to Lt Cdr in 2006, he joined the C4 and ISTAR Division (N6) in NCHQ in 2007, with responsibilities for Strategic Comms bearers, including Military and Commercial Satellite communications as well as the Defence HF Communications Service.
In 2009 he completed WEO Designate’s course before joining HMS ILLUSTRIOUS as Senior WE. He stayed with ILLUSTRIOUS through an extensive refit, her subsequent return to the Fleet and generation in to the LPH role on completion. In 2012 he joined PORFLOT as DSWEO, where he helped establish and embed the Force Generation Authority concept. Following this, he undertook a challenging 18 months as the WE Branch Manager in 2014, where he was heavily involved in the establishment of the Faraday programme and wrestling with the challenges of the manning shortages in the EGS cadre.
Promoted to Commander in 2014, he was assigned to the Navy Information Warfare Division (N6) in January 2015, where he worked with ISS and JFC to facilitate the delivery of IW systems into service. In 2017 he was selected to join HMS PRINCE OF WALES as her first sea-going Cdr WE, seeing her through the build process, commissioning trials and her acceptance into Service in February 2020. Assigned as SWEO to SURFLOT in Portsmouth in Apr 20 he helped embed new ways of working within the formed SURFLOT before joining HMS Collingwood in September 2020 as head of the WE Training Group.
Now in the Navy’s Develop Directorate as the Head of C5ISR, Captain Taylor has returned to the world of ‘N6’ and aims to help shape the vision for a digitised and network enabled Navy, delivering the communications and systems required to enable the future Maritime Operating Concept.
Captain Taylor lives in West Sussex with his wife Carol and two children. His interests include snowboarding, cycling, generally keeping fit and moonlighting as a taxi driver to meet his children’s weekend sporting schedule.