Bruce Kafer

Bruce Kafer
Born	1959 (age 57–58) Newcastle, New South Wales
Allegiance	Australia
Service/branch	Royal Australian Naval Reserve
Years of service	1977 – present
Rank	Rear Admiral
Commands held	Head Cadet, Reserve & Employer Support Division Director-General of the Australian Navy Cadets & Reserves Australian Defence Force Academy Combined Task Force 152/158 Hydrographic Service HMAS Leeuwin HMAS Flinders
Battles/wars	Iran–Iraq War Iraq War
Awards	Member of the Order of Australia Conspicuous Service Cross

Rear Admiral Bruce Kafer, AM, CSC (born 1959) is a senior Royal Australian Navy officer and former Commandant of the Australian Defence Force Academy, a position he held from December 2009 until December 2013. Kafer served as the Director-General of the Australian Navy Cadets and Reserves from December 2014 to December 2016, when he was appointed Head of the Cadet, Reserve and Employer Support Division.

Born in Newcastle, New South Wales, Kafer was admitted to the Royal Australian Naval College, Jervis Bay as a cadet midshipman in 1977. He subsequently trained on USS Chicago, HMAS Supply, HMAS Moresby and HMAS Swan before specialising as a Hydrographic Surveyor in 1982. As such, he served primarily aboard the survey ships Flinders and Moresby.

In 1986, he began an exchange with the Royal Navy, including senior Hydrographic Officer posts aboard HMS Fawn and HMS Herald, which included time spent in the Persian Gulf as part as British anti-mine efforts in the Iran-Iraq War.

Returning to Australia in 1992, he took up command of HMAS Flinders, and in 1994 was appointed as a Director of the RAN Staff College. After another period as a Hydrographic Officer, in 1997 he took command of HMAS Leeuwin upon its commission into the RAN. Late in 2000, he returned to the Australian Hydrographic Office to begin a four-year appointment as Commander of the RAN Hydrographic, Meteorological and Oceanographic Force Element Group.

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