Rear Admiral Anthony (Tony) Williams was born in Shropshire and joined the Royal Navy as a Warfare Officer in 1994.  Following training in HM Ships LEEDS CASTLE and BRILLIANT, he embarked on his first complement appointment as the Gunnery Officer of HMS SHETLAND, part of the Fishery Protection Squadron, enforcing EU Legislation within British Fishery Limits.

Tony completed Fighter Controller (FC) Training in 1999 and was subsequently appointed to HMS GLOUCESTER during which time the ship deployed to the Arabian Gulf escorting HMS ILLUSTRIOUS during OP SOUTHERN WATCH. He then joined 899 Naval Air Squadron before instructing at the Royal Navy School of Fighter Control in 2002.

Selected for Command, Tony returned to the Fishery Protection Squadron in 2004 as the Executive Officer of HMS TYNE, later qualifying as a Principle Warfare Officer (PWO) (Above Water) in 2007. Upon joining HMS IRON DUKE as PWO in 2008, the ship hosted Prince William for his Naval training and rendered significant Disaster Relief support to the Turks and Caicos Islands following the devastating effects of Hurricane Ike. Appointment to the Permanent Joint HQ at Northwood came next, where he had day to day responsibility for the operational delivery of the UK Counter Piracy effort and Counter Terrorism capacity building overseas.

Tony assumed Command of MCM2 Crew 7 in 2011 and immediately generated for NATO deployment to the Mediterranean in HMS LEDBURY whilst maintaining readiness as the UK contingent MCM. In Nov 2012, he transferred with the Crew to HMS HURWORTH and delivered a full UK programme before commencing generation for a Gulf Deployment. Following a period in a Cross-Government Unit responsible delivering UK Stabilisation efforts around the world, Tony was selected for promotion to Commander and further Sea Command in 2013 and returned to Command the Fishery Protection Squadron in 2014. Following ACSC he spent a short time as the Commander at the Royal Navy’s New Entry Training establishment, HMS RALEIGH, before an OPTOUR as Staff Operations Officer to UKMCC in 2017.

On return to the UK Tony was assigned to MoD’s Finance and Military Capability Division, in 2018, responsible for the Royal Navy’s Capability planning and coherence. Selected for promotion in 2019 he returned to Operations in the Gulf in 2020 before a return to MoD in the Space Directorate, designing the Defence Space Portfolio of capabilities post IR20. Tony joined the National Shipbuilding Office in Nov 2021 as Deputy Head for Delivery and was selected to return to Space as Head of Capability in UK Space Command in 2024, where he was responsible for delivery of the UK Space Command Portfolio, across ISR, C2 and Space Domain Awareness and Control of Space. Upon promotion to Rear Admiral in 2026, Tony has been selected as the inaugural Space Portfolio director within the National Armaments Director Group.

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