Cooking has long been a passion for Aircraftwoman Natasha Sharma. As a child growing up on the Gold Coast, she remembers watching her grandmother prepare food in the family kitchen.
“My grandmother was a trained chef, and I would love nothing more than being in the kitchen with the exhaust fan going, the sizzling pan and the scraping of the spatulas,” Aircraftwoman Sharma said.
Now she is getting to live out that passion as an Air Force chef with 13 Squadron, cooking high-quality, delicious food, at RAAF Base Darwin.
Knowing that each day in the kitchen is not the same is why Aircraftwoman Sharma enjoys her job so much.
“Once we have our early morning briefing we find out what meals we will be cooking or producing and then we’ll start preparing and cooking each element of those meals,” she said.
“It’s always fun when I get to learn different dishes that you might not ordinarily cook or know about. Being able to bring your own flare and twist to that dish and then serve it out to your ADF colleagues is really satisfying.”
The enjoyment and satisfaction Aircraftwoman Sharma feels each time she steps into the kitchen and prepares a meal from scratch is a reason why she loves being an Air Force chef.
“I enjoy preparing those foods and bringing out those dishes, making everyone feel warm and good inside. It’s like a big hug, so I love it.”
Fuelling aircraft is one thing, but fuelling the people behind the Air Force is just as important.
If you have a passion for cooking and aviation and want to combine the two, head over to and start your journey towards becoming a chef in the Air Force.
You can learn more about Aircraftwoman Sharma’s Air Force journey by watching her video on the channel.
