Justin Charlesworth

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Having joined Kestrel in 2020, Justin has brought his management experience gained within the international maritime, emergency response and Defence sectors to further enhance Kestrel’s position as a leader of specialist aviation services in Australia.

Having started his career in Sydney Harbour as a port agent, he moved to the Maersk Group where he embarked on a rapid rise through the group’s global equipment fleet organisation. Part of the Maersk International Liner Education (MILE) management program, he was able to gain significant experience to various parts of the business in strengthening his general management capability. With periods spent in various locations throughout the organisation, he gained a valuable understanding of global culture whilst collaborating on a range of specialist equipment development projects. 

After a short period away from the Maersk Group in the mining sector, he returned to head up the Oceania region marine salvage commercial activities (operating under the Ardent name), during which the organisation saw development of a Lloyd’s Register accreditation for its emergency response training and consistently high KPI scores for its contracted emergency towage contract with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA), of which Justin was the designated Contract Manager. 

Having been project manager on several significant marine casualty emergency response and wreck removal projects, Justin left Ardent to become the Assistant Contract Director for the Royal Australian Navy’s Fleet Marine Services Contract (FMSC), providing operational and asset management services for over eight hundred (800) marine assets, and a marine workforce nearly two hundred (200) personnel across six (6) locations.

He joined Kestrel as an experienced user of specialist aviation services and knowledge of client requirements in meeting project objectives that involve aerial assets.

He holds the following qualifications – Bachelor of Commerce, Graduate Certificate in Management, Graduate Certificate in Supply Chain Management, Certificates in Training & Assessment and Maritime Operations and ISM Internal Auditing; and is Six Sigma Yellow Belt Certified.