Cdr Amy Francesca Gilmore MBE RN
27th December 1983 - 12th July 2025
Amy Francesca Gilmore joined the Royal Navy in 2002 as a University Cadet Entrant, later graduating from Oxford University before beginning her career at sea as a Warfare Officer. From the outset she displayed the qualities that would define her life and career: quiet determination, natural leadership, and a genuine care for the people around her.
Her early service included appointments in HMS Iron Duke and HMS Ark Royal, where she earned a reputation as a dependable Officer of the Watch and a trusted teammate. Seeking new challenges, Amy later transferred to the Fleet Air Arm, qualifying as an Observer and serving on Lynx and then Wildcat helicopters. In the aircraft she acted as mission commander, working alongside the pilot while managing sensors, navigation, and operational decision making, often in complex and demanding environments.
One of the defining periods of Amy’s career came during the 2017 hurricane season in the Caribbean. Serving as Flight Commander during Operation RUMAN, she and her crew were among the first to reach devastated communities following Hurricanes Irma and Maria. Faced with scenes of widespread destruction, Amy helped lead life saving missions, delivering urgent supplies, evacuating casualties, and rescuing survivors from dangerous situations at sea. Her leadership, judgement, and calmness under pressure were recognised with a Queen’s Commendation for Valuable Service.
Further recognition followed when she was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire for her work introducing new weapon capabilities to the Wildcat helicopter force, ensuring they could be safely and effectively brought into operational service. Later, returning to her warfare roots, Amy served as Operations Officer in HMS Queen Elizabeth, where colleagues recall that alongside her professional excellence she was always willing to go the extra mile to support those around her.
Across the Fleet Air Arm and the wider Royal Navy, Amy became known not only as an outstanding officer but as someone people naturally gravitated toward. She combined professionalism with warmth and humour, making teams stronger simply by being part of them. Junior sailors and officers found in her a mentor who gave time generously, listened carefully, and quietly helped others succeed.
Away from work, Amy embraced life with the same energy she brought to her career. She loved the outdoors and thrived on adventure, enjoying climbing, skiing, cycling, and endurance challenges. With her husband Steve, also a naval officer, and their much loved dog Shackleton, she made the most of the friendships and opportunities that Service life brought.
Even during a long and difficult battle with cancer, Amy’s determination and spirit never faded. She continued to inspire those around her through her courage, humour, and refusal to let illness define her. Friends and colleagues remember her resilience, her generosity, and the way she continued to look out for others even during her own hardest moments.
Amy is remembered as an exceptional naval officer, a loyal friend, a devoted wife and daughter, and one of those rare people who leaves every place better for having been there. Her legacy lives on in the many lives she influenced, the people she supported, and the example she set of leadership, kindness, and strength.