Flight Sergeant Sunita Aven
Flight Sergeant Sunita Aven, affectionately known as ‘Sunny,’ has had a diverse and fulfilling career in the Royal Air Force (RAF).
She was born and raised in Cardiff as the youngest of seven siblings. As a child, Sunny dreamed of becoming an actress, but that aspirations faded. She eventually pursued hotel management, but life had other plans.
Initially, joining the military seemed like an unattainable goal. It wasn’t a career path she had ever considered, but once she made the decision, she never looked back. Her father had reservations about her being a female and a female of colour, and that the military was not a place for an Indian female, and that she could face a lot of racism.
Sunny’s time in the RAF has taken her to various parts of the world, including the Falkland Islands. One of her most rewarding roles was as the welfare officer for phase one recruits at RAF Halton, where she mentored new recruits daily, helping them overcome challenges and guiding them to success brought her immense satisfaction.
In her current role as the HR analyst, Sunny works with a close-knit team of fellow flight sergeants. Her leadership role has also taught her the importance of valuing people as individuals. People are valued for who they are, for their knowledge, skills, and personality. This perspective is one of the most important lessons she believes she has learned during her time in the Service.
As a mother, Sunny has juggled raising her children with the demands of military life. Despite the challenges, she has made it work and actively encourages young people—especially her son and his friends—to consider a career in the military.
The RAF has offered Sunny a wealth of opportunities that civilian jobs often can’t match. From being posted to different locations to tackling a variety of responsibilities, every day brings something new, every day is a new adventure.
Sergeant Elloise Messam, Royal Air Force Police
Sergeant Messam was born in Coventry in 1995 and joined the Royal Air Force in 2015 and after basic Police training, her first posting was RAF Halton where she was employed in what was the General Policing Duties (GPD) section.
In 2017, Messam became a RAFP Ambassador and joined the RAF Ethnic Minorities (EM) Network, working with the Network promoting the RAF in schools. She was also interviewed for Black History Month, for No.10 Downing Street and represented the RAFP and the EM Network at the Festival of Remembrance on two occasions as well as at the Battle of Britain Service held at Westminster Abbey in 2020.
In 2018, Messam was posted to RAF Cranwell in Lincolnshire on General Policing Duties, before being seconded onto the Service Police Legacy Investigations Team, investigating historical war crimes, and being deployed on Op KIPION, as part of the Air Transport Security team in 2020.
In Oct 2020, Messam specialised within the RAFP and moved across to the Specialist Police Wing staying there for a year, before being posted on promotion to Substantive Corporal, in 2021 to RAF Wittering.
In 2022, Messam was awarded the Diversity and Inclusion Rising Star Award and was promoted to Sgt in 2024 and began her new role in Jan 2025.
Messam has represented the RAF Women’s Rugby League team in the 2019 and 2025 and has previously represented the RAF in Rugby Union. Throughout her career, she has had a variety of interests, including scuba diving and parachuting. Messam is currently undertaking a degree in Criminology and Psychology, alongside her career.