David Fawcett is an Australian politician and Liberal Party of Australia member of the Australian Senate for South Australia since 2011. He was elected to federal parliament, serving for one term as member for the House of Representatives seat of Wakefield in South Australia in 2004.
Mr Fawcett was an officer with the Australian Army from 1982 to 2004. He was educated at Royal Military College, Duntroon and the University of New South Wales where he graduated in science. He trained as a pilot and became a helicopter pilot for 1st Aviation Regiment. He was involved in operations across Australia and Papua New Guinea. The next phase of his career was as a flying instructor, learning this role at the RAF Central Flying School in England. He served at the Australian School of Army Aviation and became Senior Flying Instructor for Utility and Reconnaissance Helicopters.
In 1993, Mr Fawcett returned to the UK, studying at the Empire Test Pilots' School to become a test pilot. He was posted to Royal Australian Air Force Aircraft Research and Development Unit (ARDU) at Edinburgh, South Australia as an Army helicopter test pilot.
He held a number of positions in ARDU and the Defence Acquisition Organisation, culminating in his final appointment as Commanding Officer responsible for flight test programs for all of the Australian Defence Force aircraft. He reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel before leaving the ADF to enter politics.
