Vice Admiral Tim Barrett retired from the Royal Australian Navy in 2018 after a 42 year career. In his last role, as Chief of Navy and professional head of the Service, he progressed plans to regenerate Navy capability which is manifest in the National Ship Building Plan and contracts for new submarines, frigates and patrol boats. He now advises on a broad range of maritime issues to government and industry and sits on a number of related boards.

In uniform he initially trained as a mariner but later specialized in aviation. Serving at sea and ashore, he gained extensive command experience at all ranks but most notably as the Commander of the Australian Navy Aviation Group, Commander Border Protection Command and Commander of the Australian Fleet. He also has broad experience in staff positions dealing in capability development and personnel management.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Politics and History and a Masters of Defence Studies, both from the University of New South Wales, and has completed the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School. In early 2017 he published ‘The Navy and the Nation: Australia's Maritime Power in the 21st Century’ in which he outlined the extensive opportunities for Navy and Australia as steps are taken to implement the planned investment in naval capability outlined in the Defence White Paper 2016 and the National Shipbuilding Plan over the coming decades.