Anna-Lee Reilly

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Lieutenant General

Anna-Lee Reilly

CB FREng
Major General Anna-Lee Reilly (cropped).jpg
Birth nameAnna-Lee Shorters
Born (1974-12-31) 31 December 1974 (age 50)
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Branch British Army
Years of service1997–present
Rank Lieutenant General
Unit Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers
Battles / wars Iraq War
Alma mater Cranfield University
King's College London

Lieutenant General Anna-Lee Reilly (born 31 December 1974) is a British engineer and British Army officer. Her early career was spent with Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, as a staff officer, and then working for Defence Equipment and Support within the Ministry of Defence.

Contents

Early life and education

Reilly was born on 31 December 1974 in Exeter, Devon, England. [1] She studied information systems and management at Cranfield University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science (BSc) degree in 1996. [2] She later undertook two master's degrees: a Master of Science (MSc) degree in designing information systems at Cranfield (2006); and a Master of Arts (MA) degree at King's College London in defence studies (2012). [2] She is undertaking a doctorate at King's College London focussed on the integration of women into the British Army. [3]

Military career

Reilly joined the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in 1997. [4] She became interested in engineering after being commissioned to the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME). [4] She was commissioned in the REME, British Army, as a second lieutenant on 13 December 1997, with seniority in that rank from 10 December 1994, and was promoted the same day to lieutenant with seniority from 10 December 1996. [5] She was promoted to captain on 13 June 2000. [6] She was an assistant equerry to the Philip, Duke of Edinburgh between 2003 and 2008. [2] She was the first female engineering officer attached to the Household Cavalry Regiment, commanding a Light Aid Detachment that deployed with them during Op TELIC (Iraq War). [4] [7] Having attended Staff College, she was promoted to major on 31 July 2005. [8] She also commanded REME troops in Germany, Bosnia, and Kosovo. [4]

In 2013, Reilly was promoted to lieutenant colonel. [4] From 2013 to 2016, she was commanding officer of 4 Armoured Close Support Battalion REME. [2] Since then she has been responsible for the deployment of UK troops overseas. [4] In 2022, Reilly was appointed Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) Director of Operations. The Operations Directorate brings people together from across DE&S to increase the UK's ability to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine. [9] [10] Her team were recognised at the Government Commercial Function Awards in 2023 with the Best Team of the Year and the Overall 2023 Commercial Excellence Award. [9] In 2024, Reilly was awarded the Order of Merit (Ukraine) Third Class by President Zelenskyy

On 18 August 2025, Reilly was appointed Director General Core Delivery for DE&S and promoted to lieutenant general. [11] [12] She is only the second woman in the British Army and the sixth REME officer to reach the rank of lieutenant general. [7]

Reilly was appointed Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2024. [4] [13] In the 2024 King's Birthday Honours, she appointed Companion of the Bath (CB). [14] [15] [16]

References

  1. ↑ "Reilly, Lt Gen. Anna-Lee; CB 2024; FREng; Director General, Core Delivery, Defence Equipment and Support, since 2025". Who's Who 2026 . Oxford University Press. 1 December 2025. Retrieved 29 November 2025.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Article Reilly, Maj. Gen. Anna-Lee, (born 31 Dec. 1974), Director Operations, Defence Equipment and Support, since 2022". Who's Who 2025 . Oxford University Press. 1 December 2024. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  3. ↑ "Major General Anna-Lee Reilly CB FREng". raeng.org.uk. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 West, Lisa (23 September 2024). "Major General Anna-Lee Reilly honoured". UK Defence Journal. Archived from the original on 16 June 2025. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
  5. ↑ "No. 55026". The London Gazette (Supplement). 26 January 1998. p. 958.
  6. ↑ "No. 55928". The London Gazette (Supplement). 1 August 2000. p. 8454.
  7. 1 2 Colonel Iain Wallace (5 August 2025). "Corps News: Lieutenant General Anna-Lee Reilly CB FREng - Another promotion to 3*!". The Craftsman. 81 (7): 5. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  8. ↑ "No. 57718". The London Gazette (Supplement). 2 August 2005. pp. 9964–9965.
  9. 1 2 "DE&S Operations Directorate marks its one-year anniversary". Defence Equipment & Support. 2023-12-20. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
  10. ↑ "DESIDER: An Inside Look at Defence Equipment and Support" (PDF). 2024.
  11. ↑ "No. 64825". The London Gazette (Supplement). 19 August 2025. p. 16283.
  12. ↑ "Maj Gen Anna-Lee Reilly appointed DE&S DG Core Delivery". Defence Equipment & Support. 5 June 2025. Retrieved 6 September 2025.
  13. ↑ "Maj Gen Anna-Lee Reilly made Royal Academy of Engineering Fellow". Defence Equipment & Support. 2024-09-18. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
  14. ↑ "32 King's alumni honoured in King's Birthday Honours 2024". King's College London. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
  15. ↑ "DE&S staff recognised for services to defence in King's Birthday Honours list". Defence Equipment & Support. 2024-06-15. Retrieved 2024-09-25.
  16. ↑ "No. 64423". The London Gazette (Supplement). 15 June 2024. p. B2.
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