‘I don’t think anything should be off-limits’: female soldiers want as many women as possible to give it a go

L/Cpl Kat Dixon did not hesitate when asked what the worst thing was about being in a Challenger 2 tank with three men. “The smell,” she said.

Dixon, a gunner in the Royal Wessex Yeomanry, quickly added that you get used to it and actually, it wasn’t just down to the men. “You end up looking disgusting and you do smell. I contribute to the smell.”

Dixon, an army reservist, trained to be a medic but jumped at the chance to become one of the first women to apply for a job in a tank turret when the Ministry of Defence began phasing in the opening up of all roles.

“Someone said: ‘Do you fancy giving it a go?’ I thought: go on then – and it snowballed from there. I’m really glad I did it.”

Dixon was already super fit but admits that she was not looking forward to having to hoist a 40kg power bag to head height to prove she was strong enough.

“I was nervous I wouldn’t do it,” she said. “Adrenalin pulls you through. There’s no getting around physiology. Women have a different muscle make-up to men. It is challenging but you can do it if you put your mind to it.

“Women have to work differently. A lot of men could walk up to the bag and do it naturally. We have to think about it a bit more. It presents different challenges for women but they are not unsurpassable.”

Dixon is the first female gunner in her regiment. There are two other women, both tank drivers. She says her gender has been neither an advantage nor an obstacle.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Royal Army Medical Corps medic Cpl Vicky Helsby; Royal Wessex Yeomanry Tank Gunner reservist L/Cpl Kat Dixon; and Royal Army Veterinary Corps Dog Handler Pte Beth Johnson. Photograph: Ben Birchall/PA

“I’ve been accepted into my squadron, into the regiment. I’m just one of the lads really.” She does get the odd comment. “You deal with it, you throw it back at them. Most of the time it’s one of the guys who jumps in and says: ‘That’s out of order.’ The lads are behind you, you’re one of the family.

“I think as many women as possible should give it a go. If you can pass the physical fitness standards and have the necessary requirements, I don’t think anything should be off-limits.”

Second lieutenant Maddie Hudson, of the Royal Engineers, said it was exciting that all roles were being opened to women. “There is a whole lot of vigorous tests. If a female can pass them, there will be no difference between them and a male. It’s purely based on quality,” she said.

Hudson dismissed the argument that men might instinctively try to protect women personnel on the battlefield. “I feel we’ve had that scenario. We’ve had female EOD (explosive ordnance) people go out to Afghanistan. A female or male knows whoever is the casualty most in trouble has priority. That’s how we roll.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Second lieutenant Maddie Hudson, Royal Engineers: ‘There is a whole lot of vigorous tests. If a female can pass them, there will be no difference between them and a male.’ Photograph: Sergeant Steve Blake RLC

L/Cpl Anna Stanley, a member of the Royal Military Police’s close protection unit, spends much of her professional life keeping safe two-star generals and diplomats in the Middle East and north Africa. The training is tough and physically demanding but she says she is not treated differently to her male colleagues.

“The close protection unit is like a family, once you have passed the course you are part of the family. The guys don’t see me any differently. We all have our strengths and weaknesses, we all bring something different to the game.”