Zero Limits Podcast
Ep. 247 Eddie Robertson "Fast Eddie" 2nd Commando Regiment - Private Security Contractor
07 May 2026
Chapter 1: What is discussed at the start of this section?
Now, before we get started with the podcast, I just want to quickly plug the Zero Limits podcast merch. Now, every single sale that comes through, it definitely helps with the associated cost that keeps running this podcast. So jump on, grab some merch, the exclusive merch, and it helps the podcast move forward.
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Now, if you're in the military or security game, you're a first responder, the minimum standard is being the best you can be physically and mentally every single day. Don't be a liability. Anyway, let's get back to it. Let's go.
5-1-7-0.
It's time for the Zero Limits podcast, hosted by Australian veterans. Chatting with high-charging humans with hectic stories from around the world. We'll give you the motivation to take on whatever life throws at you and the kick to complete any goal you set your mind to.
Let's go. Zero elements listeners on today's journalist podcast joined in the Newcastle studio by a veteran of Australian Defence Force. Spent a bit of time as a choco transferred into the regular army, moving into 4IR. However, after a couple of years, after a Timor trip, Obviously the, you know, the post 9-11 Iraq kicked off and the contracting scene kicked off.
And we know that a lot of guys, the Troy Knights, et cetera, all moved into that contracting world because the money was exorbitant and they could take their samurai swords as well. And then obviously got back in the defense force more specifically for RAR, then obviously turning into two commando, a whole bunch of trips to Afghan and then back into the private security world. But how are you?
Thanks for having me, mate. I guess it's been a long time coming, but I've only just recently reinserted myself into the social media podcast realm and I'm here to have a yarn and have a few laughs. Yeah, mate. Yeah, spread the good word.
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Chapter 2: How does Eddie Robertson's military journey begin?
I mean, I'm 47 now and this was 10 years ago. So I'm this guy in his late 30s who's using these fucking – I thought they were just cool little pictures that helped tell the story. Not until my own kids are sort of saying to me, like I still send them to them in their text message. I've got teenage kids and they're like, Dad, that's so lame. You know what I'm saying? Stop using them.
Yeah, like –
But, yeah, but at the time I think, you know, a lot of people sort of thought, oh, you know, it's funny. Like, well, he's not trying to be funny but he's just sort of – I'd use the Australian flag, the crossed swords, the, like, raised yellow fist so it wasn't like a white fist or a black fist. It was just the yellow to denote, you know, like everyone, you know, like a fist up.
Um, I'd use like the, the, if it was about a guy that was cool, I'd use the dove, you know, like, and I'd brought like, you know, blue skies, like blue skies to the fallen. And I didn't like to use rest in peace, but I just wrote blue skies and I'd use the dove and to symbolize, you know, peace and all that. And, um, yeah, look, it was great.
And, and as, as we were talking to Scotty earlier, um, um, It became a bit of a juggernaut and I can't remember how, I think at one stage I ended up getting close to 20,000 followers and like I wasn't buying the followers or anything like that. It was just another guy that'd shout me out and help me boot and then I did a few podcasts and they'd shout me out and then it was building up.
But I'd get a lot of DMs and not the kind of DMs people are probably sitting there hoping I'm going to say, like not good-looking young women or anything like that.
Yeah.
A lot of the time it was just sort of young dudes that were, like, wanting to ask questions about joining the Defence Force, you know, like joining the Army. And you could tell by the way they'd written these messages that they – it was genuine inquiry and –
I sort of took it upon myself to reply to these guys and say, look, you know, if you're interested, you know, I'd always direct them to the Defence Force recruiting, you know, I'd do the right thing and I'd answer whatever questions I could.
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Chapter 3: What experiences did Eddie have during his first deployment in Iraq?
And I remember the first day I got there, I was looking around going, what the fuck are those blimps up in the air? You know, what do those blimps do? And then I realised what they were for. And, you know, first time you hear like a, you know, a counterfire artillery battery, you know, going off and you're like, is that incoming or outgoing?
You know, like it was just, it was a pretty steep learning curve. But yeah, look, you know, and... got on with it.
And there's still, like, US Air Force bombing raids going on. Like, this is the heightened period of fucking Baghdad.
Oh, it got worse, man. That's what I mean, yeah. Like, 04 and sort of 05, but then sort of towards the end of 05, 06, and it was just, yeah, it was just ramped up, man, and it was – It was fucking crazy, dude. Look, people can come on here and talk about it was a country that was in the height of a civil war, an insurgency against an occupying military force.
And looking back on it now, like Paul Bremer from the Coalition Provisional Authority, I think one of the biggest mistakes they made was
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Chapter 4: How did Eddie's perspective on military operations change after his experiences?
to get the Iraqi army and basically disband them.
Yeah, yeah.
You know, like change the head shed, change the leadership.
Yeah.
But the grunts on the ground, you know, the baggy-ass diggers and the truck drivers and the stormmen and all that, and I'll come on to the stormmen later, but like, you know, keep them on the books, you know. Yeah. Like, you know, say, look – Stay at home with your families, protect your families. We're figuring things out at the moment.
We're going to pay you the equivalent of, you know, $250 a month or whatever, enough so they can, you know, put petrol, benzene in their car, feed their family, you know, fucking whatever, like stay safe while they're figuring out what's. They just disbanded it. Oh, yeah. And if they did that here in Australia, I can guarantee cunts like you and I would be running around fucking wreaking havoc.
100%.
Yeah, like, you know, fuck you. Like, you know, if you want us to work with you, sure, we'll stay in the army. Like, you know, we'll defend our country. But if you're going to just treat us like scum and disband us and make us starve, then, yeah, we're going to kick off.
And that's what happened. Become a lawless state.
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Chapter 5: What unique physical training activities did Eddie experience in Afghanistan?
We have this SSM from Perth who's come over to be the CSM of the tag and he decides that he wants to run a parkour session for PT for the first day back around the Afghan village and the SFTF out the back of Holsworthy, like running around with like, you know, jumping off brick walls and fucking climbing up fucking fences and sliding down fucking fire escape poles and all this sort of shit.
And, yeah, look, whatever. I mean, different type of PT. You could call it battle PT. But, yeah, man, and hot and sweaty. And it was a – we had to climb up – run up the stairs of an external staircase on the back of the SFTF, 360-degree firing range.
climb over the banister, lower ourselves down and then basically like firemen slide down the fucking steel support beam holding up the fucking staircase. Whoever did the risk management fucking planning for that PT session, I'm not, look, but what happened was I fucking took a fall off the fucking first floor fucking staircase and
Went to slide down, lost my control and fucking came down on my left ankle and shattered it, man. Shattered the talus, talodome, had the tendon ripped off the bone. Straight away, fucking medic was there. It was actually Jez Holder, Jeremy Holder, MG. Yeah, yeah. He was the land platoon medic at the time. He's like, fucking hell, Robbo.
Chapter 6: How did Eddie's injury impact his military career and personal life?
Gets the ambo, gives me a fucking green whistle. Straight away I'm down to the fucking, to Brookline's Medical Centre and they're like, all right, we've got to get you into Liverpool for x-rays. And they're like, yep, you're going to be out of action for a while.
So then I have to have a fucking what's called a Brostrom reconstruction and, like, they do it with footy players all the time and they're numb. So I'm out of action. So all of 2008 you're out of action. Not all of 2008. Oh, yeah. Again, this is like the back thing, right? I didn't get on steroids this time.
So what happened was at the time, so then my old crew at Bravo Company, the new OC, spinning them up, and I ran into him one day just down, I ran into him, not going to say his name, but the boys will know who I'm talking about. And he's an old school Bravo guy and he's like, what are you doing with yourself now, man? You know, look, I heard you had an injury. You know, what's going on?
I said, look, I'm doing rehab. You know, I should be able to get back into the fucking land platoon, back into the teams, probably around about, you know, September, August, September. And he's like, what? why don't you come back to fucking Bravo? You know, we're going to get ready to go over there again, fucking 09, you know, rotation nine. And I thought, oh, yeah.
And I said, well, is there any chance if I do come back I can go in such and such's team? And he's like, oh, well, let me have a chat. I'll speak to the CSM and see if we can massage something. I'll send you a text. Well, later on that day, he fucking got a text from the OC and he's like, mate, we can facilitate that for you.
If you want to come, let me know and I'll have a chat to the fucking OC of the tag and we'll see if we can IPO you back down at Bravo. But you'd have to pass the fucking medical clearance in order to deploy again. So, and I did, I had to go and do like a fucking 10K route, my two laps around the ring road to prove to them that I could do it.
But that kind of bit me in the ass again later in life, man. I had to go and do another fucking recall on my left ankle because I rushed it. Of course. Yeah, but I ended up back in Bravo, back in fucking Quebec platoon, back in one section Quebec platoon with my old crew and back over there on rotation nine.
So back on the same team?
Well, the same call sign. Yep. but different TL who that TL, as I told you earlier, like Bertie was my youngest daughter's godfather. This TL is my oldest daughter's godfather. So very good friend of mine, someone who I also looked at. He was an ex-2RR recon but 2RR snipers that came down. So sniper team leader up in the battalion, you know, one of the original sort of CT snipers in the tag.
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Chapter 7: What were the family's wishes regarding the funeral?
We got him set up and then, yeah, obviously the next day we had his actual funeral and it was stipulated plain and clear, no politicians. Yeah. No politicians. So, you know, we had obviously the defence chiefs were there and that, but there was no one from Canberra was there, man. Yeah. Good.
Yeah, yeah, and I mean, look, yeah, it's just he wasn't the kind of guy that you would have a PR opportunity, you know, like at the, you know, and the guys that have had funerals where those people have been invited and welcomed by the families, that's great, you know, and families handle it however they need to handle it, but for Bertie, no, like it wasn't, yeah, it was just like, nah, like at the request of the family, you know.
And friends, no political figures to be in attendance and that was it, you know. So, yeah. And me and Bushy, we followed after the funeral, the boys, he was carried out of the church to Hell's Bells. I don't know whether you've seen. Yeah, yeah. And the Padre actually chose that song. Oh, yeah? Yeah, the one I was telling about, the Irish guy.
He's like, I've always actually been a fan of Hell's Bells. Yeah. You'll love this story. I've got to tell this real quick, man. So the RSM at the time, so I've flown up on my own volition, right, and, you know, I was. So I'm staying with the guys that are up there on official duty at a service department that the units put on or DCOs put on.
So I'm there, right, and I'm going to these meetings with the family and they're, you know, when the will was delivered and read, like, and Brendan, for example, he didn't understand. And I said, mate, he's left everything to you, man. Like, everything goes to you. And he broke down. He's like, he goes, oh, I don't know. You know, I can't believe he's done this for me, you know, like.
Because Cameron knew that Brendan was living a tough life, you know, and that's what he did for his brother. So I'm bouncing around and all that. Anyway, we decided, we sat down with the Padre and Cam's parents and decided to order a service. And Cam's favourite song was Thunderstruck. And so that had to be included in the, sorry, that had to be included. Shit, I know we're going pretty long.
No, no, no. And so anyway, we've sent the information back down. The RSM wanted, like not oversight, but he just wanted SA on what was going on. And it's like, yeah, we made the decisions on the songs. Anyway, next thing you know, the RSM's on the phone to the two boys that I'm with who were there on official duties. They're like... Look, yeah, just put me on speaker.
I just, um, I just want to have a chat to you guys about the, the lyrics of one of the song selections to be played at Cam's funeral. Um, and I've, I've actually like, I've highlighted the, uh, the lyrics in question and it was like thunderstruck, like, and he's like, you know, the thunder of guns tore me apart.
And he's like, I don't know whether or not that should be appropriate considering, you know, the circumstances in which Cam died, you know, he was killed in a gunfight. And I was like, nah, nah. And then the line where we went to Texas, we met some girls, some dancers that showed us a good time. LAUGHTER Look, I can understand the RSM.
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Chapter 8: How does Eddie address mental health and support for veterans?
Yeah, yeah.
Taking the fight to the enemy.
Yeah, yeah. That's the scenario that's played out over the last, that whole GWAT period. We've lost a good 2,000 to suicide. And it's not ending anytime soon, is it? No. That's the sad fact.
Yeah, and that segues into, you know, I guess how we'll probably finish this thing. We've been talking about mental health management and I guess, you know, for me at that period of time, you know, I was certainly running in the fucking red line and hard. The marriage breakdown. Yeah. Well, that hadn't come at that stage. I was still fucking still trying to salvage things.
Which is probably your worst thing too because you're – Yeah, you're trying to salvage but it's not working and it's just – Yeah, look, you know, man.
We've all been there.
Yeah, we've all been there, mate. So we all know the feelings that go through something like this, especially when children are involved.
100%, mate.
That's probably the worst part.
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