Ed Butler


Edward Adam Butler CBE, DSO is a former British Army officer who commanded Task Force Helmand.

Military career

Educated at Eton College and the University of Exeter, Butler was commissioned into the Royal Green Jackets in August 1984. He was mentioned in dispatches for his service in Northern Ireland in November 1991, received the Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service for his service in the Former Republic of Yugoslavia in Autumn 1997 and received the Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service again for his service in Sierra Leone in summer 2000.
He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his actions in Afghanistan as the commanding officer of 22 Special Air Service during 2001 and 2002. He became commander of 16 Air Assault Brigade in 2004, in which role he was deployed as commander of Task Force Helmand in April 2006. He went on to be Chief, Joint Force Operations at Permanent Joint Headquarters in December 2006 before retiring in December 2008, citing family reasons.
After leaving the British Army he became Chief Executive of Corporates for Crisis, a business providing advice for companies operating in difficult places, and then chairman of and latterly adviser to S-RM, an intelligence and risk consulting business. In July 2019 he was interviewed for a BBC Radio Four 'Analysis' programme; it stated he was Head of Risk Analysis at Pool Re.

Personal life

Butler is married with two children. He is the son of Sir Adam Butler MP and grandson of Conservative politician Richard Austen "Rab" Butler.