Brit beauty queen ditches catwalk to fight Taliban

LONDON - A 20-year-old Brit model has given up her glittering career to fight Taliban in Afghanistan.

She has joined RAF as an aircraft mechanic.

Stunning Jodie Millward, who was the Miss England semi-finalist, would be battling alongside Brit forces in war-torn Helmand Province in Afghanistan instead of walking the ramp.

She is following in her father Austin’s footsteps after he served in the force for 32 years.

The brunette flew out to Afghanistan on Remembrance Sunday - just days after modelling in a photo-shoot in London. er mother Theresa shared her feelings as she spoke from their home in Cropthorne, Worcs.

“She was very excited, but nervous. She said it was a job she had to do. Jodie is very brave, and her family is very proud of her. She had a photo-shoot with UK models in London last week, but instead of becoming a model she chose to join the Air Force instead. She said she would rather be a Forces sweetheart,” the Sun quoted Theresa as saying.

“I have been through all this before - my ex-husband was in the Forces and my son-in-law is in Afghanistan as well. I don’t watch the news these days, you don’t get the real story and they say things that will only worry you. I’m nervous and think about them all the time. I’m a mum at the end of the day and they are so young,” she added.

Jodie is a former Miss Evesham and Miss Pershore in her home county of Worcestershire.

She joined the Pershore 233 Squadron Air Cadets aged 13 and was named the Evesham Royal British Legion standard bearer three years later and was awarded the Commandant’s Commendation in June 2008, one of the highest accolades for cadets.

Last year she revealed she thought her military training would help with her beauty queen ambitions.

“The Miss England contest will be an enormous test of my professional abilities and personal qualities. The nine weeks I have just completed at Recruit Training Squadron will help immensely,” she said at that time.

Jodie’s dad Austin said he thought his daughter would be a great success in the Forces.

He said, “We are immensely proud of Jodie in whatever she chooses to do and are grateful to the RAF for allowing Jodie to continue with the Miss England contest whilst serving. She has chosen a career path very unusual for a girl. I believe an army recruit also took part so it was a real battle of the uniformed glamour girls.” (ANI)