Chief Warrant Officer Johnny Ellis enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces in Montreal, Quebec, June of 1989 as an Infantry soldier with the Black Watch Army Reserve. He then transferred in August of 1994 to the Regular Force as a Combat Engineer (Sapper).
His assignments include: 5e Régiment du Génie de Combat (5 RGC) in Valcartier, Québec (1994-2004); Special Forces (JTF 2) in Ottawa, Ontario (2004-2014); Joint Counter Explosive Threat-Task Force (JCET-TF) in Ottawa, Ontario (2014-2017); Special Forces, Canadian Special Operations Training Centre (CSOTC) in Petawawa, Ontario (2017-2018); Canadian Army Advance Warfare Centre (CAAWC) in Trenton, Ontario (2018-2020); Canadian Forces Intelligence Group Formation (CF Int Gp) in Ottawa, Ontario (2020-2023); Canadian Army (COS-Strat) Special Projects in Ottawa, Ontario (2023-2024); his current assignment is Command Senior Enlisted Leader (CSEL) of NATO Allied Land Command in Izmir, Türkiye.
His operational experience include: 8 domestic named operations and 7 overseas deployments. United Nations Peace Keeping (UNFICYP) mission in Cyprus (1990); United Nations Peace Keeping (UNPK) Visoko, Bosnia (1995); Afghanistan (ISAF) (2004); Afghanistan (Op Enduring Freedom) (2007) and (2009); Papua New Guinea (Op Render Safe) (2014); and Ukraine, (Op Unifier) (2015).
His military education include: Qualification Level 3 (QL3) Cbt Eng (94) in Chilliwack, British Columbia; QL5 (96); Combat Leader Course (1997); Section Commander Course (2001); Troop Warrant Course (2008); Intermediate, Advance and Senior Appointed Leadership qualifications in St-Jean sur Richelieu, Quebec; Officer Professional Military Education program (2010); Command Team course (2017) in Kingston, Ontario; National Security Programme Senior enlisted, (2020); Command Senior Enlisted Leader course with the Baltic Defence Collage (2021); and Algonquin College, Certificate in Defense and National strategies.