tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post8899327449181210889..comments2024-03-20T12:03:26.126+00:00Comments on Thin Pinstriped Line: Reasons to be positive about the Royal Navy - Part One (Training)Sir Humphreyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08704774192275240783noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-51256477716545931152015-03-03T03:52:37.748+00:002015-03-03T03:52:37.748+00:00Good article and a nice summation of the problem. ...Good article and a nice summation of the problem. My only problem with the analysis is given that much of the population joined the chorus of deregulatory mythology, given vested interest is inclined toward perpetuation of the current system and given a lack of a popular cheerleader for your arguments, I'm not seeing much in the way of change.<br />Desain Dapur Dan Ruang Makanhttp://rotatruckbr.blogspot.com/2015/01/desain-dapur-dan-ruang-makan-terbuka.htmlnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-83727392510009922902012-06-21T21:35:06.796+01:002012-06-21T21:35:06.796+01:00It should also be remembered that it is not an 80,...It should also be remembered that it is not an 80,000 man army it is an 80,000 man regular army, plus the TA and Regular Reserve, which will take the total force well over the 100,000 mark.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-56368476640530054032012-06-19T15:59:59.842+01:002012-06-19T15:59:59.842+01:00Jeez, Australia must be in trouble then....we have...Jeez, Australia must be in trouble then....we have 55,000 odd regulars and less than half that in Reserves with our own cuts in the pipeline...we still call it the ADF.<br /><br />A persistent argument, at least until the Australian Labor Party got into office in 2007 was that the RAN should not be involved in boarder protection. They wanted to create a seperate coast guard service with its own crews and vessels and aircraft, rolled in from other agencies and with some additional equipment purchases. It was argued the Navy shouldn't be involved in police operations, it was demoralizing for crews, it would release officers and enlisted personnel for assignment to larger warships and shore postings. <br />The counter argument was the RAN had been doing boarded protection since before the 1960s...they had the experience and training in this role. They were doing a damn good job. There seemed to be a perception since they were intercepting the boats they must be getting it wrong...sorry were they supposed to be sinking them (refugees)? But here was the argument nobody questioned.... The RAN had fewer than 14,000 personnel not counting a very small Reserve. The major elements consisted of (it varied depending what election year) 12 frigates, 6 submarines, 3 Amphibious ships and assorted support vessels. There were very few opportunities for junior officers to build up command and bridge experience in the RAN before going down a narrow funnel for billets on our surface combats...RAN ships had a far higher ratio of officers to men than on USN ships of similar displacement or roles. The only place to get that experience was on the 15 Fremantle Class Patrol Boats and thier subsequent replacements the 14 Armidale Class PBs, plus six MCMVs and six LCH. The transfer of the Patrol Force would have decimated the number of opportunities for junior officers to build up experience and confidence.<br /><br />The ALP came to power in 2007 and no further mention was made of removing the Patrol Boats from Navy control.<br /><br />I guess the point I'm trying to make or rather ask is whether there is a justifiable concern that with the fleet shrinking to its current size, are there going to be sufficiently trained and experienced officers for when the fleet bulges in 2020 with the new carriers.....or are you going to have officers leaving for where they feel more needed, with better prospects and potential new recruits take that potential elsewhere?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-58366146256515146862012-06-18T21:40:10.455+01:002012-06-18T21:40:10.455+01:00Where is the definition of this so-called 'sel...Where is the definition of this so-called 'self defence force'? I've never seen it anywhere official, but have often seen it wheeled out by people to decry the current round of cuts. I suspect its provenance can be found in the luggage compartment of the bus of WRNS currently en route to the NAAFI :-)<br />The other problem is that the UK can't afford to equip (or rather, politically has judged that other vote winning spending priorities take precedence) a 100,000 man army with new equipment. We can afford an 80,000 man army.Sir Humphreyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08704774192275240783noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-29052048681599070502012-06-18T21:36:16.541+01:002012-06-18T21:36:16.541+01:00Hurst - originally this was going to be a one off ...Hurst - originally this was going to be a one off article. I'd gotten to 1200 words, and realised that I'd still got a huge list of issues I wanted to work through, and thought it better to turn this into a part work (which over 260 weekly editions comes with a part to enable you to build your own non working civil servant ;-) )<br /><br />In terms of the waiting time, the demand is there to join now. Will this be here when the economy recovers and people look elsewhere? Possibly - but we have to think about how we offer credible long term careers to people beyond just doing a short time at sea. We need a lot of specialists, and the RN needs to be able to retain them for a long time. Right now staying in looks pretty good. Now try that again in 5-10 years time as industry reboots and people want good staff with RN skills and experience.Sir Humphreyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08704774192275240783noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-84832824635247390752012-06-18T21:33:20.483+01:002012-06-18T21:33:20.483+01:00Ianeon - I disagree on this. The problem isnt peop...Ianeon - I disagree on this. The problem isnt people not staying due to a lack of ships and operations. The problem is the reverse - ships are heavily committed and people need quality shore time to train, develop, and move forward.<br />The RN is busier than it has ever been - I see no sign of this changing. <br />However, one area where I do agree we have a possible issue is in the HOD / XO / CO billets, where you seem to get one job and thats your lot.I'll touch on this later on.Sir Humphreyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08704774192275240783noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-89472780427333454822012-06-18T20:19:27.440+01:002012-06-18T20:19:27.440+01:00This comment has been removed by the author.HurstLlamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01086351645473769872noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-51695250090571064102012-06-18T19:26:19.153+01:002012-06-18T19:26:19.153+01:00Having been involved in training both at Flag Offi...Having been involved in training both at Flag Officer Sea Training,at the MWS and abroad with other navies I agree wholehartedley with your article. Many people believe that our training pipeline is too long; especially for Seaman Officers. These arguments are based on other services and how long it takes to produce a front line Officer. One has to look at the equivelent Merchant Navy Officer who will be at College for 3 years and served time at sea. A Seaman Officer in the RN has to do all of this and deal with warfare aspects including running a small airfield on the stern. Having worked with other Navies they generally train in the same way as the RN, an exception being the USN, and this is reflected in the exchange positions that are taken up by RN officers in training exchange positions all around the world.<br />Another great post thanks Sir HumphreyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-64954376429091499342012-06-18T19:09:30.327+01:002012-06-18T19:09:30.327+01:00Same applies to the other two services, pretty goo...Same applies to the other two services, pretty good stuff.mikenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6254362504495980377.post-20230477650239713332012-06-18T12:20:43.960+01:002012-06-18T12:20:43.960+01:00Sir Humphrey,
Thanks for this interesting article...Sir Humphrey,<br /><br />Thanks for this interesting article and I look forward to your future ones in the series. <br /><br />I agree with pretty much all you said here especially about Naval selection procedures. It isn't easy to get into the RN these days, even as a rating, and for many trades there is a long waiting list - two to three years for the surface fleet. So the RN has no problem in getting good recruits in sufficient numbers and it trains them very well. The problem, as you touched on in your paragraph about BNRC and as Ianeon mentions above, is that the RN is just too small.<br /><br />Hopefully, you will deal with the size issue in later articles. What can a small (and probably still shrinking - the 2015 review is coming down the tracks) RN be expected to do and will it be enough?HurstLlamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01086351645473769872noreply@blogger.com