Author Topic: British Military Current Events (Read 184196 times)

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1350 on:** January 17, 2012, 00:13:03 »

MoD to announce second round of armed forces cuts

The Ministry of Defence is to announce its plans for a second round of redundancies in the armed forces later.

The job losses will account for some of the cuts already announced under the government's defence review.

The Army is expected to announce up to 3,000 redundancies, the RAF up to 1,000 and the Royal Navy 500. The Gurkhas are expected to lose up to 400 personnel.

The MoD said difficult decisions had to be taken to deal with the "black hole" in its budget.

Under the terms of the Strategic Defence and Security Review, the navy and the RAF have to cut 5,000 jobs each by 2015.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-16588436

Journeyman · « **Reply #1351 on:** January 17, 2012, 00:28:50 »

Quote from: daftandbarmy on January 17, 2012, 00:13:03

The Army is expected to announce up to 3,000 redundancies, the RAF up to 1,000 and the Royal Navy 500. The Gurkhas are expected to lose up to 400 personnel.

Under the terms of the Strategic Defence and Security Review, the navy and the RAF have to cut 5,000 jobs each by 2015.

So the RAF and the RN are making minimal cuts now, in the hopes that the government says, "just kidding" over the next three years?

The article also says the Army is to "reduce its total fighting force by 100,000 to 82,000 by 2020." That's a brutal number. Is "fighting force" just the combat arms?

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1352 on:** January 17, 2012, 23:32:44 »

Iraq: ex-SAS soldier faces inquiry over 'Saddam Hussein statue's buttocks'

A former soldier has been interviewed under caution after seizing part of Saddam Hussein's statute in the wake of the Iraqi dictator’s downfall, it has emerged.

Nigel "Spud" Ely, a former member of the SAS, was guarding a camera crew while they filmed jubilant Iraqis pulling down the giant statue in Baghdad in April 2003.

While protecting the crew the 52 year-old up took part of the bronze statue that formed part of the tyrant's backside.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iraq/9019711/Iraq-ex-SAS-soldier-faces-inquiry-over-Saddam-Hussein-statues-buttocks.html

Jim Seggie · « **Reply #1353 on:** January 18, 2012, 07:26:44 »

Quote from: daftandbarmy on January 17, 2012, 23:32:44

Iraq: ex-SAS soldier faces inquiry over 'Saddam Hussein statue's buttocks'

A former soldier has been interviewed under caution after seizing part of Saddam Hussein's statute in the wake of the Iraqi dictator’s downfall, it has emerged.

Nigel "Spud" Ely, a former member of the SAS, was guarding a camera crew while they filmed jubilant Iraqis pulling down the giant statue in Baghdad in April 2003.

While protecting the crew the 52 year-old up took part of the bronze statue that formed part of the tyrant's backside.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iraq/9019711/Iraq-ex-SAS-soldier-faces-inquiry-over-Saddam-Hussein-statues-buttocks.html

I reckon that people have nothing better to do than screw over others.

Towards_the_gap · « **Reply #1354 on:** January 18, 2012, 11:22:04 »

Quote from: Journeyman on January 17, 2012, 00:28:50

So the RAF and the RN are making minimal cuts now, in the hopes that the government says, "just kidding" over the next three years?

The article also says the Army is to "reduce its total fighting force by 100,000 to 82,000 by 2020." That's a brutal number. Is "fighting force" just the combat arms?

I think that may have been a typo. Unless they are including TA numbers, when I left the Regular Army numbered just around 107000 and change. And yes, this includes all Army personnell, there are nowhere near 82000 combat arms.

Oldgateboatdriver · « **Reply #1355 on:** January 19, 2012, 15:04:09 »

From the naval side, the first round of cuts of 500 are probably not a reflexion of any "wait and see if they were just kidding" attitude.

More likely, the redundancies are just expected to occur on an ongoing basis as part of fleet modernization: Each Astute that replaces a Trafalgar requires about 30 less seamen, each Daring that replaces a type 42 reduces manning requirements by 85 to 110 seamen, the type 26 (or whatever frigate), when they come on line, will each reduce manning per frigate by about 50 as compared to the Duke's. Keeping only one Queen Elizabeth operational at any time after all Invincibles are retired will reduce manning requirements by more than a thousand. It's just a matter of time for the "redundancies" to come in for the Navy.

Kirkhill · « **Reply #1356 on:** January 20, 2012, 00:54:27 »

Fun and Games on the River Thames

The Oxford-Cambridge boat race will never be the same again.

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1357 on:** January 20, 2012, 02:18:17 »

Quote from: Kirkhill on January 20, 2012, 00:54:27

Fun and Games on the River Thames

The Oxford-Cambridge boat race will never be the same again.

I'm sure that few will be able to detect the 'real' security operation, and this is all a bit of a show for the world, but I like the thought of a Royal Marines team taking out a KPMG boat.

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1358 on:** January 20, 2012, 03:29:11 »

Whoa, who set the dial on the time machine to 1986? At least it was thoughtful of them to phone first...

Bombs detonate in suspected IRA attack in Londonderry

Two bombs planted by Irish Republican Army dissidents detonated on Thursday night in the Northern Ireland city of Londonderry, but no injuries were reported as police quickly evacuated the area following phoned warnings.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/northernireland/9026686/Bombs-detonate-in-suspected-IRA-attack-in-Londonderry.html

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1359 on:** January 21, 2012, 16:37:15 »

The Obama administration knifes Britain in the back again over the Falklands

In yet another display of disdain for the Anglo-American Special Relationship, the Obama administration has weighed in on the mounting tensions between Great Britain and Argentina over the Falkland Islands. Just two days after Prime Minister David Cameron issued a robust statement in the House of Commons vowing to defend the sovereignty of the Falklands, the US State Department has undercut Britain yet again with a deeply unhelpful statement that plays into Argentina’s hands.

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/nilegardiner/100130943/the-obama-administration-knifes-britain-in-the-back-again-over-the-falklands/

jollyjacktar · « **Reply #1360 on:** January 21, 2012, 16:46:55 »

Full story/photos at link. Shared with the usual caveats.

Soldiers declare war on 'healthy' rations and go into battle in Afghanistan on empty stomachs

By Ian Drury

Napoleon famously declared that an Army marches on its stomach. But soldiers serving in Afghanistan are going into battle hungry because they refuse to eat the ‘disgusting’ food in their revamped ration packs. Troops are unhappy that ‘good old British’ meals such as sausage and beans and Lancashire hotpot have been replaced by salads, muesli and strawberry porridge. The contents of the ration packs were changed in 2009, supposedly to make them more palatable for young squaddies. But one sergeant deployed in Helmand province said his men were so put off by the healthier ‘rat packs’ that they regularly gave half of them away.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2089706/Soldiers-battle-Afghanistan-stomachs.html

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1361 on:** January 23, 2012, 16:08:54 »

Quote from: jollyjacktar on January 21, 2012, 16:46:55

Full story/photos at link. Shared with the usual caveats.

Soldiers declare war on 'healthy' rations and go into battle in Afghanistan on empty stomachs

By Ian Drury

Napoleon famously declared that an Army marches on its stomach. But soldiers serving in Afghanistan are going into battle hungry because they refuse to eat the ‘disgusting’ food in their revamped ration packs. Troops are unhappy that ‘good old British’ meals such as sausage and beans and Lancashire hotpot have been replaced by salads, muesli and strawberry porridge. The contents of the ration packs were changed in 2009, supposedly to make them more palatable for young squaddies. But one sergeant deployed in Helmand province said his men were so put off by the healthier ‘rat packs’ that they regularly gave half of them away.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2089706/Soldiers-battle-Afghanistan-stomachs.html

Many moons ago I was a victim of some experiments designed to 'improve' the British Army's food. The replacements were as appalling as the old stuff. 20/20 hindsight is that they should buy IMPs!

Ultimately, we recommended that we feed troops fresh rations whenever possible. And in the battalion I made sure that happened with my Coy. To go on for weeks with just hard rations is ridiculous, unneccessary in this day and age, and a failure of leadership and logistics..... even in 'operational' conditions, which is sometimes a poor excuse for bad leaders to NOT get the troops hot food and mail.

jollyjacktar · « **Reply #1362 on:** January 23, 2012, 16:40:41 »

I once deployed with the Brigade to Wainwright for a Springtime exercise. There was a surplus of breakfast IMP which were starting to get near their expire dates. In order to correct this defect, that is all we were issued for breakfast, lunch and dinner for several weeks. And this was back in the days of lung in a bag too.

I did read the story in full and agree that some of the new menu items sound like shyte. But, some not too bad. Mind you, a soldier needs a hot breakfast option if that is the way they want to go. Idiotic to take that away from them especially if they seem to be more or less happy with the satus quo.

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1363 on:** January 24, 2012, 14:30:54 »

The incident in the video game happened when I was in Crossmaglen on a recce for our upcoming tour. They shot down a Lynx. No casualties, apart from the egos and underwear of some flashy AAC pilots!

ITV slammed by watchdog for passing off clip from a VIDEO GAME as footage of IRA attack on British helicopter in flagship news show

ITV has been strongly criticised by the TV watchdog and found to be in breach of broadcasting rules for mistakenly claiming that a scene from a video game was footage of an IRA attack.

Viewers complained after the programme, Exposure: Gaddafi And The IRA, described the footage as an IRA film of IRA members attempting to shoot down a British Army helicopter in 1988.

ITV later confirmed that the footage was taken from the internet, and was in fact from the video game Arma

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2090767/ITV-slammed-watchdog-passing-clip-VIDEO-GAME-footage-IRA-attack-British-helicopter-flagship-news-show.html#ixzz1kPDJwDMh

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1364 on:** January 25, 2012, 00:17:51 »

Radio Times apologises after accidentally printing indecent Royal Marines photo

Radio Times' bosses have issued an apology after the current issue accidentally included an indecent photograph.

The 28 January - 3 February issue of the listings magazine, that has just been published, features a photograph of a group of Royal Marines in which one Marine is exposing a part of his anatomy.

The magazine's staff failed to notice the rogue body part, which was in an image promoting a new Channel 5 documentary series.

However, eagle-eyed readers were quick to point out the error with one writing: "I know that British soldiers serving in Afghanistan are well equipped, but seeing the roll call of Royal Marines gives the expression a whole new meaning.”

An apology on radiotimes.com said: "It has come to our attention that an apparently innocent photo of the Royal Marines’ 42 Commando unit – printed by Radio Times in good faith and issued by Channel 5’s publicity department to promote the documentary 'Royal Marines: Mission Afghanistan' – contains the sight of one of the marines playing a prank.

"What we took to be the marine’s finger proved, on closer inspection, to be another part of his anatomy."

http://uk.tv.yahoo.com/radio-times-apologises-after-accidentally-printing-indecent-royal-marines-photo.html

PMedMoe · « **Reply #1365 on:** January 25, 2012, 00:33:44 »

The picture at the link should be larger.

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1366 on:** January 26, 2012, 17:20:04 »

Quote from: PMedMoe on January 25, 2012, 00:33:44

The picture at the link should be larger.

More like the 'subject' of the picture should be larger....

I'm suprised that no ladies lingerie is in sight.

PMedMoe · « **Reply #1367 on:** January 26, 2012, 18:12:15 »

Quote from: daftandbarmy on January 26, 2012, 17:20:04

More like the 'subject' of the picture should be larger....

Nope. I'm more interested in the pecs and abs.

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1368 on:** January 27, 2012, 17:40:50 »

General David Richards: Afghan campaign was woeful

Britain's most senior military officer has said the military move into southern Afghanistan was “amateurish” and “verging on the complacent” and accused ministers of failing to learn lessons from Iraq.

Gen Sir David Richards, the Chief of the Defence Staff, is also highly critical of Nato’s command structure in Afghanistan, describing it in a new book as “disorganised and unhelpful”.

His remarks highlight the infighting and political turmoil that surrounded Britain’s military deployment to Afghanistan in the summer of 2006. Whitehall was caught off guard by the seriousness of the situation in Helmand province, where British troops were deployed in Nato’s reconstruction programme.

Most Labour ministers supported the view of John Reid, the defence secretary at the time, that “we would be perfectly happy to leave in three years’ time without firing one shot because our mission is to protect the reconstruction”.

Intelligence assessments conducted in southern Afghanistan concluded that they would receive a hostile reception.

“It was the equivalent of moving another gang into the East End of London,” one officer reported to London. “They [the Taliban] weren’t going to like it.” A detailed account of the military and political infighting during the deployment is in a new book by Sandy Gall, the ITN presenter who also runs a charity to provide Afghan victims of roadside bombs with artificial limbs.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/defence/9045079/General-David-Richards-Afghan-campaign-was-woeful.html

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1369 on:** January 30, 2012, 11:39:08 »

Mess with the Bull, you get the Horn:

'Bloody Sunday was poison. Finally our city is moving on'
On the 40th anniversary, the shootings still divide Londonderry. David McKittrick meets those looking forward – and back

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/bloody-sunday-was-poison-finally-our-city-is-moving-on-6296574.html

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1370 on:** February 01, 2012, 00:11:14 »

Army to cut 20,000 jobs two years earlier than expected

General Sir Peter Wall says the army will speed up its redundancy programme by cutting the posts by 2018

The army is to speed up its redundancy programme by axing 20,000 posts by 2018, two years earlier than expected, it has emerged.

The admission from General Sir Peter Wall, chief of the general staff, raises the prospect that more troops will face compulsory redundancy because the army will have less time to rely on "natural wastage".

In a speech in which he set out the challenges faced by the army, Wall conceded he could not guarantee the job cuts had come to an end, though he made clear the changes already demanded of the military were "challenging enough".

He admitted recent conflicts had raised "awkward legal, ethical, human rights issues and equipment issues" and that these had encouraged "an expectation … that the sort of zero-risk culture that is understandably sought in other walks of society ought to be achievable in the battlefield".

But he added: "It will be interesting to see how this plays out in a fast-moving crisis."

Wall is overseeing the fundamental restructuring of the army as it shrinks to a full-time force of 82,000 and gradually winds down its involvement in Afghanistan to re-equip itself for contingency operations.

The army is accelerating the redundancy programme because it does not want to prolong the pain of downsizing, but Wall said it was up to ministers to decide whether more cuts were necessary.

"We are marching to the orders we have been given," he told an audience at the International Institute for Strategic Studies thinktank.

"We are not just designing an army that will come down to 82,000 regulars and 30,000 reservists, we are designing to a cost. I cannot predict the situation. The government may or may not ask us to make more manpower savings.

"But frankly what we have to do between now and 2018 is challenging enough for us and it is going to take us some time to get there. As far as I can tell that is where the government wants us to be."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2012/jan/31/army-cut-jobs-earlier-expected

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1371 on:** February 07, 2012, 00:48:18 »

British Infantry Reject New Combat Uniforms As Too American

January 3, 2012: Britain recently introduced new combat uniforms for their troops in Afghanistan. The new uniforms were not popular. There were many complaints, most of them having to do with the new uniforms being too baggy and making the troops look like children's action figures. More to the point, the uniforms looked too much like American ones. Even more to the point, the blouse (shirt) is worn outside the pants, while British troops like a belt or, as some have suggested, at least a drawstring around the waist. The troops also did not like the use of Velcro in the new uniforms. The Ministry of Defense backs the new uniforms because they are a better match for the new body armor that was introduced three years ago.

http://www.strategypage.com/htmw/htmoral/articles/20120103.aspx

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1372 on:** February 11, 2012, 10:41:44 »

Let him die in jail: Real IRA terrorist who gunned down soldier in cold blood jailed for 25 years despite terminal illness

Judge says Brian Shivers' cystic fibrosis should not influence the sentence
Shivers was part of a gang that killed two soldiers outside army barracks in Northern Ireland
Judge: Attackers wanted to kill 'determined to kill as many soldiers as they could'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2099363/Brian-Shivers-jailed-25-years-army-barracks-killings.html#ixzz1m5XL7qBI

daftandbarmy · « **Reply #1373 on:** February 14, 2012, 00:41:21 »

Sean Penn accuses Britain of 'colonialism' over Falklands

Sean Penn has accused Britain of colonialism and urged the government to open negotiations with Argentina over the Falkland Islands.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/falklandislands/9080473/Sean-Penn-accuses-Britain-of-colonialism-over-Falklands.html

ArmyVern · « **Reply #1374 on:** February 14, 2012, 07:25:20 »

Quote from: daftandbarmy on February 14, 2012, 00:41:21

Sean Penn accuses Britain of 'colonialism' over Falklands
...

I consider him the original Chris Brown ... and ignore.

News:

Author Topic: British Military Current Events (Read 184196 times)