Merry Xmas from HMS Ocean

[SRENNAPS]

I know similar things have been done before, but it is still good and it is nice to see. Well done to all on board :D:D:D:D


All I Want For Christmas - HMS OCEAN - YouTube

Comment attached to the You Tube Video:

After lots of time away last year (214 days) -- planned for 7 week deployment exercise with other nations

Diverted to Libya and further operations

Back 9 Dec after 7½ months away - 225 days with 176 at sea

400 people onboard (at peak during the amphibious exercises just under 900 onboard but approx 650 during Op Ellamy)
Steamed just over 40,000 miles
Burned approx 6,000 tonnes of fuel
Operated 16 different type of aircraft off the deck

Realities of deploying:

15 babies born while the ship has been away (fathers did get home to see mum and baby)
5 people were sent home so they didn't miss their own weddings.
1 sailor whose son's third birthday is on homecoming. Family meeting ship

Ships company have missed:

Summer holidays.
Children's exam results
Children finishing school and starting university
The Padre missed his daughter's graduation.

The ship's company made a Christmas DVD when they heard they would be home for Christmas.

[GICASI]

Well done and welcome home to all.

That will be DII fecked for a week.

Fly Navy. Feel a man.

[Mach Two]

Brillliant! Thanks for posting. With all the talk going around about cuts, etc, it's great to see something positive from our collective ranks. And good to see the point made that they went away for 7 weeks, came back 7½ months later. Situation normal...

Well done Ocean, have a great Christmas.

[airborne_artist]

And a hearty BZ from me to all concerned - have a great Christmas - you've earned it :D

[Thone1]

Is there maybe another link?
German "Musical Rights Administration" does not allow for the content to be watched from Germany.

Thanks,

Thomas

[Mach Two]

Sorry, Thone. It's classified!

[jamesdevice]

"Operated 16 different type of aircraft off the deck"

Which types? Any Harriers?

[OafOrfUxAche]

This is a shocking waste of both time and equipment. They are paid to Defend our Realm, not lark about on military equipment which has been paid for by the taxpayer. I can't believe they daubed slogans on the met balloon - this might affect its ability to gather vital data. It's even possible that the balloon was released solely for this video which would be an appalling and unjustifiable misuse of an expensive item. Maybe HMS Ocean should be sent back to sea for Christmas until they learn how they should conduct themselves. I blame weak leadership from the Officers.

[Ken Scott]

Well, Scrooge is alive and well - Bah, humbug!

This is a shocking waste of both time and equipment.

Heaven forbid that the crew who have spent so long away from home should spend a few minutes enjoying themselves....

I only counted the balloon & a few bits of cardboard being 'misused'....As SRENNAPS pointed out the ship's burnt over 6000 tonnes of fuel this deployment so the cost of the balloon clearly represents a dreadful extravagance. Best we have an expensive enquiry to seek out the miscreants responsible.

OafOrfUxAche - you're clearly a miserable g*t, why don't you take your particular brand of 'good cheer' to another forum.

Thanks Ocean, I enjoyed the vid.

[Avionker]

You better start reeling in OafOrfUxAche, looks like a bite to me..... :E

[500N]

I thought OafOrfUxAche was being sarcastic but without the use of smilies:O ..... but maybe not.

So, if that is the case, " I blame weak leadership from the Officers."

I blame "excellent leadership", if my men had been sent away for 7 weeks and came back 7 months later and still had morale that high, something has gone right with the leadership.

Something along the lines of work hard, play hard or letting off a bit of steam ?

[EngAl]

OafOrfUxAche if you were being serious. I've got bad news for you, I chuckled all the way through your rant!

[racedo]

This is a shocking waste of both time and equipment. They are paid to Defend our Realm, not lark about on military equipment which has been paid for by the taxpayer. I can't believe they daubed slogans on the met balloon - this might affect its ability to gather vital data. It's even possible that the balloon was released solely for this video which would be an appalling and unjustifiable misuse of an expensive item. Maybe HMS Ocean should be sent back to sea for Christmas until they learn how they should conduct themselves. I blame weak leadership from the Officers.

Wrong website Widow Twanky as outrage stage is next door.....

[barnstormer1968]

A funny video IMHO, and lovely to see Windsor Davis being given a cameo role at the very start...........Lofty would have been proud of him:ok:

[Kreuger flap]

Crap video. Most of them looked like they were miming.

[SRENNAPS]

Yes, definitely a cracking video. Just goes to show the true spirit of the British Servicemen and women despite what is thrown at them. I am proud of them all and so glad to have been part of it once upon a time in the past.:O

Some interesting comments here…...nice sense of humour:E:E

[Widger]

Well done Ocean and those that allowed it to happen!:ok::ok:

[daviddb]

Looks like one happy ship! Thanks for posting.

Screaming reels indeed for Mr. OOUA - classic hook line and sinker for the Old F@rts in Blazers.......:D

[glojo]

Nice to see our sailors relaxing, however I fear that 'Hollywood'* leads the way when it comes to this type of entertainment.

Hollywood = United States Navy.. There are dozens and dozens of these excellent clips

[green granite]

Thone1 try going to Proxy Guy (http://www.proxyguy.com) and paste the url http: //www .youtube.com/watch?v=SDZcGz4vmJc into it and see if you can play it through the proxy but take the spaces out first

[Thone1]

Thanks for the tip, but unfortunately "no joy".

Thomas

[glojo]

Hi Thomas,
Does this link (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-devon-16066600) work for you?

[oldgrubber]

I was reading the local Pirate FM website and it has posted that the video has officially gone "viral", whatever that means, and Mariah Carey even commented about it.
Great stuff
Pirate FM - National News (http://www.piratefm.co.uk/news/uk-news/)

[Thone1]

@glojo: It does, thank you very much!

Reminds me of a similar event years ago.
I was waiting at Newark Airport for my flight back home when on a TV screen I saw a video of an RN frigate to "Bohemian Rapsody" by Queen.

Royal Navy's Bohemian Rhapsody - YouTube

Thomas

[FODPlod]

All I want for Christmas is you

Over 500,000 hits on YouTube and still counting.

For a ship that expected to be at sea for seven weeks but ended up spending seven-and-a-half months away from home, the morale of those on board seems pretty high. This smacks of extremely good leadership somewhere.

Interestingly, her Commanding Officer (http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/The-Fleet/Ships/Assault-Ships/HMS-Ocean), who only joined in April at the beginning of the deployment, is a PWO-qualified Lynx Observer with a good general service track record. If I'm not mistaken, he's the one seen sitting in a chair with a G&T.

OCEAN is due back in Plymouth tomorrow.

[Courtney Mil]

I saw them in Malta back in July. Interesting for a couple of reasons.

First, obviously good to see her flying the flag.

Second, the crew out and about in town were great ambassadors for the country and the RN.

Third and most impressively, she was moored next to HMCS Charlottetown. The Canadian frigate had the usual security buoys and barriers in the water to protect her from assult from the sea, like all US ships do these days, as well as all sorts or armed guards, machine gun posts, etc. Ocean had a couple of sailors, in their shorts, standing guard. Very British.

Well done Ocean.

[A2QFI]

Brilliant further homecoming clip on BBC Breakfast this morning. I am sure it will be on You Tube pdq. These are strong minded men and women who have had a really rigorous and prolonged spell of duty and come out of it smiling and positive Respect!

[FODPlod]

...These are strong minded men and women who have had a really rigorous and prolonged spell of duty and come out of it smiling and positive Respect!

It doesn't even stop there. OCEAN was at sea for 214 days last year (BOST and AURIGA) so most of her ship's company have been deployed for 439 days during the past two years.

[Evanelpus]

Good luck to our boys and girls who are away from their families.

So what, they have a bit of a laugh, big deal. In the great scheme of things we could all be dead tomorrow, in fact doing what they do increases that likelihood.

OafOrfUxAche, why be such a miserable bar steward, lifes too short. Go on, let your hair down and live a little......who knows, you might even like it:ok:

[Courtney Mil]

I thought that at first too, but then decided it was probably just a wind-up. Nobody could be that grumpy over that.

[500N]

A good article re the video at the bottom of the page in the link to the RN Newspaper
HMS Ocean thumbs up from pop star Mariah | Royal Navy (http://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/News-and-Events/Latest-News/2011/December/07/111207-HMS-Ocean-Christmas)


HMS Ocean thumbs up from pop star Mariah
07/12/2011

The world has tuned in to the men and women of the Mighty O after they filmed a spoof Christmas video. The Youtube video of Mariah Carey’s 'All I Want For Christmas' has gained hundreds of thousands of fans – among them the pop diva herself.

They hoped to send a message back to Britain – instead the world tuned in.

HMS Ocean’s crew wowed pop star Mariah Carey after their cover of her song drew hundreds of thousands of viewers.Plymouth-based Royal Marines and Navy personnel were tweeted by Ms Carey after they mimed All I Want for Christmas Is You and put in online.

The video was aimed at family and friends in the UK, but within 36 hours more than 350,000 people had tuned in to the website YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. (http://www.youtube.com)

After watching it, the American star tweeted:
"This is the best thing I've ever seen, you guys just made my day! Happy Happy Christmas!!! x0x0 to the troops."

Not only did the video spread rapidly around the world, it was even picked up by America’s prime time television show Good Morning America, which is watched by millions. It was named their ‘Play of the Day’ song today.

Lt Kelly Cleeve, who filmed and edited the video with WO Mick Wakeham and the aviation department, said the video had relieved stress after seven months away.

She said:
“Recording the song was a way to boost morale and give the guys a bit of a diversion. "The response to the video has been amazing, and I've been watching with much interest."

The Mighty O – Britain’s biggest warship – left for a seven-week training exercise in April, but was diverted to Libya to support the UN air mission during the uprising against Col Gaddafi.

The helicopter carrier launched Britain's first seaborne Apache raid, destroying pro-Gaddafi military vehicles, installations and communications equipment.

Lt Cleeve said the idea for the video came when the crew was told the ship would be back in Plymouth for Christmas. She said: “Mariah Carey's song was the most appropriate choice as all we wanted for Christmas was to get back in time to celebrate. "We chose this particular song as it was upbeat, cheerful, fun and well-known. "Most of those that saw it were complaining that they had the song stuck in their heads for days afterwards."

Crew members chose their own lines and costumes and the video was completed in two days during a quiet period.

HMS Ocean's commanding officer Capt Andrew Betton said he had been impressed by the crew's fortitude and professional attitude while away. He said: "Despite the frequent changes in our programme and the uncertainty of when our mission would end, everyone has got stuck in to do what the Royal Navy does best with good humour, energy and professionalism.”

The crew of the Mighty O have got what they want for Christmas; the ship returns to Devonport on Friday after 225 days on deployment where hundreds of friends and family will be waiting for them.

[glad rag]

Glad to see them home. :ok:

[OafOrfUxAche]

Nobody could be that grumpy over that.


Try me:E.


Screaming reels indeed for Mr. OOUA


Totally - my arms hurt...

[PanzerJohn]

Its that good old British sense of humour in adversity that makes our Armed Forces the best in the world. :ok:

[glojo]

She will pass Devils Point at 1030 this morning which is slack tide plus she will hopefully be having all her operational aircraft demonstrating their skills to the families and friends as they greet this ship.

[Evanelpus]

Quote:
Nobody could be that grumpy over that.

Try me.


Quote:
Screaming reels indeed for Mr. OOUA

Totally - my arms hurt...

Do us a favour and post a video of your Christmas Day dinner, I'd almost pay to see it!

[airborne_artist]

Superb way to make the news today and two very good pieces on the One Show. Nice to see a positive story about boys and girls in uniform. I reckon Lt Kelly Cleeve has earned a few points :ok:

[SRENNAPS]

Welcome home all :D:D:ok::ok:

HMS Ocean is back home in Plymouth for Christmas | This is Plymouth (http://www.thisisplymouth.co.uk/HMS-Ocean-home-Plymouth-Christmas/story-14100681-detail/story.html)