Is this acceptable these days ?

[CoffmanStarter]

Just asking ...

It was impressed on me a long time ago that the only acceptable "visible" jewellery an officer could wear when on duty/in uniform was a wristwatch and wedding ring (if married).

My question is prompted by the edited photo below of a certain "personage" returning to AFG where clearly other "adornments" are visible. Is this type of stuff now acceptable ? If so ... how long will it be before we see a fully fledged shaman in "uniform".

Presumably said "personage" will be required to remove such items when flying on Flight Safety (FOD) grounds ?

I may just be out-of-touch :(

http://i1004.photobucket.com/albums/af162/CoffmanStarter/PicAFG.jpg

Best ...

Coff.

[Al R]

I thought about this yesterday as I saw troops collecting.

I am time expired and middle aged, and haven't got a clue what my kids are prattling about. But I try, and I imagine that I'm receptive to change and I actually enjoy it. This sort of adornment is only a step beyond the norm that I was used to and I'm rational enough to accept that this to me, is nothing more than my norm was to those who came the working generation before me. It doesn't bother me, plus ça change.. I suppose the acid test is; how will I handle the next step or two?!

Chuggers? ;)

[MATELO]

They added the help for heroes wristband a few years back, not sure those sort of things pictured comply with "Grans Regs" though.

[BEagle]

From that generation which considered, in the language of the time, that ear rings were only for 'girls, pirates and poofs', I admit to being out of touch with the current standards.

I also nearly hurled when I saw some overweight 'formerly known as WRAF' officer exposing a flabby gut roll incorporating a diamond in the Officers' Mess bar annexe at RAF Mount Pleasant a while back....:\ Not even 'Falklands pretty'!

And don't get me started on 'officers' with tattoos.....:eek:

But a H4H wristband is generally acceptable these days - and not unreasonably so.

[Lima Juliet]

Current RAF regs are 1 service charity wristband only - H4H, RAFA, RAFBF or others are all acceptable.

I guess this individual has an extra advantage of having a grand mother as head of the Armed Forces, though! :ok:

Come on AAC RSM, get a grip!

LJ

[Pontius Navigator]

And don't get me started on 'officers' with tattoos.....:eek:.

Discretely on the ankle?

Or zapped on the small of the back?:sad:

[VinRouge]

I take it a few of these comments are from individuals not having set foot in the desert for a while.

The only people who see to care about this stuff as opposed to doing a good job and providing the best op output are blunties, senior officers thrusting for promotion and RSMs.

Nothing worse for morale when you are putting your neck on the line for the lads than some shiney tw@ dressing you down for arb nonsense, especially after working your nuts off for months.

As long as the guys are getting the job done, what does it really matter? Really?

[glad rag]

He's off to kill the enemy. Fletchet rockets, cannon and zoomed in vision.

Who gives a **** what he's got on his wrist.






message edited to retain membership!

[Shack37]

I agree with VinRouge and glad rag. IMO just another OP wanting to have an anonymous dig at Harry.

At least he's fully dressed this time.

[onetrack]

When I wore green in the J, you didn't wear anything that flashed, jingled, sparkled, stood out, or that could give away your position - or wear anything that could get caught on projections, when jumping off vehicles/APC's/tanks.

Numerous blokes lost fingers when jumping down off stakeside trucks, and rings on those fingers caught on protruding bolt shanks.
And anyone who has stuck a hand/arm close to anything full of electrickery with exposed bits, knows all about, how metal bits on digits and arms and legs can arc themselves to said components full of electrickery.

Starter cables are a classic - seen some particularly nasty deep burns when about 500 or 600 amps from a battery welded the jewellery to the cable terminals.

I've never worn a piece of jewellery in my life and not silly enough to get a single tatt, either. I can develop enough medical problems without the assistance of quantities of dodgy ink and dies being permanently ingrained in my largest body organ.
I am carrying around a chunk of steel shrapnel lodged against a lung wall, so that's enough metal, in or on, the body for me.

It's a whole new world today, though - one used to be able to ID the difference between a girl and boy, as to which one was wearing the jewellery. Nowadays the bloke is likely to be wearing more jewellery than the girl.

[Genstabler]

Sorry to have to ask (I am a senile ex-pongo and a bit bored) but what is an OP in this context?
Other person?
Old pruner?
Polite or witty replies only please. I may be old but I am still sensitive.

[teeteringhead]

And of course they will be covered by his flying gloves - less of a hazard methinks than a poseurs Breitling!!

Or zapped on the small of the back? ... on ladies (sic), known as "tramp stamps" one understands .....;)

[piton]

@ Genstabler

OP - original poster - i.e. the person who started the thread....

[500N]

"When I wore green in the J, you didn't wear anything that flashed, jingled, sparkled, stood out, or that could give away your position - or wear anything that could get caught on projections, when jumping off vehicles/APC's/tanks.

Numerous blokes lost fingers when jumping down off stakeside trucks, and rings on those fingers caught on protruding bolt shanks"

That was how we were taught as well and for the same reasons.


But things have changed. Was watching the Sandhurst Program the other night
and was sure one or two of the Officer cadets had tattoos.

[fade to grey]

I have a 'Support the Parachute regiment ' wristband. I don't wear it much round Exmouth...

[VinRouge]

When you are fighting an enemy that will happily chop off your nuts and sew them in your gob, worries about being "identified" kind of fade into insignificance.

I think its pretty obvious you are fekked either way if you get pinched over there.

[Genstabler]

Thank you piton! Seems obvious now.

[Milo Minderbinder]

Those worry beads are a bit sort of.....Catholic aren't they?

Is he trying to get himself excluded from succession?

[Avionker]

Perhaps someone could explain to me (as an ex-ranker) just how a tattoo adversely affects some ones ability to be a leader?

With the decreasing size of the British armed forces surely it is more important now, than ever before, to ensure that those selected for commissioning are up to the job of leading their ratings/troops/airmen?

If some of those people have tattoos, body piercings, jewellery fetishes etc, then so what?

I would rather our guys have a competent reliable leader than some chinless, clueless buffoon who just happened to go to the right school/university and knows instinctively which knife, fork or spoon one should use whilst eating a formal dinner.

It's the 21st century, not 19th century colonial India.......

[ian16th]

Numerous blokes lost fingers when jumping down off stakeside trucks, and rings on those fingers caught on protruding bolt shanks"

Yep!

There was a guy at Lindholme in 1954 lost a finger dropping out of a Varsity when the steps had been removed.

At the time I wore a signet ring that a friend had always admired, so I sold it to him!

When I got engaged my wife to be wanted to buy me a ring, I said no, buy me some gold cuff links.

I still have the wife, cuff links and all my finger :ok:

[Melchett01]

... on ladies (sic), known as "tramp stamps" one understands .....

I believe the Celtic / tribal scrolls that are often seen to adorn the lower back are also referred to as "arse antlers" :E

Perhaps someone could explain to me (as an ex-ranker) just how a tattoo adversely affects some ones ability to be a leader?

It doesn't - or shouldn't unless they are completely OTT and either impact on credibility or reputation. But I have to say I have yet to see any that look half decent, with many looking like the original design was done by an uncoordinated navvy with a blunt wax crayon and which will only get worse over time as the ink fades and blurs and the person gets saggier and wrinklier. That's especially the case on a pretty girl - I've yet to meet one who didn't look better before being stamped.

[Avionker]

"Tramp stamp" is an american slang term. I believe the UK equivalent is "slag tag".

[seadrills]

Stop being grumpy middle aged old men.

There is nothing wrong with tattoos or jewellery .....

[CoffmanStarter]

VR, GR and S37 ... In no way was my OP intended as a "dig" at the individual concerned (that is why I also edited the photo) ... it just happened to be the imagery on the front page of the Times yesterday that prompted my (genuine) question. Frankly I couldn't give a "Flying Fig" at what HRH does or wears off duty ... if done with good personal judgement. I also respect what he has achieved professionally and is now doing in theatre along with the dangers he and others face daily on our behalf.

So ... on balance in response to my OP, it would seem that Service Charity Bands are "officially" acceptable when on duty/in uniform ... but acceptability stops short of other "popular culture" statements/adornments/trinkets.

I'll continue to wear my H4H Band with pride ... but perhaps give the wearing of my Ancient Egyptian Fertility Symbol and Lucky Elephants Foot a miss !

Best ...

Coff.

[Mike Gallafent]

I agree that tattoos should have no bearing on leadership qualities but suggest, that in the event of being being captured, such adornment might indicate unnecessarily to captors the name of wife/girlfriend, pro fox hunting or even sexual proclivities. Perhaps wiser to limit information to number, rank and name?

[unclenelli]

Unless you're TG4 or another Tech (E) trade.

The oil secreted by the silicon-rubber wristbands can cause unintentional insulation (the opposite of a short-circuit) in electronics.

[Lima Juliet]

For those of us not "logged in" anyone else chuckling at the "Slag Tag" in the Mature Dating UK web-ad below VVVVV :p

[Melchett01]

Burqa roulette at Friday night happy hour .... :E

[unclenelli]

Airpolice
You obviously didn't cross the Equator to get to MPA, otherwise the proliferation of females would have caused notice.

However the high concentration of non-conformists was noticeable. One of which was recently dubbed "Lumberjill"

[ian16th]

When I wor a lad......

The amount of female company at MPA has always exceeded what was available at RAF Gan.

Which was a 1 year unaccompanied tour, and yes it was across the equator, though not by a lot, in fact by so little one could see the line in the sea ;)

[Melchett01]

Airpolice,

Fairs, fair - at least you're honest, I usually come up with some sort of lame and completely implausible excuse!

Your original comment raised a smile as I remembered reading an article in a paper whilst I was in AFG about, IIRC, a Pakistani diplomat who fell foul of Burqa roulette. He was quite a devout chap and was looking for another wife. The bride's family knew that of their 2 daughters one was passable whilst the other would probably fall into your category of "lonely, desperate, short sighted and grateful for the attention".

Long story short, the arranged marriage took place and the bride's family insisted that in line with religious and cultural norms the bride remained fully covered at all times. It was only after the ceremony had taken place, dowries been paid etc that the diplomat realised that he had literally been sold a pup. Personally had it been me, I'd have kept quiet about it out of sheer embarrassment. But the chap's legal quest to have the dowry returned was what kept the story running. Actually, in that case, I'm guessing he too subscribes to Chinese philosophy you mention!

[Pontius Navigator]

I think having someone trying to shoot your a*** off is a reasonable excuse. I understand that lots of rules and regs got quietly pushed to one side in each of the conflicts in the last few decades.

[Tankertrashnav]

No comment on tattoos, but rings are a different matter. Rings and aircraft (the type you have to clamber in and out of as opposed to those you stroll into off an airbridge) just dont mix. Shortly before I joined tankers two guys on the line had lost fingers in short succession through slipping. We had a rule, no rings when you were flying or working on aircraft, nothing to do with fashion, everything to do with not losing a finger.

[Torque Tonight]

It is normal to cut the guys who are doing ops a little slack and let them concentrate on the task in hand. There is little more frustrating to those actually getting their hands dirty in a full on shooting war than some shiny-arsed blunty REMF tw @t bombarding you with triv from 3000 miles behind the FLOT. I know the AAC like to starch iron their Y-fronts but even they can overlook a tiny non-uniform item on det. Anyway, the chain from my nose ring to my Prince Albert never did my career any harm. Must stop nodding my head when I'm listening to people though.

[Pontius Navigator]

TTN, two B(I)8s off on a det, they economised on kit and only took one set of steps. Sod's law but the one with the steps was delayed so the pilot on the first opted to jump.

He swung himself on to the coaming, and pushed off. As he pushed his ring finger caught in the canopy rail with inevitable consequences, so Mrs PN could not pursuade me to have a ring either.

[TomJoad]

I've just wasted 5 minutes of my life reading this crap - I need to get a grip!

By the way how the hell is a wrist band any more of a FOD risk than any of the loosely fitting buttons on the uniform ! As for tattoos any muppet that thinks getting a tattoo is a good idea clearly lacks effective intelligence ( i think that's what IOT called it) and therefore rules himself out of Rodney aptitude. This of course if my highly prejudiced opinion:p

[Pontius Navigator]

more of a FOD risk than any of the loosely fitting buttons on the uniform

Tom, in the interests of accuracy, you are years out of date.

The old pre-CS95 and the GW1 stuff had buttons jokingly attached to the jackets. I used to collect buttons and sew them on in an idle moment.

Flying clothing buttons and now the post GW1 kit all have tape-sewn buttons that cannot fall off. Progress.

[Lima Juliet]

Even less buttons these days on the Personal Clothing System - more velcro, velcro and velcro. IIRC there's one button on the trousers and 2 on the cuffs of the lightweight jacket - everything else is velcro...

Did I mention velcro?

[dkh51250]

I have a "Save the rubbertree" wristband. Would it be considered acceptable to wear it?

[Willard Whyte]

Tattoos? Jewellery? Wristbands?

Bloody hell, they'll be handing out commissions to people with regional accents and installing outdoor privies by t'Officer's Mess next.

[glad rag]

Was unfortunate to witness my first degloving at Wyton cira '79 or so. Canberra again, fitter decided to slide around and down the engine coaming.

Not nice, not nice at all. :yuk:

I have never worn a ring, not even in scaleydom and cividom beyond.....

[teeteringhead]

And however high you fly, however much of the Right Stuff you have, a ring can get you - even on the ground.

In 1978, Armstrong severed the ring finger of his left hand when his wedding ring got stuck on a latch at his Ohio dairy farm. Rather than scream or run, Armstrong found his finger, iced it, drove to the hospital and had it reattached. From Bloomberg's online obit of Neil Armstrong.

Although one has to say his reaction was most definitely The Right Stuff!!

[Milo Minderbinder]

surely the wristband isn't the problem - its those rosary beads on a thin bit of string which could easily break.

[Whenurhappy]

My father - who spent the war as a mechanic (and lost an eye when a rim spreader shattered) - would never wear a ring nor a metal watchstrap. Ignoring such patently silly advice, in my early 20s I managed to weld the metal watchstrap to my wrist when I arced it between the +ve terminal of a 12 V car battery and the –ve Earth strap.

Ouch!

At least it was a rather fine MkII 3.4l Jaguar. Red, too. Same colour as the recently-cauterised flesh on my wrist.

Some years later, when I used to take SP out on RAFSA yachts, I was insistent that necklaces, rings and watches with metal straps were removed. I had previously seen a bowman on a yacht have his index and middle fingers pulled out of his hand (along with the sproingy tendons) when a ring got caught on a highly-loaded spinnaker clew.

But getting back to the OP, it does look a bit gash, but to be fair, Capt Wales typifies the delightfully languid approach Cavalry officers tend to take about things (remember his hair at the wedding?). Give him a break, he’s doing a job mere mortals could only dream about ie, killing his Granny’s enemies!