NAAFI boss pockets £2m for closing down NAAFI canteens

[ricardian]

Daily Mirror report (http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/armed-forces-boss-pockets-2m-5961629). I do not think that the NAAFI boss was ever a member of the armed forces although I seem to remember that the NAAFI board consisted of senior officers from all 3 services

[Two's in]

An ex-worker said: “Troops complain of small portions. One firm even served salad on Christmas Day. The NAAFI would never do that.”

The above quote sets the tone and veracity of the article. I could fill a tome with examples of the NAAFI's unceasing war against half-decent vittles and customer service. Closing it down must be the option because burning it down is technically illegal.

[NutLoose]

Ahh.... don't they realise how lucky they are, Salad is so out of season at Christmas..... Only the best for them ;)

[scarecrow450]

NAAFI Shop at MPA shut down Christmas eve til after Boxing day when i was there.
Good job I got my fags at Castaways !

[ShyTorque]

NAAFI

Not At All F****** Interested.

The tax free shop that sold stuff to servicemen at higher cost than identical stuff sold tax paid down town.

[uffington sb]

ShyTorque,

But some did good.


https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Leake_(NAAFI_manager)

[ShyTorque]

Yes, out of a cast of thousands, John Leake did good.

[uffington sb]

In my early days in the RAF at Machrihanish, the NAAFI was very popular. Probably because we were a few miles from anywhere and very few of us had cars in '72. Again on RAF Gan in '75, probably because we were a thousand miles or so from anywhere.
My last tour was at Wittering ending in 2001. Most airmen had cars so went off base, and the sticky bun bar (I've no idea why it was called that, as they never sold sticky buns!), had been replaced by a vending machine!
They still had a NAAFI wagon come round at Wyton in '94.

[smujsmith]

The last time I made use of NAAFI services was as a Halton Aprrentice (69-71) when tea breaks would never have been so enjoyable without the cold bread and butter pudding, and a cup of strong tea. Unlike the BX/PX of US service establishments, I could never equate NAAFI shops to them in respect to value for money. ISTR the NAAFI shop at Lyneham became a SPAR shop, and then closed due to a total lack of interest by the "captive audience"!

Smudge :ok:

[Shackman]

It was Gan that taught me to avoid this money grabbing organisation like the plague.

The Shackletons of 205 Sqn had an aircraft and crew permanently on SAR standby at Gan until disbandment at the end of 1971. Every four weeks or so the aircraft changed over (one out from Changi, one back) and it was custom for the one from Singapore to bring a bomb bay pannier full of fresh fruit which was dispensed (at cost - since the crew paid for it) equally to all three messes on the island. A new NAAFI manager arrived sometime late 70, early 71 and pulled the 'we have right of sales' ticket, meeting the next Shack to arrive and insisting all the fresh fruit had to be distributed through his 'emporium', and also that the crew would be paid once it had been sold.

Two days later the crew noted that a; no fresh fruit had appeared in the messes, and b; individual items were for sale in the NAAFI shop at a considerable mark up, and not much was being sold.

It transpired that the new manager had offered the fruit to the messes at an equally high price, claiming 'transportation costs' had to be applied to everything he sold, and he was applying the (nominal) cost of refrigerated sea transport for the 1500lbs or so of fruit we had bought and brought out for free. Needless to say the messes did not buy, and so little was sold in the shop that the bulk rotted and was dumped. The crew was not paid and lost out and the personnel lost out - even the Staish couldn't sort it.

The nett result - no more fresh goods for Gan (although we did eventually start doing individual orders but it wasn't the same).

[NutLoose]

The staish should have charged the NAFF 1 manager suitable air transport costs even though the items didn't sell, he would then be at a mega loss on it.

[Army Mover]

The staish should have charged the NAFF 1 manager suitable air transport costs even though the items didn't sell, he would then be at a mega loss on it.

I recall that the NAAFI in Belize were charging the forces port handling charges when we shipped their stuff down to Puntagorda by sea. As I was new in the job and wasn't sure what to do with the invoice, I read the Status of Forces agreement that was in place, to discover they were exempt all these charges, as was the MOD.

Some very embarrassed faces at the next Commanders conference; we'd been paying this money out for years.

[Wander00]

AM - that's my boy - from an ex TA Mover

[Hangarshuffle]

NAAFI was an institute and as such it had its good point and its bad. The bars were good and supplied subsidised price beer - was always a cheaper pint than in town and a safe place. The shops weren't brilliant but they weren't bad either and they served a purpose.
But its gone now, like the UK Armed Forces in general.
Reg Curtis, the 2 million pound chap in question has the mean face and dead eyes one would expect from someone in his position.
Private enterprise will fail the armed forces and I expect the NAAFI will be re-born again one day (and don't be surprised if its run by Indians like everything else in this wholesale and retail field).

[Army Mover]

AM - that's my boy - from an ex TA Mover

It got worse than that; these charges were raised based on the weight of the load. We had 2 of the RPL's (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramped_powered_lighter) changing over, apart from the fact that the 2 going back kind of erm "sunk" while waiting at the deep-water jetty (nothing to do with me, if the crews can't park them up properly, not my problem - until the next morning that is!), the port company tried to charge us a handling charge to offload our own boats, from our own ship, with our own crews. They got very angry at me and tried diplomatically to get me sent back; the Commander told them he was thinking of extending my tour to see what else I could come up with.

[4Greens]

The NAAFI was very important on HM Ships. It was the only shop in town! What happens now?

[ShyTorque]

Many years ago I was OIC liquid refreshment for a NATO Tiger Meet, a role I was "draughted in" for at short notice due to the original incumbent being posted.

Our squadron had previously made contact with some local breweries and I was able to get a really good deal from a major supplier, dealing direct. The NAAFI manager heard about this at a late stage and demanded that all beer was to be supplied through his empire. From what I remember, this involved a hefty surcharge on the price I had negotiated direct with the brewery.

[MOSTAFA]

I remember asking a NAAFI manager in Hanover 1979. How can you charge so much for this particular item (with the exchange rate it worked out almost double the UK price), I thought NAAFI is supposed to be a non-profit institution? Who told you that, says he. That sign, says I, pointing out a large poster on the the wall (Charter).

You don't really believe that, do you; says he!

[Union Jack]

The NAAFI was very important on HM Ships. It was the only shop in town! What happens now? - 4 Greens

It was indeed and, considering the almost invariably complicated supply line, generally very good at providing what one might call everyday necessities and goodies in corner shop style, rather than any attempt to be a major supplier of all sorts of goods and services.

In the Naval Canteen Service (NCS), the canteen manager was normally a respected member of the senior rates' mess, none more so than https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Leake_(NAAFI_manager)

On a lighter note, the old joke was that the canteen manager's cry as the shutter went up was, "Canteen's open!", immediately followed by a crash as the shutter went down, then "Canteen's closed! Mind your fingers son!".

So far as"What happens now?" is concerned, in the Submarine Service the Chief of the Boat would normally run a form of mini canteen, and I suspect that Jolly Jack in the surface Fleet will continue to be looked after by some similar operation, rather than from any external source.

Jack

[Wander00]

AM - Nice one.