You have a wonderful sense of humour Terry, you certainly made me chuckle.... (welcome back by the way, your input is both welcome and entertaining).
Originally Posted by
terry holloway
It would have been the other way round! I assume the Army laid on a Lynx to take Prince Michael to Middle Wallop, and she accompanied him.
It matters not whether the uber-lynx was for HRH PM or for TCT; the question remains why did she tag along in the first place. Bottom line is she got a free ride due to her connection with HRH PM
Originally Posted by
terry holloway
I can absolutely assure you that a Royal connection/ patron does not influence any awards in The Air League, and I am quite certain that applies equally in HCAP LAA, and RAeC.
If the Royal Patron suggests to any of the above that someone may be worth a pat on the back, I doubt very much it plays no part in influencing a decision, the influence may be small, it may be large, but it WILL have an influence.
Originally Posted by
terry holloway
I've not seen her "wearing" RAF wings but from a conversation with a chum I believe the Royal Navy gave her Navy wings, which go with her "Honorary" rank in the RN. There was a suggestion that an old (WW2) set of wings were given to her for good luck which may have been loosely pinned to the lapel of her flying suit as a talisman. Most people (including me!) will see nothing wrong with that, because it's not a pretense of something else.
You seem to have lost the fighter-pilot eyesight Terry. Maybe you have sand in your eyes; an image you quoted from one of Jay's posts shows her wearing the wings. They are RAF wings although it was earlier believed they were FAA ones, I have not seen her wear FAA wings on her naval uniform.
At one point she did have them on her right lapel (I accept this could be a good luck trinket and have no issue with that). However, she now wears them on her left chest as if they are issued for completing RAF pilot training: Anyone who has earned their wings should rightly be offended at this, likewise anyone who has family who have EARNED the right to wear a brevet.