High Wycombe OM Accommodation?

[Cumbrian Fell]

Hi - I am posted to High Wycombe as part of a larger move in September. Having sucessfully avoided wearing uniform - indeed having much to do with the RAF for a number of years - I suspect that this will be a shock to my system. I hear dire reports about accommodation in the Officers' Mess. As a weekend commuter (ok, a beanstealer) what are the options? Is SSSA still being offered?
Cumbria

[SirPercyWare-Armitag]

Last time I was there a few months ago, they had installed a new trailer park of portakabins on top of one of the car parks. Lovingly painted in battleship grey, it offers panoramic views of the side of the mess and some MQs. According to current livers-in, you should be lucky enough to move straight into one of those instead of having to slum it in SSSA

[Smudger552]

I think you'll find that OM accom is in pretty short supply! SSSA may be an option but I know that folks are being accomodated over in Halton too.

[Fatjoff]

I left H/W at the end of Feb and had been living in SSSA. They actually informed me that they were terminating my SSSA and that I would have to move out of Marlow and into an empty AMQ that I would be sharing (with persons unknown). The SSSA bill for H/W is/was astronomical so I wouldn't hold out much hope for anything other than living on camp.

[Cumbrian Fell]

Thanks for the inputs guys. Not encouraging one to stay is it? Damn! Too late to apply for redundancy...

[Mr C Hinecap]

Forget the SSSA option. There are a few people out there still on it, but as they leave there is nobody else getting it. You'll be in the Mess my good chap - or Halton Mess. Damned beanstealers. Mess life at HW isn't too bad - full mess, quite a few below Air rank living in there.

[SirPercyWare-Armitag]

The Mess at HQSTC can be a quite splendid affair with a good living crowd which sometimes includes some very senior grown-ups who can be relied upon to stand their round
However, there are those of all officer ranks who never support mess functions but turn up demanding tickets for Summer Balls; tickets heavily subsidised by those mess members who actually use the bar
A shame that the mess, which is a focal point for all officers, is ignored by Mess Gollums who live in their darkened rooms fingering their Ring rather than doing their duty

[O2thief]

Before I left there in 2001, I was on the Mess committee (as SLIM). The 2* in charge of finance (AOA) announced that monies for another, new build, OM block had been allocated; it seems that, in the fullness of time, the cheaper, portakabin, option became far too compelling. What a crock of s***e; as if it was'nt bad enough being there in the first place, you now have to sleep in the :mad: car park !!

Ex SO3/2 from the bunker and B and E Blocks

[airborne_artist]

Tyro Navy student Ps were sent to Leeming to complete EFTS. The main Mess accom. was not full, but we were housed in WW2 pre-fabs known as Seeco huts (sp.?). Very fine they were too, with lovely ladies on the batting staff, and no grumpy light-blues to get upset when we played post-pub cricket/rugby/hooliganism down the corridors at 0crack00.

Until the arrival of the chubby Prince, when the studes had to move in with the grown-ups :{

[JessTheDog]

Are they still building the senior officer suites, which - clearly in the interests of using up surplus space and cash - were above grade?

[Mr C Hinecap]

Not that I know of - and I work with a few of the Mess Cttee who would know. We'll be a really cosy place once the jaffas arrive to join in.
Why we've not taken the old Nurses Mess at Halton over in toto and use that as a satellite mess for Wycombe I'l never know. Too obvious perhap?