Hand Tattoo's now allowed in the RAF

[NutLoose]

see the link

Royal Air Force recruits and serving personnel are no longer prohibited from having full hand tattoos after senior officials decided to amend the service's decades-old policy on body art.

The removal of the RAF's previous zero tolerance stance on hand tattoos brings the service in line with British Army and Royal Navy guidance.

The RAF's former policy prohibited (https://www.forces.net/military-life/militarys-tattoo-and-medical-fitness-policy-really-slowing-down-recruitment) anyone with body ink outside of a single finger tattoo which could not be concealed with a wedding band or ring.


https://www.forces.net/services/raf/raf-scraps-its-strict-no-hand-tattoo-policy-potential-recruits-and-serving-personnel

[Fortissimo]

Congratulations to Hand Tattoo, I hope he or she has a great time during their service.

[downsizer]

Standing by for the ourage bus full of people it has zero impact on.

FWIW I don't think it will have any signifigant impact on recruitment, but it always seemed strange to me to bin suitable candidates simply because they had tattoos on hands/neck/whatever.

[langleybaston]

Congratulations to Hand Tattoo, I hope he or she has a great time during their service.

That is a good spot: a pedant's pedant. There are not many of us left, or indeed right.

[Kiwiconehead]

There are not many of us left, or indeed right.

Coincidently, the only permitted hand tattoos at this stage.

[Runaway Gun]

Tattooing Left and Right on the relevant pilot hands could save money by not using marked flying gloves.

[NutLoose]

Or throttle, stick.

[meleagertoo]

That is a good spot: a pedant's pedant. There are not many of us left, or indeed right.
There seems to be the most peculiar misunderstanding of the word "pedant" on this forum.
Illustrating extremely basic grammatical blunders like that have nothing whatsoever to do with pedantry.

[Sue Vêtements]

it always seemed strange to me to bin suitable candidates simply because they had tattoos on hands/neck/whatever.

What about on the face?

[Union Jack]

There seems to be the most peculiar misunderstanding of the word "pedant" on this forum.
Illustrating extremely basic grammatical blunders like that have nothing whatsoever to do with pedantry.

Without wishing to appear, err, pedantic, perhaps you should bring that to Merriam-Webster's (https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pedantic#:~:text=Pedantic%20is%20an%20insulting%20word,is%20 an%20example%20of%20pedantic%3F) attention....:D

Jack

[Mogwi]

Tattooing Left and Right on the relevant pilot hands could save money by not using marked flying gloves.


Worked for me!

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/640x480/gloves_c5e00d59c0706ceb64a7d967386890776d8b54bd.jpg

[BEagle]

From the days before beards, weird hairstyles and tattoos were permitted in the uniformed services, Gunny Highway Hartman had a very positive way of ensuring that recruits could tell left from right....

https://youtu.be/K0izEw48qf0

[langleybaston]

There seems to be the most peculiar misunderstanding of the word "pedant" on this forum.
Illustrating extremely basic grammatical blunders like that have nothing whatsoever to do with pedantry.

I shall not gloat.

[Biggus]

BEagle,

Gunny Highway was a character played by Clint Eastwood in the film Heartbreak Ridge.

Your clip is from the film Full Metal Jacket, where the instructor is Gunnery Sergeant (Gunny) Hartman, played by Lee Ermey.

...or am I just being pedantic?

[BEagle]

Thanks Biggus - now edited!

Mind you, Gunny Highway had a good way of dealing with ear rings....

https://youtu.be/jWlzIO_NHu4

[DogTailRed2]

and that's just the women.

[NutLoose]

Mog I always used port and left were both 4 letter words when getting use to it.

[NutLoose]

A fascinating insight as to why Army recruits were rejected, none where because they wanted to join the RAF or Navy.

https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/over-125000-applicants-rejected-from-british-army/

[downsizer]

A fascinating insight as to why Army recruits were rejected, none where because they wanted to join the RAF or Navy.

https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/over-125000-applicants-rejected-from-british-army/

Could that be because we were largely fishing in different pools. We pointed all our bin juice over to the Army desk.

[sycamore]

Mog,you forgot `red/green`...

[Mogwi]

Mog,you forgot `red/green`...

Ah, things were in black and white in those days😊

[Null Orifice]

And there's No Red Port Left!

[Semreh]

Worked for me!

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/640x480/gloves_c5e00d59c0706ceb64a7d967386890776d8b54bd.jpg

To be fair, there's not a few car drivers that could do with driving gloves (remember the string-backed variety?) labelled with offside and nearside. Need to be Velcro™ attached so the labels can be swapped and used 'sur le continent'.

I've met many people who need to use a scar, or some other very slight physical deformity to remember their right and left, including a chap who had had the two most distal phalanges of a finger amputated by an industrial accident. That aspect of the trauma was beneficial, he said.

[Biggus]

I was told the following story by someone who used to work in a military recruiting office, in the days when they still existed on the high street, and were manned by serving military personnel - and they assured me it was true!

It was a tri service office, with an Army desk, Navy desk and RAF desk. The entrance to the recruiting office from the high street was via a sort of air lock, two sets of see through glass swing doors. But one set opened one way, and the next set the opposite - so one was pull, the next push, or vice versa. Anyway, it became apparent that, in the vast majority of cases, the way the applicant entered the office was indicative of which service they wanted to join...

If the applicant passed seamlessly through the two sets of doors they invariably went to the Navy desk. If they struggled a bit but got through quite quickly they went to the RAF desk. If they were still struggling after a while the Army recruiter went and got them and took them to the Army desk.....

Well, as I've already said, my friend did say this was a true story...

[Gordomac]

Ghastly, lowering of standards but Old-school, classic upbringing (Dad a Colonel) and schooling. Total dumbing down. I would have great difficulty in any disciplinary confrontation being taken apart by some irk with a neck-tattoo snaking into his left ear-ole. The scenario is unlikely on many counts but good grief. This is just the trend towards full frontal nudity. I do recoil in horror.

[reds & greens]

That is a good spot: a pedant's pedant. There are not many of us left, or indeed right.
Just a thought, if one classed a pedant (sic) as a person - hence a proper noun, should it be capitalised?

[meleagertoo]

Just a thought, if one classed a pedant (sic) as a person - hence a proper noun, should it be capitalised?
No more necessary than to capitalise the word appying to the people who don't understand the word 'pedant', ie fools.

[langleybaston]

No more necessary than to capitalise the word appying to the people who don't understand the word 'pedant', ie fools.

Pray demonstrate your personal understanding.

[cynicalint]

I always thought a pedant was a shiny thing around the neck of a poor speller!

[Bob Viking]

You can probably predict my take on things.

As much as I’m sure the Royal Marines rue the day they stopped making their men wear neck straps and the infantry stopped wearing puttees and men stopped wearing their hair in pigtails they all had to accept, as must we, that times and fashions change.

I would personally never get a tattoo and I may question the choices of someone who decides to cover their body with ink but it’s none of my damned business. If it doesn’t stop them flying a jet, driving a boat or shooting a weapon then I really can’t get bent out of shape about it.

If it also means that we get the right brand of rough (hu)man who stands ready in the night to visit harm upon those that wish us harm (paraphrasing slightly) then let them join.

BV

[Finningley Boy]

Standing by for the ourage bus full of people it has zero impact on.

FWIW I don't think it will have any signifigant impact on recruitment, but it always seemed strange to me to bin suitable candidates simply because they had tattoos on hands/neck/whatever.
I'll just say, that with all we get to hear about HM Forcs today, it figures!

FB

[langleybaston]

I'll just say, that with all we get to hear about HM Forcs today, it figures!

FB

Forks?

[Finningley Boy]

Forks?
Ermm.... yeah, ok, right!

FB

[langleybaston]

Ermm.... yeah, ok, right!

FB

There are pedants about, however defined, for forks sake.

[Finningley Boy]

There are pedants about, however defined, for forks sake.
Exactly what I'm saying!:ok:

FB

[NutLoose]

I wonder what they will deem as offensive tattoo’s

I mean a tattoo or a big pair of lips with a tongue sticking out might be inoffensive​​​​​​, but tattooed on the palm of one’s saluting hand may not be seen as appropriate.

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/pprune.org-vbulletin/1018x1018/image_a894e6739adfa4a1467b2e1e4ec0ca32e79d5448.jpeg

[blind pew]

There was a joke about a young fella going into the gents and taking a peek at a large black fella’s penis to see if the rumours were true..he spied WENDY tattooed on said appendage. Having been noticed by the tattooed fella (I’ve done the same with a jazz singer embarrassingly) he says I’ve got a girlfriend called WENDY as well! Reply “ no son that’s welcome to Jamaica have a nice day”.

[622]

Baffles me why anyone would want a tattoo of a hand!! :p

[Herod]

BV, I'm with you. If there is someone who is ready to kill my country's enemy, then I don't give a damn what they look like. I'm old-school, pre woke, and colour, religion, sexual orientation etc are irrelevant. Why get excited about tattoos?

[alfred_the_great]

There was a joke about a young fella going into the gents and taking a peek at a large black fella’s penis to see if the rumours were true..he spied WENDY tattooed on said appendage. Having been noticed by the tattooed fella (I’ve done the same with a jazz singer embarrassingly) he says I’ve got a girlfriend called WENDY as well! Reply “ no son that’s welcome to Jamaica have a nice day”.

was that racist joke from back in the 1970s?

[Davef68]

Or throttle, stick.

Or 'Move, Go'

[Davef68]

There was a joke about a young fella going into the gents and taking a peek at a large black fella’s penis to see if the rumours were true..he spied WENDY tattooed on said appendage. Having been noticed by the tattooed fella (I’ve done the same with a jazz singer embarrassingly) he says I’ve got a girlfriend called WENDY as well! Reply “ no son that’s welcome to Jamaica have a nice day”.

Heard a variation with a biker in hospital, and the male nurse notices he's got 'MOD' tattooed there. Chatting to his attractive female colleague, he mentions that it's a strange tattoo for a biker. she replies 'What., Motorhead?"

[Herod]

As Alfred says, these jokes go back many years, but not really racist. One that sticks in my mind was "Swan" and "Saskatchewan"

[langleybaston]

was that racist joke from back in the 1970s?

It is hardly racist, more like envious: many a whitey would like a chopper capable of starring in a Wendy joke. Ask yours!

[Davef68]

To get back on track, whilst i am personally no fan of tattoos, in this day and age so many young people get them that the services would be remiss not to consider suitable applicants because they had a tattoo on their hand.

[Finningley Boy]

was that racist joke from back in the 1970s?
Its not a racist joke, its a willy joke!

FB

[Hydromet]

As a young officer cadet, the toughest WO II on the DS had hand tattoos, end there were some tough ones there, including one who later earned a VC. I'd rather have him beside, in front of or behind me than some of the effete officers there. There are more important things to argue about.