FCO appeal for RAF to rescue tourists from Mexico
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FCO appeal for RAF to rescue tourists from Mexico
18:00 BBC news reports the FCO has appealed to the MOD to have the RAF fly to Mexico to “rescue” tourists trapped there due to hurricane Wilma.
Strange that this should be made public at this stage, sounds like inter-departmental politics to me.
Strange that this should be made public at this stage, sounds like inter-departmental politics to me.
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Wilma
In a FCO headline today British Nationals leave Cancun, the Foreign Office confirmed it had chartered an aircraft to help with the evacuation of independent travellers in hurricane-hit Cancun not represented by tour operators.
Perhaps the military tasking load has meant they have had to dip into their own budget. Cynical mode off.
Perhaps the military tasking load has meant they have had to dip into their own budget. Cynical mode off.
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Delmode - Your forgetting one thing! There is far more spin value
in bringing back some tourists from Mexico than giving some troops a lift home from Iraq.
Mexico will win every time !
in bringing back some tourists from Mexico than giving some troops a lift home from Iraq.
Mexico will win every time !
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I may be years out of date with this, but do you still have a military contingent (with helicopters, etc) in Belize?
Cancun is not too far, and it could be used as a base to help evacuate British nationals (if you still have a base there)?
Cancun is not too far, and it could be used as a base to help evacuate British nationals (if you still have a base there)?
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Sorry KC, it's long gone. Closer to home, I also seem to remember that strat air crisis planning had a gradient for the use of mil AT to recover civilians. If conditions at the airhead were dangerous (defined but I've forgotten), use AT; if not use commercial air until that option was impractical.
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The use of civil aircraft is the prefered method of evacuation. The military option is only used if the civil option has been exausted.
Military task 4.2 is the Evacuation of British Citizens Overseas. ' In cases where Civil Contingency Plans prove insufficient, defence capabilities held or other purposes may be used to evacuate United Kingdom entitled personnel where there lives may be at risk' my highlighting. For those of you that do not know the UK doctrine (this is obviously aimed at the non-aircrew as punchy warfighting aircrew will all have a complete understanding of your roles) it is available on the net here :
JWP3-51
Doctrine for humanitarian relief outside of UK territory (military task 20) is available here:
JWP3-52
Military task 4.2 is the Evacuation of British Citizens Overseas. ' In cases where Civil Contingency Plans prove insufficient, defence capabilities held or other purposes may be used to evacuate United Kingdom entitled personnel where there lives may be at risk' my highlighting. For those of you that do not know the UK doctrine (this is obviously aimed at the non-aircrew as punchy warfighting aircrew will all have a complete understanding of your roles) it is available on the net here :
JWP3-51
Doctrine for humanitarian relief outside of UK territory (military task 20) is available here:
JWP3-52
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Bottom line is though that MOD will charge for the service and FCO may well find that commercial charter is the most cost and time effective option. Unless of course politicos dictate that you will use RAF AT and pay the cost regardless of what the civ market can offer.
T
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