Future Carrier (Including Costs)
thanks - didn't think they bothered with serious military vessels - just things like those new tankers...............
Thread Starter
Although the Royal Navy is still undermanned, the First Sea Lord and the Navy's senior management have been working hard to deal with manning issues, and are getting there.
A lot of work is being done to change things to improve retention, for one thing. Additionally there will be increased use of Reservists as well. Shorter mobilisations may be on the cards, as opposed to six/nine/twelve month ones. Work has been ongoing allow SQEP personnel who want to stay in the service, but want a break from regular deployments, to transfer to the Reserves.
A lot of work is being done to change things to improve retention, for one thing. Additionally there will be increased use of Reservists as well. Shorter mobilisations may be on the cards, as opposed to six/nine/twelve month ones. Work has been ongoing allow SQEP personnel who want to stay in the service, but want a break from regular deployments, to transfer to the Reserves.
Thread Starter
Talking of Reservists (and ship/aircraft integration), there is a FTRS post at FOST for a Fixed Wing Lt/Lt Cdr Pilot - see page 88 of this month's FTRS jobs list.
The holder of the post is the SO2 AV(QEC), a sea riding billet at FOST(S). This new post will address the additional training burden brought about by the introduction to service of the QEC aircraft carriers.The post will involve seariding UK and international aviation capable platforms both in UK waters and overseas to provide Tier 1 aviation collective training. It is anticipated that at least 35 days per year will be spent away from the UK. It will require coordination with NCHQ FGen / CS / MAA/NFSF(RW) /Force Commanders/Navy Commitments/External Contractors (e.g. BIH)/DE&S/other MOD departments as required.
Accountable to FAVO, the Post Holder’s Primary Purpose is to; Undertake an aviation sea riding function to deliver world class training to UK and IDT platforms.
The holder of the post is the SO2 AV(QEC), a sea riding billet at FOST(S). This new post will address the additional training burden brought about by the introduction to service of the QEC aircraft carriers.The post will involve seariding UK and international aviation capable platforms both in UK waters and overseas to provide Tier 1 aviation collective training. It is anticipated that at least 35 days per year will be spent away from the UK. It will require coordination with NCHQ FGen / CS / MAA/NFSF(RW) /Force Commanders/Navy Commitments/External Contractors (e.g. BIH)/DE&S/other MOD departments as required.
Accountable to FAVO, the Post Holder’s Primary Purpose is to; Undertake an aviation sea riding function to deliver world class training to UK and IDT platforms.
Last edited by WE Branch Fanatic; 22nd Mar 2019 at 09:20.
Thread Starter
HMS Queen Elizabeth returns to Rosyth for planned maintenance Royal Navy
“Our return here is yet another first for HMS Queen Elizabeth and another important step on her journey as Britain generates a big deck Carrier Strike capability.”
Having lowered her pole mast to get under the three Bridges, the ship will now have to wait for the right tidal and weather conditions to manoeuvre safely through the lock into Rosyth Dockyard.
Equipped with a specially designed roller-fender system, there will be just one metre clearance each side of the ship, and just over one metre separating the keel from the entrance sill.
Is this something else we can export?
When the docking period is complete HMS Queen Elizabeth will sail to conduct further sea trials and training ahead of deploying again later this year for ‘WESTLANT 19’, where she will embark British F35B Lightning II jets to conduct Operational Testing, following on from last year’s successful Developmental Tests.
I wonder if this period might include embarkation of a full complement of Merlin HM2 for an ASW exercise like Deep Blue, or Deep Blue II? A big deck and multiple ASW helicopters seems to be something NATO seeks from the UK.
Alternatively, they could be bringing the ship's company and in particular the flight deck party up to speed in preparation for having multiple jets on deck (as well as helicopters).
“Our return here is yet another first for HMS Queen Elizabeth and another important step on her journey as Britain generates a big deck Carrier Strike capability.”
Having lowered her pole mast to get under the three Bridges, the ship will now have to wait for the right tidal and weather conditions to manoeuvre safely through the lock into Rosyth Dockyard.
Equipped with a specially designed roller-fender system, there will be just one metre clearance each side of the ship, and just over one metre separating the keel from the entrance sill.
Is this something else we can export?
When the docking period is complete HMS Queen Elizabeth will sail to conduct further sea trials and training ahead of deploying again later this year for ‘WESTLANT 19’, where she will embark British F35B Lightning II jets to conduct Operational Testing, following on from last year’s successful Developmental Tests.
I wonder if this period might include embarkation of a full complement of Merlin HM2 for an ASW exercise like Deep Blue, or Deep Blue II? A big deck and multiple ASW helicopters seems to be something NATO seeks from the UK.
Alternatively, they could be bringing the ship's company and in particular the flight deck party up to speed in preparation for having multiple jets on deck (as well as helicopters).
WEB.....having a Port with adequate access for your ships would be a commonsense thing don't you think?
Consider Norfolk, Charleston, Jacksonville, San Diego, Bremerton, Pearl Harbor and a few other Naval Bases in the United States as examples.
As you scroll through the Images linked below...you can see the Ark Royal at Norfolk tied up at the Bird Farm Dock.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/C...r_20,_2012.jpg
Consider Norfolk, Charleston, Jacksonville, San Diego, Bremerton, Pearl Harbor and a few other Naval Bases in the United States as examples.
As you scroll through the Images linked below...you can see the Ark Royal at Norfolk tied up at the Bird Farm Dock.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/C...r_20,_2012.jpg
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Latest news:
QE has arrived back at Rosyth for dry docking, meeting up with her younger sister HMS Prince of Wales for the first time in two years. Hopefully before the year is out we'll see both of them sailing in company once PoW starts her sea trials in the autumn:
Merlin Crowsnest first flight 01
Merlin Crowsnest first flight 02
Merlin Crowsnest first flight 03
Merlin Crowsnest first flight 04
QE has arrived back at Rosyth for dry docking, meeting up with her younger sister HMS Prince of Wales for the first time in two years. Hopefully before the year is out we'll see both of them sailing in company once PoW starts her sea trials in the autumn:
Merlin Crowsnest first flight 01
Merlin Crowsnest first flight 02
Merlin Crowsnest first flight 03
Merlin Crowsnest first flight 04
Thread Starter
To be amid the Royal Navy is to be amongst the giants of history, famous and anonymous alike, some from centuries long past, some from the two world war, and some from more recent times.
One such recent great, a pioneer who contribute much to STOVL naval aviation, the inventor of the ski jump, has died.
Lieutenant-Commander Doug Taylor, naval engineer whose ‘ski jump’ take-off for fighter jets helped to win the Falklands War – obituary
Lieutenant-Commander Doug Taylor, who has died aged 89, saw the development of all the postwar innovations in the Royal Navy which made modern naval aviation possible, the steam catapult, the angled deck, the projector sight, high-energy arresting gear – and, the last of them, Taylor’s ski-jump.
In September 1964, on a day of almost unbearable tropical heat, Taylor was flight deck engineer officer of the carrier HMS Victorious which, under international law, was exercising her right of innocent passage through the Lombok Strait into the Java Sea.
Victorious was at action stations, ready to intervene on behalf of newly independent Malaysia in the confrontation with Indonesia, when Taylor’s sixth sense caused him to examine the steam catapults where Sea Vixen fighters and Buccaneer bombers were at standby. Shocked, he realised that the aircraft could not be launched because the deck had expanded so much in the heat that the catapults were jammed.
Summoned to the bridge to explain the problem, his captain laconically told him, “Bad luck, Doug. Fix it as soon as you can. Radar shows there’s a lot of enemy air activity”.
Taylor had already ordered the deck around the catapults to be cooled by hosing with seawater: the deck shrank and the catapults quickly returned to working order, but the 10 minutes which the incident lasted led to Taylor’s vision of “a runway in the sky” for the new generation of vertical take-off Sea Harrier fighters.
The postwar Fleet Air Arm had evolved, mostly unnoticed by the public, and despite government parsimony, into one of the most highly motivated and efficient air forces in the world, but Taylor thought that it had reached the limits of expansion. He worked on alternative forms of short take-off from ships as small as frigates, but his idea of a sausage-like, rapidly inflated catapult was derided as the “giant condom”.
However, over Christmas 1969 using a slide-rule, he began a series of laborious calculations concerning launches along a ramp which would impart ballistic energy to an aircraft.
This idea was slow to overcome the “risibility factor” until Rear-Admiral Edward Dyer-Smith, Director-General Aircraft (Naval) from 1970 until 1972, took an interest and, to give Taylor and his ideas academic credibility, arranged for him to read for an MPhil at Southampton University.
There, under Professor Ian Cheeseman, Taylor gained access to one of the university’s early computers, “about the size of a large garden shed”, and was able to prove his theory that an upward-curving ramp could impart significant vertical velocity to an aircraft at the end of a short, running take-off.
Established thinking by boffins and senior officers in the RN and the RAF was heavily prejudiced against Taylor’s ideas, but anger at their closed minds only made him more determined. He won round John Fozard, chief designer at Hawkers, the makers of the Harrier, and John Farley, the Chief Test Pilot, who became his advocates.
Fozard described the ski-jump – cheap, with no moving parts, and simple – as a rare “win-win”, and the trials which began in August 1977 were a total success.
Eventually HMS Invincible, lead ship of a new class of small carriers, was fitted with a 7-degree ramp and on October 30 1980, test pilot Lieutenant-Commander David Poole from Boscombe Down made the first Sea Harrier launch from a ski-jump at sea. Later, all three Invincible-class carriers were fitted with 12-degree ramps.
The ski-jump would change the shape of the Royal Navy’s carrier fleet and play a decisive role in winning the Falklands War. Later ski-jumps were to be fitted in many other navies’ carriers.
One such recent great, a pioneer who contribute much to STOVL naval aviation, the inventor of the ski jump, has died.
Lieutenant-Commander Doug Taylor, naval engineer whose ‘ski jump’ take-off for fighter jets helped to win the Falklands War – obituary
Lieutenant-Commander Doug Taylor, who has died aged 89, saw the development of all the postwar innovations in the Royal Navy which made modern naval aviation possible, the steam catapult, the angled deck, the projector sight, high-energy arresting gear – and, the last of them, Taylor’s ski-jump.
In September 1964, on a day of almost unbearable tropical heat, Taylor was flight deck engineer officer of the carrier HMS Victorious which, under international law, was exercising her right of innocent passage through the Lombok Strait into the Java Sea.
Victorious was at action stations, ready to intervene on behalf of newly independent Malaysia in the confrontation with Indonesia, when Taylor’s sixth sense caused him to examine the steam catapults where Sea Vixen fighters and Buccaneer bombers were at standby. Shocked, he realised that the aircraft could not be launched because the deck had expanded so much in the heat that the catapults were jammed.
Summoned to the bridge to explain the problem, his captain laconically told him, “Bad luck, Doug. Fix it as soon as you can. Radar shows there’s a lot of enemy air activity”.
Taylor had already ordered the deck around the catapults to be cooled by hosing with seawater: the deck shrank and the catapults quickly returned to working order, but the 10 minutes which the incident lasted led to Taylor’s vision of “a runway in the sky” for the new generation of vertical take-off Sea Harrier fighters.
The postwar Fleet Air Arm had evolved, mostly unnoticed by the public, and despite government parsimony, into one of the most highly motivated and efficient air forces in the world, but Taylor thought that it had reached the limits of expansion. He worked on alternative forms of short take-off from ships as small as frigates, but his idea of a sausage-like, rapidly inflated catapult was derided as the “giant condom”.
However, over Christmas 1969 using a slide-rule, he began a series of laborious calculations concerning launches along a ramp which would impart ballistic energy to an aircraft.
This idea was slow to overcome the “risibility factor” until Rear-Admiral Edward Dyer-Smith, Director-General Aircraft (Naval) from 1970 until 1972, took an interest and, to give Taylor and his ideas academic credibility, arranged for him to read for an MPhil at Southampton University.
There, under Professor Ian Cheeseman, Taylor gained access to one of the university’s early computers, “about the size of a large garden shed”, and was able to prove his theory that an upward-curving ramp could impart significant vertical velocity to an aircraft at the end of a short, running take-off.
Established thinking by boffins and senior officers in the RN and the RAF was heavily prejudiced against Taylor’s ideas, but anger at their closed minds only made him more determined. He won round John Fozard, chief designer at Hawkers, the makers of the Harrier, and John Farley, the Chief Test Pilot, who became his advocates.
Fozard described the ski-jump – cheap, with no moving parts, and simple – as a rare “win-win”, and the trials which began in August 1977 were a total success.
Eventually HMS Invincible, lead ship of a new class of small carriers, was fitted with a 7-degree ramp and on October 30 1980, test pilot Lieutenant-Commander David Poole from Boscombe Down made the first Sea Harrier launch from a ski-jump at sea. Later, all three Invincible-class carriers were fitted with 12-degree ramps.
The ski-jump would change the shape of the Royal Navy’s carrier fleet and play a decisive role in winning the Falklands War. Later ski-jumps were to be fitted in many other navies’ carriers.
Thread Starter
SASless
Of course we have docks for Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales. Dry docks are different.
Anyway.... Task Groups are at the heart of Western naval strategy, whether there are carrier or amphibious based. I struggle to understand those who would sacrifice the task group capability in order simply to increase the number of hulls. Talking of task groups:
Exercise Joint Warrior reaches its high point Royal Navy
Albion heads a task group including her guardians (HMS Defender against air attack, HMS Kent against submarines and ‘enemy’ ships), amphibious ship RFA Lyme Bay, tanker RFA Tiderace and hundreds of Royal Marines of 3 Commando Brigade – plus their kit.
If the F-35B was taking part, will they have practiced air defence of the task group? ASW Merlins were also involved, so I wonder if UKCSG are involved? As someone who has worked in several Joint Warriors, I have seen the odd WAFU, but lots of them....
Of course we have docks for Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales. Dry docks are different.
Anyway.... Task Groups are at the heart of Western naval strategy, whether there are carrier or amphibious based. I struggle to understand those who would sacrifice the task group capability in order simply to increase the number of hulls. Talking of task groups:
Exercise Joint Warrior reaches its high point Royal Navy
Albion heads a task group including her guardians (HMS Defender against air attack, HMS Kent against submarines and ‘enemy’ ships), amphibious ship RFA Lyme Bay, tanker RFA Tiderace and hundreds of Royal Marines of 3 Commando Brigade – plus their kit.
If the F-35B was taking part, will they have practiced air defence of the task group? ASW Merlins were also involved, so I wonder if UKCSG are involved? As someone who has worked in several Joint Warriors, I have seen the odd WAFU, but lots of them....
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"Although the Royal Navy is still undermanned, the First Sea Lord and the Navy's senior management have been working hard to deal with manning issues, and are getting there.
A lot of work is being done to change things to improve retention, for one thing. Additionally there will be increased use of Reservists as well. Shorter mobilisations may be on the cards, as opposed to six/nine/twelve month ones. Work has been ongoing allow SQEP personnel who want to stay in the service, but want a break from regular deployments, to transfer to the Reserves."
So basically they don't have the people to fill all the roles incl supporting fleet.
A lot of work is being done to change things to improve retention, for one thing. Additionally there will be increased use of Reservists as well. Shorter mobilisations may be on the cards, as opposed to six/nine/twelve month ones. Work has been ongoing allow SQEP personnel who want to stay in the service, but want a break from regular deployments, to transfer to the Reserves."
So basically they don't have the people to fill all the roles incl supporting fleet.
? Good luck with the trials.
"So basically they don't have the people to fill all the roles incl supporting fleet."
Interesting... if you go back to the early days (2006!!) of this thread, when WEBF must have been about 15, the issue of manning has been a constant issue for the naysayers. The True Believers have always rubbished the argument saying:-
a) it would never happen
b) it didn't matter as one or two carriers out weighed anything else the navy does.
Now it appears some returning chickens are on the horizon......................
Interesting... if you go back to the early days (2006!!) of this thread, when WEBF must have been about 15, the issue of manning has been a constant issue for the naysayers. The True Believers have always rubbished the argument saying:-
a) it would never happen
b) it didn't matter as one or two carriers out weighed anything else the navy does.
Now it appears some returning chickens are on the horizon......................
Thread Starter
weemonkey/Asturias56
The Royal Navy lost about 5000 people as part of SDSR 10. The numbers were cut without too much though to the future. Then in 2015, both the RN and RAF expected a manpower uplift of about 1500 people each, but this did now happen due to Cameron being a wet drip and panicking about what his backbenchers would say if 'troop numbers' were cut.
Both services are regenerating lost capabilities.
Perhaps we 'True Believers' innocently hoped for politicians that pay attention to detail, listen to expert advice, and have some guts. I know - crazy talk!
The Royal Navy lost about 5000 people as part of SDSR 10. The numbers were cut without too much though to the future. Then in 2015, both the RN and RAF expected a manpower uplift of about 1500 people each, but this did now happen due to Cameron being a wet drip and panicking about what his backbenchers would say if 'troop numbers' were cut.
Both services are regenerating lost capabilities.
Perhaps we 'True Believers' innocently hoped for politicians that pay attention to detail, listen to expert advice, and have some guts. I know - crazy talk!
It is sad isn't it? I gave up believing in politicians commitment to the British Navy after the T45 "one for one replacement" saga...............
They kept saying it but then you could see the weasel words creeping in one at a time over the years - better for someone to 'fess up at the start IMHO
Thinking of which I took a look at Portsmouth on Google Earth yesterday - imagery dated 14th Sept 2016 - there are 4 T45's in (3 along side and 1 in dock) - but you get some idea of the SIZE of them .......... not much smaller than HMS Illustrious alongside
They kept saying it but then you could see the weasel words creeping in one at a time over the years - better for someone to 'fess up at the start IMHO
Thinking of which I took a look at Portsmouth on Google Earth yesterday - imagery dated 14th Sept 2016 - there are 4 T45's in (3 along side and 1 in dock) - but you get some idea of the SIZE of them .......... not much smaller than HMS Illustrious alongside
Thread Starter
Back in March this was on the Twitter feed from RNAS Culdrose:
.....but they’re already looking forward to being back onboard https://twitter.com/HMSQNLZ this summer!
Preparing for WESTLANT 19 and having lots of jets aboard, or perhaps a NATO exercise? Not everything is about jets.
Preparing for WESTLANT 19 and having lots of jets aboard, or perhaps a NATO exercise? Not everything is about jets.
Thread Starter
The new Secretary of State for Defence, Penny Mordaunt MP, has outlined that MOD thinking is that we will always have a carrier 'at readiness'. I presume this means R2?
Meanwhile, raining continues - for something rotary wing centric perhaps before WestLant 19?
Meanwhile, raining continues - for something rotary wing centric perhaps before WestLant 19?
Royal Navy sack exceptional Captain of HMS Queen Elizabeth
The captain of the UK's most famous aircraft carrier has been sacked for using his official car at weekends.
Commodore Nick Cooke-Priest had been the captain of the £3 billion HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier, also known as 'Big Lizzie', since October.
The Royal Navy confirmed the 50-year-old has now been fired, after driving the ship's Ford Galaxy 'as if it was his own'.
He had taken over command of the ship in October and prior to that he had been working with the Ministry of Defence in the Corporate Strategy Group, before joining the Standing Joint Force Headquarters as the assistant chief of staff of operations, during which the HQ achieved Full Operational Capability.
Insiders claimed the married father-of-three was never warned that the car was for official duties only, and he is said to be 'gutted' after discovering he had breached the rules by making personal journeys in the Galaxy.
Now the Navy has been criticised for overreacting, with one source telling The Sun that he should merely have been given a 'slap on the wrist'.
Another former officer said: 'Nick adores the Navy and has lost his career by doing what captains have done for decades — using the company car to get home.
'An innocent mistake has cost the Navy one of its best.'
Cooke-Priest, who received an OBE in 2016, was dismissed this week after a Top Brass investigation found him guilty of an 'error of judgement'.
He was then relieved of his duties commanding the carrier, which is currently docked in Scotland, has a crew of 700 and is capable of carrying up to 60 aircraft including the new Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II. There is no allegation of fraud and the officer, who joined the Royal Navy in 1990, paid for his own petrol.
However, it remains unclear what personal trips the Ford Galaxy was used for.
Cooke-Priest currently sits as the Chairman of the UK Armed Forces Equestrian Association and is a Liveryman of the Honourable Company of Air Pilots. It is not yet known whether or not these roles will be changed following his dismissal.
The respected officer had commanded a 700-strong crew, but an insider said his position had become 'untenable' as he could not properly discipline his sailors after breaking the rules himself.
After being appointed in October last year, he said: 'It’s an immense honour to have taken command of HMS QUEEN ELIZABETH and week one has been fabulous! Much brilliant trials work done, many new challenges ahead. Thrilled to be leading the QE team as we re-generate our sovereign Carrier Strike capability.'
He last tweeted on April 6, and praised his crew for their effort and work, he said: 'To team Portsmouth for their tremendous work over the past 3 months, Forth Pilots for their utter professionalism bringing us into Dry Dock today, and my outstanding Ship’s Company for their enduring commitment, thank you.
'Another milestone on the road to Carrier Strike.'
It is understood that proceedings are ongoing to determine whether he will receive any formal punishment.
A minor punishment is likely but taking into account Captain Cooke-Priest’s age and senior rank, it could mark the end of his high-flying navy career.
The Queen Elizabeth crew — docked at Rosyth in Scotland – were told yesterday that their captain was being moved on.
Captain Steven Moorhouse, who was commander of sister ship HMS Prince of Wales, will take charge of the warship.
In the meantime Cooke-Priest has been assigned a 'new role' in the Navy - though it was not clear what this involves - and he will be replaced as the captain of HMS Queen Elizabeth by the Prince of Wales' skipper Steve Moorhouse.
A Navy source told The Sun: 'We're sacrificing one of our best operational Commanding Officers to ensure we're beyond whiter than white.
'Queen Elizabeth's sailors have lost an exceptional and popular captain because of a policy which looks like it's politically driven.
'A few years ago, all he would have got is a slap on the wrist.'
The Royal Navy said: 'We can confirm Captain Nick Cooke-Priest has been reassigned to a new role. We can only say management action is ongoing and it would therefore be inappropriate to comment further.'
Commodore Cooke-Priest had specialised as a Lynx helicopter observer after joining the Royal Navy. A decade of flying appointments followed, primarily at sea, and included an instructional tour and as Flight Commander of HMS Exeter.
In 2003 he joined HMS Marlborough as an Operation Officer after completing the Principle Warfare Officer Course, where he specialised in Anti-Submarine Warfare.
He spent two years on the staff of Flag Officer Sea Training, this was prior to an assignment to HMS Gloucester as the Executive Officer, which included deployment to the South Atlantic during the austral winter.
He was promoted to Commander in 2009 and that year in HMS Kent escorted the Queen during a royal tour.
He commanded the Frigates Kent and Iron Duke, and escorted Her Majesty the Queen during her Western Isles tour. He also conducted the final security patrols around the Iraqi Oil Platforms and Naval Gunfire Support missions into Libya where he was deployed to the Arabian Gulf and in 2011 to Libya as part of Operation Ellamy.
Assuming command of HMS Bulwark, the Fleet Flag Ship, in January 2015 and leading the UK's contribution to the Gallipoli centenary commemorations in the same year are other highlights of his successful career.
Commodore Nick Cooke-Priest had been the captain of the £3 billion HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier, also known as 'Big Lizzie', since October.
The Royal Navy confirmed the 50-year-old has now been fired, after driving the ship's Ford Galaxy 'as if it was his own'.
He had taken over command of the ship in October and prior to that he had been working with the Ministry of Defence in the Corporate Strategy Group, before joining the Standing Joint Force Headquarters as the assistant chief of staff of operations, during which the HQ achieved Full Operational Capability.
Insiders claimed the married father-of-three was never warned that the car was for official duties only, and he is said to be 'gutted' after discovering he had breached the rules by making personal journeys in the Galaxy.
Now the Navy has been criticised for overreacting, with one source telling The Sun that he should merely have been given a 'slap on the wrist'.
Another former officer said: 'Nick adores the Navy and has lost his career by doing what captains have done for decades — using the company car to get home.
'An innocent mistake has cost the Navy one of its best.'
Cooke-Priest, who received an OBE in 2016, was dismissed this week after a Top Brass investigation found him guilty of an 'error of judgement'.
He was then relieved of his duties commanding the carrier, which is currently docked in Scotland, has a crew of 700 and is capable of carrying up to 60 aircraft including the new Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II. There is no allegation of fraud and the officer, who joined the Royal Navy in 1990, paid for his own petrol.
However, it remains unclear what personal trips the Ford Galaxy was used for.
Cooke-Priest currently sits as the Chairman of the UK Armed Forces Equestrian Association and is a Liveryman of the Honourable Company of Air Pilots. It is not yet known whether or not these roles will be changed following his dismissal.
The respected officer had commanded a 700-strong crew, but an insider said his position had become 'untenable' as he could not properly discipline his sailors after breaking the rules himself.
After being appointed in October last year, he said: 'It’s an immense honour to have taken command of HMS QUEEN ELIZABETH and week one has been fabulous! Much brilliant trials work done, many new challenges ahead. Thrilled to be leading the QE team as we re-generate our sovereign Carrier Strike capability.'
He last tweeted on April 6, and praised his crew for their effort and work, he said: 'To team Portsmouth for their tremendous work over the past 3 months, Forth Pilots for their utter professionalism bringing us into Dry Dock today, and my outstanding Ship’s Company for their enduring commitment, thank you.
'Another milestone on the road to Carrier Strike.'
It is understood that proceedings are ongoing to determine whether he will receive any formal punishment.
A minor punishment is likely but taking into account Captain Cooke-Priest’s age and senior rank, it could mark the end of his high-flying navy career.
The Queen Elizabeth crew — docked at Rosyth in Scotland – were told yesterday that their captain was being moved on.
Captain Steven Moorhouse, who was commander of sister ship HMS Prince of Wales, will take charge of the warship.
In the meantime Cooke-Priest has been assigned a 'new role' in the Navy - though it was not clear what this involves - and he will be replaced as the captain of HMS Queen Elizabeth by the Prince of Wales' skipper Steve Moorhouse.
A Navy source told The Sun: 'We're sacrificing one of our best operational Commanding Officers to ensure we're beyond whiter than white.
'Queen Elizabeth's sailors have lost an exceptional and popular captain because of a policy which looks like it's politically driven.
'A few years ago, all he would have got is a slap on the wrist.'
The Royal Navy said: 'We can confirm Captain Nick Cooke-Priest has been reassigned to a new role. We can only say management action is ongoing and it would therefore be inappropriate to comment further.'
Commodore Cooke-Priest had specialised as a Lynx helicopter observer after joining the Royal Navy. A decade of flying appointments followed, primarily at sea, and included an instructional tour and as Flight Commander of HMS Exeter.
In 2003 he joined HMS Marlborough as an Operation Officer after completing the Principle Warfare Officer Course, where he specialised in Anti-Submarine Warfare.
He spent two years on the staff of Flag Officer Sea Training, this was prior to an assignment to HMS Gloucester as the Executive Officer, which included deployment to the South Atlantic during the austral winter.
He was promoted to Commander in 2009 and that year in HMS Kent escorted the Queen during a royal tour.
He commanded the Frigates Kent and Iron Duke, and escorted Her Majesty the Queen during her Western Isles tour. He also conducted the final security patrols around the Iraqi Oil Platforms and Naval Gunfire Support missions into Libya where he was deployed to the Arabian Gulf and in 2011 to Libya as part of Operation Ellamy.
Assuming command of HMS Bulwark, the Fleet Flag Ship, in January 2015 and leading the UK's contribution to the Gallipoli centenary commemorations in the same year are other highlights of his successful career.
Last edited by Senior Pilot; 17th May 2019 at 07:54. Reason: Add article to url
Good grief. I know a lot of Commanders RN who used their staff car, and chauffeur, for personal trips. Nobody batted an eyelid. All of them also made both car and driver available to families of ill or recently deceased employees. The offer was still open to my mother years afterwards. Changed times, and not for the better.
