Queen's Diamond Jubilee Celebrations
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Laaarf! I nearly **** myself when he commented that 'he was defeating the Laws of Gravity'!
How can you defeat that law when you are sitting on the Earth's surface (albeit water)?
Bloody fools - where do they get these morons from? These are not just slips of the tongue - they expose a deep ignorance and a lack of respect!
By the way, I'm still waiting for my answer but I shall certainly retort with the HRH issue if it's as weak a response as I am anticipating!
Foldie
you'd have thought he'd defied the laws of physics by bringing her alongside without ramming the landing
How can you defeat that law when you are sitting on the Earth's surface (albeit water)?
Bloody fools - where do they get these morons from? These are not just slips of the tongue - they expose a deep ignorance and a lack of respect!
By the way, I'm still waiting for my answer but I shall certainly retort with the HRH issue if it's as weak a response as I am anticipating!
Foldie
"I hear the Royal Navy had to cancel the 'Fleet Review' that they had planned to take place on the Thames as there were too many small boats on the river. "
Assuming that isn't tongue in cheek, I can assure you that no such 'review' was ever planned. This was a private event, and not an RN event.
I did a bit over on ARRSE trying to explain the RN presence, which I've put below in an effort to try to dampen down the 'why no frigate' lobby.
"Gents,
As someone directly involved in helping organise a minor part of the event, I can perhaps try to put some context for you. Firstly, Buckingham Palace made very clear that they only wanted one official function this year, and this was the Jubilee Muster which occurred at Windsor. Anything else was seen as a non MOD function.
Secondly, this was a private event, organised by a private company. They were gracious enough to allow the Royal Navy to take part.
In terms of ship participation, several issues occurred. Firstly, the problem of ship size. The largest vessel in the RN that can go beyond Tower Bridge is a Type 23. Had you rafted a Type 23 alongside HMS Belfast, then you would have had the equivalent of an M25 pileup on a particularly congested piece of water as five lanes of traffic went to one. Between Greenwich and before HMS PRESIDENT, there are no moorings where you could put a Type 23 on a river anchorage and still allow the flotilla to safely disperse. HMS Hurworth was the largest type of vessel that could safely occupy the berth in question. You could not get a T45 up that far, never mind get them through Tower Bridge – you’ll never, ever, see a T45 go past Tower Bridge as they are simply too tall.
There is a berth at Greenwich, where vessels up to Carrier size can go to. The problem is that this is a private event, and that berth was taken some years ago. There were no berths anywhere on the pageant route that the RN could have put a platform on to without moving people who had paid a lot of money to be there. The closest you could have been (and I know this for a fact, having discussed a couple of times with the RN event organiser) is the Excel centre, out of sight and out of mind.
The RN presence was entirely appropriate based on what could operate on the river. The ORC / PB escort came about because they are the only type of boats able to get from the start line to the finish line continuously. The P2000s couldn’t get up to beyond Westminster Bridge as they were too tall.
This was a private event, but personally I think the RN, RAN, RCN and RNZN came out of it looking pretty good for themselves. Its not as simple as saying ‘put multiple pussers warships on the Thames’. The question is ‘what can we put that can escort the Sovereign, on a continual basis, without causing a pile up which could see people drown and also enable the programme to occur as planned’.
Very happy to discuss this in more depth via PM to those who think something else could have been done better. Having sat in on a lot of briefings to some exceptionally senior people on this, I can assure you that what you saw was the DS solution, because nothing else would have been feasible."
Assuming that isn't tongue in cheek, I can assure you that no such 'review' was ever planned. This was a private event, and not an RN event.
I did a bit over on ARRSE trying to explain the RN presence, which I've put below in an effort to try to dampen down the 'why no frigate' lobby.
"Gents,
As someone directly involved in helping organise a minor part of the event, I can perhaps try to put some context for you. Firstly, Buckingham Palace made very clear that they only wanted one official function this year, and this was the Jubilee Muster which occurred at Windsor. Anything else was seen as a non MOD function.
Secondly, this was a private event, organised by a private company. They were gracious enough to allow the Royal Navy to take part.
In terms of ship participation, several issues occurred. Firstly, the problem of ship size. The largest vessel in the RN that can go beyond Tower Bridge is a Type 23. Had you rafted a Type 23 alongside HMS Belfast, then you would have had the equivalent of an M25 pileup on a particularly congested piece of water as five lanes of traffic went to one. Between Greenwich and before HMS PRESIDENT, there are no moorings where you could put a Type 23 on a river anchorage and still allow the flotilla to safely disperse. HMS Hurworth was the largest type of vessel that could safely occupy the berth in question. You could not get a T45 up that far, never mind get them through Tower Bridge – you’ll never, ever, see a T45 go past Tower Bridge as they are simply too tall.
There is a berth at Greenwich, where vessels up to Carrier size can go to. The problem is that this is a private event, and that berth was taken some years ago. There were no berths anywhere on the pageant route that the RN could have put a platform on to without moving people who had paid a lot of money to be there. The closest you could have been (and I know this for a fact, having discussed a couple of times with the RN event organiser) is the Excel centre, out of sight and out of mind.
The RN presence was entirely appropriate based on what could operate on the river. The ORC / PB escort came about because they are the only type of boats able to get from the start line to the finish line continuously. The P2000s couldn’t get up to beyond Westminster Bridge as they were too tall.
This was a private event, but personally I think the RN, RAN, RCN and RNZN came out of it looking pretty good for themselves. Its not as simple as saying ‘put multiple pussers warships on the Thames’. The question is ‘what can we put that can escort the Sovereign, on a continual basis, without causing a pile up which could see people drown and also enable the programme to occur as planned’.
Very happy to discuss this in more depth via PM to those who think something else could have been done better. Having sat in on a lot of briefings to some exceptionally senior people on this, I can assure you that what you saw was the DS solution, because nothing else would have been feasible."
So the Beeb managed to surpass the crassness of its coverage of the Windsor Muster with that of the Thames Progress yesterday. Are they making some subtle point or is this the format we may expect for their coverage of the Olympics, The Trooping, Armistice Day, and just about every other upcoming national event? Hopefully it's the latter and nothing more sinister than their own inept uselessness. I believe there is a theory that once an organisation builds its own corporate headquarters, then it is in terminal decline. The Beeb seems to have provided the QED to that in full and will become yet another long forgotten institution labelled the British something or other. Good riddance!
Jimlad - always good to get a post from someone who knows what he's talking about - especially on a predominantly aircrew forum where most of us dont know much more about ships except that the pointy end is called the bow (I think )
)
Duchess of cambridge wearing naval wings brooch?
Did anyone else see the Naval "Lurpak" Brooch on her red dress? I would have hoped she was wearing RAF wings to support her husband rather than the rest of her in laws!
Originally Posted by rockyDC
Did anyone else see the Naval "Lurpak" Brooch on her red dress? I would have hoped she was wearing RAF wings to support her husband rather than the rest of her in laws!
"Did anyone pick up that The Duchess of Cambridge's favourite milliner had been in the business a very long time and had made the hats for Lord Nelson at the Battle of Waterloo? "
Did I miss the fact that Napoleon learnt to sail on Barton Broad? I fully expected it.
The only way to watch such drivel is with the sound O F F O F F.
The commentary verged on the grotesque at the time, and that stupid couple of commentators in the studio kept getting in the way of the action.
And what was Huw Edwards up to: he usually can be relied on for a bit of gravitas.
Bring back Richard Dimblebum.
Did I miss the fact that Napoleon learnt to sail on Barton Broad? I fully expected it.
The only way to watch such drivel is with the sound O F F O F F.
The commentary verged on the grotesque at the time, and that stupid couple of commentators in the studio kept getting in the way of the action.
And what was Huw Edwards up to: he usually can be relied on for a bit of gravitas.
Bring back Richard Dimblebum.
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Prince Philip has been admitted to hospital. 
not exactly good news at this time for the Queen..
BREAKING NEWS: Prince Philip rushed to hospital | Mail Online
not exactly good news at this time for the Queen..BREAKING NEWS: Prince Philip rushed to hospital | Mail Online
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Assuming that isn't tongue in cheek,
Putting aside your claim regarding Buckingham Palace only wanted one Official Function the Royal family have a soft spot for the Royal Navy, the Duke of Edinburgh has been graciously awarded the title of Lord High Admiral of the Navy but this iconic person is sadly not a 'spring chicken' and would this have been an ideal occasion for the Queen's Consort to review his fleet and yes I TOTALLY agree that London would be totally out of the question BUT.... Who is kidding who? How many ships could the Navy spare for such a task? Having it in the Thames was a tongue in cheek comment but if we had the ships then why not have it in Plymouth or perish the thought Torbay? The bottom line however is that it would be plain embarrassing to have to admit there is NO fleet to review. The Royal Navy is beyond being overstretched and we are now relying on Royal Fleet Auxiliary ships manned by civilians to carry out the duties of frigates that have had to be deployed elsewhere.
Nice to see the Royal Barge taking part in that wonderful ceremony but would Her Majesty the Queen or the Lord High Admiral of the Navy wear blooming life jackets when they were on the Royal Barge??? I cringed when I saw those old salts wearing life jackets!! When the Royal Yacht came to Torbay and that barge had to ferry the Royal party ashore, the boat was a rocking, the waves were a splashing, come hell or high water the boat's crew stood to attention like the men they were and not a life jacket to be seen!!.
I am fully aware that the crew yesterday were all ex 'Yachties' but I would have told the Health and Safety clowns to stuff their rules where the Sun does not shine!! Life Jackets indeed.
I do understand your point about the Thames and of course the remark was Tongue in Cheek but your comment about the biggest ship that could get up to the Pool of London is a Type 23 frigate and then go on to talk about it possibly tying up alongside the Belfast a ship easily in excess of twice the weight of that class of ship did make me think about what you claimed, but I am NOT talking about a 'Fleet Review' in the Thames... It was tongue in cheek as is my suggestion that the Royal Navy could probably use my swimming pool to hold a Review!!
Sadly I have just heard the news about Prince Philip the Duke of Edinburgh being admitted to King Edward VII Hospital, my thoughts and my prayers are with him and Her Majesty.
Best wishes
John
"I cringed when I saw those old salts wearing life jackets!!"
I agree - however, as was eloquently explained to me by Port of London, everyone, no matter how salty, was required to wear a life jacket. The reason is because they had real worries that had someone gone overboard without one during the pageant, then due to the sheer number of boats in the water, any rescue operation could have ended in tragedy.
Think putting well meaning man overboard recovery drills into place to get someone drowning in the river, and then causing a pile up, which in turn could easily have caused multiple collisions as people moved to avoid the accident. Lifejackets would have meant people stood a chance of floating, and giving RNLI vital seconds to get in and save them.
I saw multiple senior RN officers briefed on this, and go from 'what sort of nappy wetting loser wears a life jacket on the Thames' to 'very sensible measure, even if it looks gash' when they understood how much could have gone very badly wrong had someone fallen in without one.
As for the comments ref Belfasts size. Have you ever seen a T23 alongside Belfast? The two hulls are of near identical height and width, and Belfast is only about 30m longer than a 23. Its not the tonnage thats the issue, its the problem of dimensions.
T45s cant go through tower bridge without knocking the top off their radars, and that would definitely leave the UK at risk of golfball attack
I agree - however, as was eloquently explained to me by Port of London, everyone, no matter how salty, was required to wear a life jacket. The reason is because they had real worries that had someone gone overboard without one during the pageant, then due to the sheer number of boats in the water, any rescue operation could have ended in tragedy.
Think putting well meaning man overboard recovery drills into place to get someone drowning in the river, and then causing a pile up, which in turn could easily have caused multiple collisions as people moved to avoid the accident. Lifejackets would have meant people stood a chance of floating, and giving RNLI vital seconds to get in and save them.
I saw multiple senior RN officers briefed on this, and go from 'what sort of nappy wetting loser wears a life jacket on the Thames' to 'very sensible measure, even if it looks gash' when they understood how much could have gone very badly wrong had someone fallen in without one.
As for the comments ref Belfasts size. Have you ever seen a T23 alongside Belfast? The two hulls are of near identical height and width, and Belfast is only about 30m longer than a 23. Its not the tonnage thats the issue, its the problem of dimensions.
T45s cant go through tower bridge without knocking the top off their radars, and that would definitely leave the UK at risk of golfball attack
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Totally agree with ALL your excellent and very valid points but the Senior Service rules the waves (without blooming life jackets) 
I would have simply sated NO Royal Navy sailor would fall into the water, BUT if they were to slip then they would walk on its surface.
I bet NO ONE dared to request the Lord High Admiral put on a life jacket!!
I would have simply sated NO Royal Navy sailor would fall into the water, BUT if they were to slip then they would walk on its surface.I bet NO ONE dared to request the Lord High Admiral put on a life jacket!!
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Or even The Queen, Prince Philip, or indeed anyone on the Royal Barge.
Last edited by NutLoose; 4th Jun 2012 at 17:19.
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When Sir Winston Churchill past away the funeral took place on an absolutely freezing cold January morning. The order of the day came down that the dress would be great coat and gloves. The Royal Navy politely declined to wear winter rig which would have been for the sailors blue sea jerseys and great coats. Instead they wore the much smarter summer white fronts and no great coat. The Army and the Junior service insisted it would be full winter clothing as it was indeed EXTREMELY cold and the men could not be expected to stand out in the freezing cold wearing summer rig!
A man has to do what a man has to do and Cometh the Hour, Cometh the Man.
A real Naval Officer would have stood up and very politely declined the offer of those embarrassing life jackets and whilst I am in full moan mode should the coxswain have been wearing a jacket and tie!
The Yachties had a unique uniform which was different from that worn by General Service sailors which makes me suspect that it was quite possible the full uniforms might not have been available? (question for Jim)
A man has to do what a man has to do and Cometh the Hour, Cometh the Man.
A real Naval Officer would have stood up and very politely declined the offer of those embarrassing life jackets and whilst I am in full moan mode should the coxswain have been wearing a jacket and tie!
The Yachties had a unique uniform which was different from that worn by General Service sailors which makes me suspect that it was quite possible the full uniforms might not have been available? (question for Jim)
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Forget the boat pageant and the parades/flypasts.
Ladies and Gents.
'Madness' on top of Buckingham Palace playing 'Our House'.
Best thing about the jubilee so far by a country mile.
'Madness' on top of Buckingham Palace playing 'Our House'.
Best thing about the jubilee so far by a country mile.
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Hear Hear! The Queen is one tough lady and dedicated to her life's work. I am not a dyed in the wool Royalist in that I am not totally at ease with the idea of inherited dynastic power. However one cannot fault Her Majesty's performance of the duties to which she has dedicated the last 60 years of her life.
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Top Video of the RAF Valley Flypast
Last edited by A2QFI; 5th Jun 2012 at 10:45.
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No ... It was RW&B illumination ... the French Flag is BW&R as viewed left to right
took a week before it was noticed.
Last edited by NutLoose; 5th Jun 2012 at 09:14.