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Sharkey Ward has got a blog

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Sharkey Ward has got a blog

Old 27th Aug 2012, 18:10
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Sharkey Ward has got a blog

He doesn't seem very enthusiastic about the RAF..

Sharkey's World


WWW
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 18:18
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True though
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 18:20
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Last edited by green granite; 27th Aug 2012 at 18:20.
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 18:21
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I am not his biggest fan but a lot of what he says is true...

WWW, I am sure light blue will reply to your original post in the normal frothing-at-the-mouth way spouting 'Flexibility' et al

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Old 27th Aug 2012, 18:24
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RAF Transport Command - who are they?

He really is a sad individual, does anybody take any notice of his rants any more?

<yawn>
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 18:26
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It was news to me that he had a blog and on a wet bank holiday Monday it was a 'diverting' read. Someone should tell him though that RAF Transport Command went in about 1967..

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Old 27th Aug 2012, 18:35
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By all tradition and service etiquette, I, as the senior officer on board the aircraft, should have been the first to be invited to disembark. But because I was Navy I was totally ignored. Without any reference to me the cabin staff announced the order for disembarkation: two stretcher‑cases; followed by non‑commissioned Welsh Guards personnel; followed by Falkland Islanders; followed by `any other party'. It was another calculated insult but I didn't have the will to cause a fuss. I was too excited at the thought of seeing my wife and children again.
What an utter bell-end!

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Old 27th Aug 2012, 18:53
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Its not exactly news, but just for the record he actually has TWO websites

Sharkey's World: 1. Welcome

- The Phoenix ThinkTank – Naval Think Tank
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 19:00
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What an utter throbber!

7.***** I trust that you will take note of the above and discuss the same ... with your Cabinet colleagues.* Our future global maritime capability and political influence rests in the balance.
D Cameron: Good morning everyone and welcome back from your summer hols. Now I know that the economy's still tanking and the Euro is heading south but I really do think that we ought to discuss Sharkey Ward's letter to William Hague.

P Hammond: Absolutely PM, I really agree. The most important thing is to wallow in the past but look on the bright side we'll be back in power by the time the carrier eventually comes into service

D Cameron: Thought we were buying two.

G Osborne: Not a chance.

D Cameron: Good, now what did Sharkey want.

Underling: Nothing worth five seconds of your time Prime Minister.
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 19:04
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E-i, e-i, Oh. Sorry, thought you said "got a dog"!

I'll get my coat

Last edited by Wander00; 27th Aug 2012 at 19:51.
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 19:16
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I would attempt to post a half decent rebuttal with regards to one of his hair-brained conspiracy theories but you know what, it really isn't worth it.

All I can really say is what a lot of hoop. I feel embarrassed for the many fine and upstanding serving and ex-serving Royal Navy personnel he claims to represent and associate with. If he were an ex-member of either of the services I've served in I'd be mortified that he claimed to speak on behalf of me.

Last edited by The Helpful Stacker; 27th Aug 2012 at 20:36.
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 19:20
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`From the Group Captain, Sir. You may have a seat in whichever aircraft you wish.'
= "For God's sake, get this nasty little bearded bull****ter out of here as soon as you can manage to arrange it!".

At last I was able to step ashore on to home soil and, carrying my own bags, walked the 200 yards in my full‑dress uniform to where I could see my family waiting. There had been four generals to meet the Welsh Guardsmen. There was no sign of the Navy.
They obviously knew him well...........

It's a great pity that such a brave wartime jet fighter pilot should be quite so bitter about things which really aren't of much importance.
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 19:21
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Some of his back-of-a-fag-packet costings of naval vs land-based air are quite hilarious. Particularly the ones where he includes every last cost of an airfield (almost down to the bog paper in the guardroom toilets) and then says that naval aircraft operate for free from a carrier (no mention of fuel, supplies, logistics or even ship maintenance). His postings during ELLAMY petered out as everyone realised that the lack of carrier-borne fast air wasn't a show-stopper; perhaps his masters at the Phoenix told him to stop embarrassing them. Shame, because they were quite a study in developing an argument from a one-eyed viewpoint.

The sad thing is that the tone of his blog is not too far detached from the view of the RAF held by a significant proportion of the FAA. Sharkey gets a lot of leaks from them and it is all done with quite a deal of spite. Really, it is time that the differences were sorted out.

Last edited by Easy Street; 27th Aug 2012 at 19:22.
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 20:03
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I just love single-issue fanatics.
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 20:12
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its worth remembering the last two (?) threads on this subject got deleted after the attacks became too personal on him.
The topic seems to come back every six months when someone else finds that site......
is it worth going over it all yet again?
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 20:13
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If he's so desperate to go and really can't stand the RAF that much, why doesn't he just catch the LAN Chile flight??

I notice in his list of aircraft he has included all the Navy Hawks at Culdrose in the RAF section.....
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 20:22
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I'm torn between being impressed and feeling sad that after so many years, a person could still have a bee in the bonnet about alleged treatment over flights back from the Falklands in 1982!

(And how many service personnel took their "Full Dress uniform" to the Falklands War so they could wear it home? - come on, hands up!)
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 20:27
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Retired sailor in a "Once upon a time I was mildly important in my own mirror" moment.

Nothing to see here - move along.
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Old 27th Aug 2012, 22:01
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Why didn't the 2 Group Captains or several Wing Commanders just tell him to foxtrot Oscar or does the senior service outrank all of them?
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Old 23rd Jan 2013, 14:32
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More RAF bashing from Sharkey!

I can't help myself, I've been reading Sharkey Ward's website comments. Among the least offensive comments he has posted is one in particular which I would question. He maintains that in 1967, the British withdrawal from Aden required cover from a Navy Carrier. They were there apparently to cover the evacuation of all including the R.A.F. Now I don't doubt that a situation such as this could arise, however, I have seen film of the last days of the British presence in Aden.

Unless I'm mistaken and what I was watching was some other ceremony, the Navy were indeed present, but not to provide any kind of air cover for the fleeing R.A.F. I recall seeing the aircraft from HMS Victorious mounting a large Balbo flypast while a Senior British Officer, on land, took the salute.

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