Do the BBC do this to wind people up?
 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/...ds/7305266.stm

..... or are the people in charge of facts on an early Easter break?

I refer to the photo!

and the problem with the photo is?

Nice one.

I am guessing they know no better.

Written in haste from a press release before going to the pub... probably...

It is, but one would expect them to at least use the correct one?

Or maybe there is a renewed threat and the fighter force need deploy?

You’re probably right FL Mac – why should we expect the BBC to get the detail right? Any old picture will do. In fact, it wouldn’t matter if they made errors in the story too. Professional pride? Obviously not important.

Sadly, I fear there are substantial numbers within the RAF who would not recognise the error either! You get it though don’t you Mac…don’t you?

wow, a full 2 month tour for each sqn...

I bet the Harrier lads are in complete awe.

I'm sorry but, I fail to see how this is big news.

Young editorial assistant is told to find photo of a Tornado. YEA (for it is he/she) uses Goo-goo images and picks a good picture. If the referencing to the picture is wrong, then how is your average journalist trainee meant to know.

Gee what do you guys expect? Expertise and specialist knowledge in the BBC (or any form of the media for that matter?). On the salaries they pay, you'd be lucky!!

Cheers

Whirls

If you want a real problem, commission an artist to paint an F3 sqn pic, let him use a GR pic as a template and then re-paint it in the sqn colours. Odds of recouping the sqn fund's outlay with the sale of prints? About 111 to one!

N Joe

I think it's just a bit of positive press coverage that only "us in the know" and the "spotters" will notice the mistake included.

You're right though, it's not new news, Tornado Sqns have been rotating through the Gulf since '91. There was even a variety of locations you could go to: Dhahran, Al Kharj, Ali Al Salem, or if you dropped on, Incirlik and now of course Al Udied.

Most of the Tornado force are looking forward to spreading their wings even further soon:hmm:

So I'd guess they're not worried about what someone else thinks of their tour durations.


Back on track, at least it was a Tornado, of sorts.

Whirls has it spot on.

It's a bit of a non-story really so was almost certainly given to the office junior, with the instruction "picture Tornado FREE find". They do a quick Google and come up with a free and suitably captioned 'Tornado' picture.

The pedants on here will complain as always but does it really make any difference to the underlying story?

At least it was a Tornado. A Jag really would have been embarrasing. :E

and more effective

In this case it was harder to get the pic wrong than right. The Lossie MCO had the good sense to send out a couple of photos of GR.4s as attachments with the press release e-mail. All they had to do was use one of the photos with the press release.

Maybe Swiss Des could combine both his part time jobs and ensure that news articles involving both defence and Jockistani elements are correctly reported?

The BBC should have known better!

Re: Pic
 

At least it's a pic of an aircraft. It could have been a photo of a swirling wind phenomenon.

Barnstormer1968:}

And there was I thinking that the initial gripe was about the content of the article :rolleyes:

The only time I have seen a Tornado on the ground in Iraq was when they div'd in with some sort of problem. Never seen any sqns actually "deployed" there yet :ouch:

And as pointed out by several, they have been deployed to the Gulf region for years. Although I would not call this a non-story, if it highlights to Joe Public the part the RAF is playing in ops out east. I am surprised though that the BBC did not refer to the RAF servicemen and women as squadies for once :D

MadMark!!! :mad:

It's still far better than the standard of Defence reporting in the Guardian

A lot of it doesn't even make sense.

I think you'll find that's House Style for the Grauniad.

Check your link
 

Harrogate,

Check your linky old boy! www.por n olize.... does not get through the Defence Net Filiters;)

MATZ