BRNC Dartmouth
 

Read with dismay the story in the Sunday Times yesterday about a statement this week announcing the closure of BRNC Dartmouth.

Must be many BRNC old boys & girls out there in Pruneland?

Sad news indeed....most of us look back on our time spent there with fondness?

Sad News Indeed
 

Despite being a crab, I have great regard and affection for the RN and am disappointed with this news. I find it difficult to believe that BRNC = 2 carriers or anywhere near it in cost terms, even if Dartmouth needed a major revamp (which it might).

The advantage of places like Dartmouth, Sandhurst and Cranwell is their ambience. They are not simply used for training young officers but also as a showcase for the services to entertain others etc. Nobody could say that places like Manadon (HMS Thunderer), Mons OCS/Eaton Hall or RAF OCTU/ITS at places various, had any real character about them. The three services colleges certainly do.

Where will the RN go now? Those two old hulks moored in the Dart went about 100 years ago!

Perhaps we shall see a 'single gate' armed forces academy before much longer!

O-D

Steady chaps, don't let SOSL see this thread......:hmm:

JJ - SOSL? - you'll have to enlighten us

Its getting scary is Cranwell next ?? morale must be low,not good for front line personnel.

Crying shame. What soulless prefab box will they use instead??

BRNC? Dreadful place. Feel nothing but contempt for the place. Nevertheless, I'm surprised there's any savings to be had by closing it down; I thought it was mostly funded by the International students whose govts pay bucketloads for the privelege of BRNC's apparent prestige.

Where did the ST suggest that BRNC would re-locate to?

The last I read, a while back, was that AIB and all leadership training (lower deck included) would be moved to Dartmouth, which makes some sense, and I guess justifies the cost/utilisation of the estate.

I would be really quite surprised if BRNC left Dartmouth.

So would I AA. I must admit it brings back memories, not all of them wonderful! :{ I do recall however being on parade on occasions listening to trains leaving Kingswear Stn and wondering which GWR steam locomotive was doing the work! (The military has never eradicated that aspect of my persona, I continue to inflict steam railways on any poor sod within earshot!) BRNC is an iconic place in a lovely part of England. It has kudos rather like Cranwell and Sandhurst and we are lucky to have them. CHOM of course was only built because Sir Samuel Hoare didn't wait for the General Election and got the foundation stone laid prior to the election as a "fait accompli."

Scrapping BRNC Dartmouth
 

If they do it it will be a crass disregard for the value of long standing tradition on morale and backbone.

A cowardly political expedient for which the so called savings will be negligible in comparison with the glaring idiocy of so many procurement decisions made by senior military, civil service and political individuals.

This would be vandalism of a high order which could never be recovered or recompensed.

Next they'll be closing Cranwell for goodness sake!

Sandhurst will be OK till we get out of the 'Stan, unless we pick up any other little errands for the USA.

SOS

They didn't call Hoare "Soapy Sam" for nothing - he was the Mandleson of his time!

Today's Torygraph also covers BRNC closure - without saying where a replacement would be.

Have to agree that single-Service "front gates" are essential, not only for zobs but for blighters/jacks/erks too. (IMHO)

It's all about the ethoi... (plural of ethos, I've been waiting for years to use it!)

On the local West Country news they were on about BRNC relocating to Torpoint .:hmm:

I can only imagine that their Warships looked at Raleigh and looked at Dartmouth, and decided that they could send the baby officers to Raleigh and keep a straight face, but couldn't tolerate the idea of Jack learning to march/wash/iron at Dartmouth.

Now that is sad.

I was at BRNC (Blake Division) in 1969 and remember with pleasure (now), EMAs, ABAs and Kai and winged collars and divisions and and . . .

Listening to the Marine band playing Hearts of Oak early in the mornings waiting to do the march past gave many of us a misty eye.

I won't miss polishing that bloody cannon and brass bell though.

Best wishes to all . . . (who remembers Kitchen rudder gear boats then?)

and I was in Blake from April 78 to December of that year.

My father was a 13 y/o entry in 1947, in Hawke. His entry was joined by the first of the 16 y/o entry, and 18 y/o entry was well, and I think not long after he entered BRNC they finished the 13 y/o entry for ever.

Hope they don't get rid of it, IOT wouldn't be the same without all the traditions and history there. BRNC was my first time away from home for more than a week. Joined 23 Sept 01, just after 9/11 and quite a few didn't turn up.

Just remember on the first night to assemble on the quarterdeck in 4's - all we had was a pile of uniform and no instructions as to what went with what!!!

Cunningham Sqn Sept 01 - Aug 02.

So how many officers a year do you need to recruit to keep 22 ships afloat? Not that many, so perhaps they could return to Greenwich.

Well said SOSL, well said.
Sometimes being immersed in tradition IS necessary.
Look at the decimation of the RAF's aircraft engineering trade training, both 1 and 2 Schools of Technical Training gone. They (we) didn't just learn tech there, the installation of self discipline (even on the FT's like me) was noteable and having "worked" along side todays yoof in various location in the UK they just ain't got it when the chips are down.:(

latest from navynet,via bbc is that it is possible might be jorno stirring,hope so.:suspect:

Outraged of Australia writes...:mad:

I was there in 88, my great grandfather in about 1900, just after they got rid of the hulks in the Dart. Good thing we're getting rid of all that history to save some idiots political hide!

Maybe they good use the Ark Royal tied up in the river as a training hulk......:yuk: