CHANING TIMES
 

You may feel that the service is way behind the times but there has been change over the years and sometimes the changes have been improvements

A navigator on my squadron in the sixties was court martialled and thrown out for failing to attend a dining-in night

The rational behind it seemed to be; if he won't turn up to eat with you will he be steady in war. My reaction was if he feels the dining in nights are less important than his other undertakings he may be a man of high principle who will be very steady when required.

Anyway he was out and we lost a competent nav

"I left my job in PR to become an RAF wife".

Once in PR, always in PR and I bet she makes a tidy buck out of peddling this tripe. She clearly made no effort to become an RAF officer's wife. Perhaps she believed hubby's PR and didn't realise that she was marrying an officer in a disciplined, hierarchical armed service and not a bus driver.

I never tried it but in the sixties I was assured by the older and bolder that the wives were ranked the same as their husbands. Should you jump into bed with a wife of a more senior officer than you it wasn't you fault; it was her's for leading you astray.

Tin Ribs
A remarkable story. While I would hesitate to question its veracity, I don't recall "failure to attend a dining in night" being listed as a court martial offence. Unless, of course, the dining in night was in Aden or Borneo and he had decided to remain in UK.

Or not.

Having just done a march-in, idly running my hand along the bottom edge of the kitchen worktop it felt a bit rough. It had never been cleaned in years. Superficially clean the more we looked the worse it was.

Tops of cupboards thick with dirt. Cooker seal completely full of gunge.

Some people now just leave and pay the contract cleaning bill. Only thing is the contract cleaners probably just skim clean and hope the next occupants don't notice.

Clockwork,

Maybe the dining in night was considered a parade?

Certainly failure to attend a parade is still a chargeable offence.....

You read the Daily Mail?

Message to the government, save a fortune and get rid of uniforms, they are not appreciated by idiots.

I have a dim memory that in the 60s a formal Guest Night was considered a "parade" - not sure about a Dining-In Night

Biggus
In my day dinner nights were indeed considered a parade. However, officers were not "charged" with an offence unless they were caught in bed with their batman, but he could have expected a verbal thrashing from his adjutant or CO and a month's worth of extra duties. A court martial and dismissal from the service seems a trifle over the top.

Damn, if only I'd known.

Chicken Leg, I think the 3 litre Capri probably gave it away :cool:

Clockwork,

My point was that failing to attend a parade could be the subject of disciplinary action, by whatever method it is administered....

I don't dispute that a CM and dismissal seem over the top - but then I don't know the details of the case.



Returning to the article...

How many Colonels are there with 5 bedroomed houses with driveways at Lyneham?

Different houses for different ranks?.....Hm, that fits in quite nicely with different rents being paid by people on different payscales.

How much was she paying for this quarter compared to civil rental values or the cost of a mortgage? She was getting a fairly reasonable house at a cheap as chips rental I expect.....

Any tenant, inside or outside the military, is required to take reasonable care of the property they are renting. Which is very different from having the house "spotless" all the time!

Complaining about a pregnancy scan from a doctor in DPMs (dressed as a tree?), how about acknowledging the free medical care she was getting! Which doesn't exist any more for dependents.

"There was always the chance we would have to move away completely and make new friends" - you mean he could have been posted away from Lyneham (which apparently he wasn't), something that happens (posting, moving on) to most of the military on a fairly regular basis.....


All in all - total drivel.

"I was amazed to discover, for example, that the houses on the RAF base were segregated according to rank. Each estate – or ‘patch’, as it is called – was split into areas for airmen, sergeants and officers. And the higher your husband’s rank, the bigger your house. Colonels were furnished with five bedrooms and a gated driveway."

She hadn't joined the RAF herself though. It was just his job. Or is 'RAF officers wife' a job of some kind.

Dr Jekyll,

Some women elect to make being "an RAF Officers Wife" their "job", fortunately most wives of RAF Officers are far more enlightened!

It is a choice thing....

Yup, all the quarters I've moved in to have been fairly grubby on arrival. Of course, one is hardly likely to delay unpacking whilst waiting for DHE to arrange re-cleaning so what's the point in complaining.

Prior to my last 'march out' (what a fabulously pompous title) Mrs WW and decided to pay a cleaner circa £100 to do all the pointless cleaning of picture rails etc. We stooped, pardon the pun, to weeding the garden (and cutting the lawn) ourselves. Wouldn't have minded but it was raining heavily on the day the people from DHE came to inspect, they both trod mud over the freshly shampooed carpets, upstairs and down. I drove past the house about 2 months after I'd moved out, the grass was about a foot long and the weeds had taken over the borders.

A small addition to quartering charges should be made and DHE should foot the bill for bringing quarters up to a suitable standard of cleanliness.

I bet "Paul" is happy to have his picture plastered all over the Mail, along with the other 'RCWs'!!:hmm:

Whilst there's a hint of truth in the article it's all grossly exaggerated & something of a caricature - there's never a time at Lyneham (or was....) when all the men would be away, detachments were covered in rotations. Even at FJ stations the squadrons rotate so there would not be a time when there were no men about. Sorry Postie....

As SS points out, there must be a sequel to her last book out. Perhaps 'Paul' isn't being generous enough with the alimony. Nothing like rolling the good name of the RAF in the mud & holding it up to ridicule just to make some cash.

And "Schwarz-slanger" called her "M'aam" all evening too!

"Valid point Reg"

lsh
:E

lsh,

Yes, he d-d-d-d- did! ;)

Nothing like a stylish leather jacket (and to be honest, it was nothing like stylish).


Perhaps "Paul" made sure he was away a lot more than all the other husbands.... ;)