Serviceman threatened with knife outside RAF base
 

See

Police hunt two men who threatened airman with knife at RAF Marham

BTW Since when did stations start adding tacky company advertising to the main gate signs?

Tacky? Or is it the sad fact that enough people from each of those companies now work on the base and each logo is just like the unit patches above? At least it doesn't say "Cillit Bang and the terrorist is gone".

Anyway, good to hear no one hurt

I'm guessing since they companies started doing most of the work and providing most of the manpower to run the base?

Over at ARRSE, a poster claiming inside info says two "dusky chaps" were involved. The victim, who is a Rock, fought them off and police have tested him for DNA traces.

I'm sure the rock will pass the police test.

Hmm.Kudos to the Rock if he did fight them off but I'm suspicious of this story.

BBC is Tweeting that it's not terrorist related. No further details.

Now being reported as an attempted abduction.
An altogether more chilling prospect.

Definitely not terrorist related - just two innocent assailants of middle east appearance.

The report says he was out jogging, one man tackled him and he knocked him to the ground. The second had a knife but went to the assistance of his associate. The Rock sensibly departed.

Not that the guy involved was wearing uniform but I never understood why the relaxation of uniform off base came into effect after the IRA threat diminished.
Never used to wear mine off base, Tesco and Asda is full of guys and girls in uniform these days and always saw it as a risk.

If that Rock had sorted those two assailants out 'good and proper' (there are a few I remember who could easily have done so..), who do you think would have been prosecuted?

Yep, thought so. Salaam Alaikum.

Wearing of uniform in public
 

I like to see the uniform on display outside the wire, reminds the public the Armed Forces exist. You all know they exist because you frequent this website, but, given the attention span of the public is more limited than my brain damaged goldfish, if the Armed Forces aren't in the face of the public they will be forgotten about. TBH around places like Colchester, Marham or Portsmouth you can pick out a serviceman in civvies at a hundred yards as poor Fusilier Rigby found out. Put it on, wear it with pride, and if you're aircrew don't slouch round with your hands in your pockets.

The wearing of uniform off duty clearly poses a risk to the wearer in these **** times.

I never served in uniform, but spent most of 41 years service alongside the RAF. Living near Stamford, I often see lads and lasses in uniform in town and in the shops. I feel the better for it, but I don't want someone to die for my buzz.

**** times indeed.

And those linking it in their own posts as well

Gawd, you couldn't make it up, no doubt it all came from a photograph of the document some MP was carrying into Drowning Street. :p

If it wasn't so serious, it would be a farce.

You can almost guarantee to see RN and other military personnel from Culdrose in uniform in the Helston branch of Tesco. I am always pleased to see them, and if time and circumstances permit I try and have a word or two with them (I exchanged a cheerful "good morning" with a captain, USAF the other day), although when this involves chatting with attractive female personnel (can't call them Wrens any more) it usually results in a few black looks from Mrs TTN!

Common sense has to prevail, of course, but I'd hate to see the services go back to the days of the 70s when we never wore uniform in public.

According to the latest from the BBC, it sounds like the Rock in question 'dealt with them accordingly'. If we are 'at war' with terrorists, maybe the time has come for our service personnel to be armed at all times. That would nip this in the bud.
RAF Marham: Serviceman threatened with knife treated as abduction - BBC News

This incident also calls into question the advisability of using headphones on both ears at a volume level that, in effect, renders the runner deaf to any audible danger signals - not to mention friendly or hostile calls from passers-by.

Arming all service personnel at all times!! that's a joke right?
Get off your high bloody horses about posting docs online, this thread is about a serious attempt to capture an Airman by probable terrorists.
Is it right posting it? no, is it dangerous and is the document important? no!
Chill out and look at the real story here.

Probably not going to happen. But an accidentally 'leaked' secret document outlining how all service personnel and high risk civilians 'are' going to carry concealed weapons until further notice would be a stop and think issue. Add to that the high level, "We can neither confirm nor deny that such an order has been issued, but be assured that our personnel are all prepared for such an attack."

It was only a matter of time until this happened.
Such a scenario has been of concern in Police circles for some time given that it takes very little effort to have an essentially unarmed, lone officer delivered to a place of your choosing at a time you set.

Those of us that experience the IRA attacks against service personnel, both here in the UK and in Germany, will recall that our duty was to be killed whilst bravely unarmed. Apparently being unarmed made us better, or something…. although I never paid much attention to the rambling briefs that tried to explain it all. I guess we were just grateful when they actually issued ammunition to the 'armed' guards.

I cannot see the UK ever arming off-duty military personnel. Carrying a weapon on a UK base in an operational theatre in the last 2 wars only came after armed attacks(!).

On a pedantic note, would the MoD have enough weapons (assume we're talking pistols here) to arm every personnel, even with the reductions?

True but I could never find the magazine on my issue pickaxe handle :)

IIRC, over the years have there not been the odd (sex) attacks (probably a murder) on females jogging in public parks with their headphones on?-

Do you ever remember using up the life ex ammo we had, when we were live armed in Germany, on the ranges, by the time you had found something to hack through the thick plastic bag they were sealed in to load them, you would have been better throwing the damned things at them, and that was when we were live armed lol.

As for armed with personal weapons, it wouldn't need to be everyone, just enough to make it a deterrent... Not that I am condoning it, but Israel do ok with it, After all what is the difference between armed troops who can identify themselves as such, and plods...Incidentally when did it stop, as troops I believe used to carry their weapons in ww2

The MoD ordered 25,000 Glock pistols, so we would have to share or something.

By way of contrast, there are over 34,000 police officers in the NYPD; I don't think they take turns with their pistols.

Ohhhhhh that's easy for the Government, reduce the Armed services to 25k, problem solved. :p

I happened to be in a crew room at Yeovilton late last year when there was an announcement over the Tannoy which told all personnel not to display any sign of military membership off base. I must say that I found it very sobering to look at the solemn faces of those around me as they considered themselves as potential terrorist targets.

Pulse 1.
Experienced that during the Roal Moat episode.
A curious feeling.

I remember that back in the 70s I obtained a firearms certificate from the local police for "personal protection on active service" and wore my Colt 38 auto in a shoulder holster under my flying suit in addition to the Browning on my waist. This was later replaced by a 357 magnum snub-nose. Now that was an equaliser! Never used either but they were great comforters. Only gun I used in anger was the trusty 30mm Aden.

Bet you cannot do that now!

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/...-at-raf-marham

So, he was running past the vehicle, parked opposite him and the attacker placed his hand on his shoulder then on his wrist and started to pull him towards the vehicle :confused: :suspect: This didn't happen around the nearby village of Wormegay did it? :ooh:

SS, and the significance of that?

If personal weapons were authorised, given the general level of training in close protection, I think there would be a high risk of loss.

If weapons were authorised for carry then I think it would be prudent that they were only carried when two or more people were together - armed police patrol in pairs.

Should Servicemen in private housing be threatened there are other issues such as family at home alone.

In Germany a few years back, after the switch to UK number plates, it was easy to see Britmil cars from unit stickers on rear windows to many other clues.

In UK it was also easy spotting military personnel driving to work in civvies.

Persec is a huge problem.

so basically ditch the desert boot / brogue / chino combo and wear badly ironed shirts is the solution?

In my time, one of the more cynical bits of advice given for non-specialists carrying personal weapons in the U.K. was , in the event of a confrontation , to throw the damn thing as far away as you could in one direction, whilst legging it in the other.
The closest, that I am aware of , to having been shot on an operation was when the guy standing next to me went down:

having been the victim of an ND from a Sterling being carried by the chap standing the other side of him.

In the early 70s, after an armed IRA unit was believed to be heading for the area, the airmen patrolling RAF Manston were issued with pickaxe handles.

Firstly it was the last part of the village name, however having googled a bit more ... don't click on this link unless open minded!

Anyway, suspects description on BBC twitter feed;
https://twitter.com/BBCBreaking/stat...00665655558144
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cn46hdeWgAAwbKk.jpg


Mirror Online

Isn't that in the MQ area ! :eek:

http://i52.photobucket.com/albums/g1...ps3jpvz6ov.png

Hmmm - this story is a bit weird.......

I'd hold off on the terrorist angle until there is some confirmation - two terrorists of ME appearance..... if they're local they're easy to find - if not a lot of coppers will be looking at a lot of CCTV... but why go all the way to Marham??

I can think of several scenarios where someone might be attacked by persons he actually knew but didn't want to talk to close & personal - they might be from Wonga for example.....

and (unfortunately) there are a number of cases where incidents have been totally fabricated for one reason or another

interestingly it's disapeared off the main BBC websites.......

Brize they took them off us, and gave us empty muskets on the gate, then they were going to issue live rounds, but what followed was the muskets being removed and the good old pickaxe being returned.

I remember while we had muskets some unfortunate civi contractor turfed up and during a security check of his vehicle an air pistol was discovered, poor sod had obviously left it there for a long time as it wasn't in the best of condition, but he ended up spread eagled in the rain on the deck with a musket to his head bricking himself. Eventually he was sent to sit on the naughty step before being told to take it home and not to bring it back..

Personnel in NI were armed when in civi's and off base, as the theory goes you are not off duty, so is there a difference?