British Military Current Events

[daftandbarmy]

Luckily, they seem to have already secured the good pubs  ;D

SAS will swoop if gun jihadis attack Britain: Cameron puts special forces troops on standby

SAS troops to be deployed on streets in event of Paris-style attack in UK

Elite soldiers will do training exercises reenacting horror of Paris attacks

Police must also set out plans on how to track down gunmen suspects


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2907447/SAS-swoop-gun-jihadis-attack-Britain-Cameron-puts-special-forces-troops-standby.html#ixzz3PVN7xcam
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[CougarKing]

Whitehall mulling more cuts:

Defense News

Ex-British DM: MoD May Cut Army to 60K Troops

LONDON — A former British defense minister has claimed the Ministry of Defence is looking at options to reduce the British Army to 60,000 regular troops to meet possible heavy cuts to military spending as part of continuing austerity efforts after the upcoming general election.

Nick Harvey, a Liberal Democrat member of Parliament who was the armed forces minister in the early days of the Conservative-led coalition government here, told Parliament that "paper exercises are already being done looking at what an Army of just 60,000 would look like because of the financial crunch the Department [the MoD] will face."

The MoD dismissed Harvey's claim.

(...SNIPPED)

 

[Old Sweat]

This story from the Daily Telegraph, reproduced under the Fair Dealing provisions of the Copyright Act, indicates the CGS intends to slash the number of senior officers in the British Army.

Up to a third of army chiefs to be axed

General Sir Nicholas Carter, the new head of the army, aims to make the force more professional and reduce bureaucracy

By Camilla Turner11:57PM GMT 23 Jan 2015

Army chiefs will be reduced by up to a third under the most significant reform of senior command in a century, it has emerged.
The plans are designed to ensure that army, which is shrinking to 82,000 from 102,000 five years ago, will become more streamlined, like its United States counterpart.
The 500,000-strong US army has about 310 officers ranked brigadier-general and above. General Sir Nicholas Carter, the new head of the army, aims to make the force more professional and reduce bureaucracy, which will lead to many of Britain’s 500 colonels and 200 brigadiers and generals being cut, according to The Times.
The last time that the army sought to make its officers more professional was in 1904, when the general staff, comprising everyone from the rank of full colonel and above, was created.
General Carter aims to curtail the rise of “yes men”, who are rewarded for conforming rather than daring to tell their military and political masters uncomfortable truths, sources told The Times.
At the moment, parts of the force are believed to operate like a “self-licking lollipop”, with officers and civil servants generating work for the sake of it.
The general is also seeking to break a culture of loyalty to regiments that prompts some senior officers to put the interests of their “tribe” before those of the wider force, the senior defence sources and Whitehall insiders said.
The changes, which come after a review of Ministry of Defence bureaucracy initiated by Liam Fox when he was defence secretary in 2011, will be implemented from April, known as the Command Review.
Asked about the Command Review, a spokesman for the army said: “It builds on the delegated model that defence has implemented as a result of Lord Levene’s report on defence reforms.
"It will ensure that the army’s command structure and its staff are best placed to meet future challenges in an agile, imaginative and effective manner.”

 

[daftandbarmy]

This story from the Daily Telegraph, reproduced under the Fair Dealing provisions of the Copyright Act, indicates the CGS intends to slash the number of senior officers in the British Army.

Up to a third of army chiefs to be axed

General Sir Nicholas Carter, the new head of the army, aims to make the force more professional and reduce bureaucracy

By Camilla Turner11:57PM GMT 23 Jan 2015

Army chiefs will be reduced by up to a third under the most significant reform of senior command in a century, it has emerged.
The plans are designed to ensure that army, which is shrinking to 82,000 from 102,000 five years ago, will become more streamlined, like its United States counterpart.
The 500,000-strong US army has about 310 officers ranked brigadier-general and above. General Sir Nicholas Carter, the new head of the army, aims to make the force more professional and reduce bureaucracy, which will lead to many of Britain’s 500 colonels and 200 brigadiers and generals being cut, according to The Times.
The last time that the army sought to make its officers more professional was in 1904, when the general staff, comprising everyone from the rank of full colonel and above, was created.
General Carter aims to curtail the rise of “yes men”, who are rewarded for conforming rather than daring to tell their military and political masters uncomfortable truths, sources told The Times.
At the moment, parts of the force are believed to operate like a “self-licking lollipop”, with officers and civil servants generating work for the sake of it.
The general is also seeking to break a culture of loyalty to regiments that prompts some senior officers to put the interests of their “tribe” before those of the wider force, the senior defence sources and Whitehall insiders said.
The changes, which come after a review of Ministry of Defence bureaucracy initiated by Liam Fox when he was defence secretary in 2011, will be implemented from April, known as the Command Review.
Asked about the Command Review, a spokesman for the army said: “It builds on the delegated model that defence has implemented as a result of Lord Levene’s report on defence reforms.
"It will ensure that the army’s command structure and its staff are best placed to meet future challenges in an agile, imaginative and effective manner.”

It's all been done before of course, but the successful modernization schemes, like the Cardwell reforms, included additional investment vs. unilateral shrinkage:

The Cardwell Reforms refer to a series of reforms of the British Army undertaken by Secretary of State for War Edward Cardwell between 1868 and 1874 with the support of Liberal Prime Minister William E. Gladstone. Gladstone paid little attention to military affairs but he was keen on efficiency. In 1870, he pushed through Parliament major changes in Army organisation. Germany's stunning triumph over France in the Franco-Prussian War proved that the Prussian system of professional soldiers with up-to-date weapons was far superior to the traditional system of gentlemen-soldiers that Britain used.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardwell_Reforms

And, of course, Cardwell was driven by the political level whereas this one seems to be pushed mainly by young Nick, who will soon retire and will be seen to want to suck up to his future patrons.

 

[McG]

The general is also seeking to break a culture of loyalty to regiments that prompts some senior officers to put the interests of their “tribe” before those of the wider force, the senior defence sources and Whitehall insiders said.

Interesting that the British are looking to do this as we push in the opposite direction, investing to retrench the tribes with revived regiments and "I am special" peacock fashion variances.

 

[FJAG]

Interesting that the British are looking to do this as we push in the opposite direction, investing to retrench the tribes with revived regiments and "I am special" peacock fashion variances.

Interesting that you should focus on just this one aspect of the article.

Unfortunately the Telegraph's article is one of the least well written on this topic resorting to such unsourced pejorative terms as "yes men", "tribes" and "self-licking lollipop". I'm not saying that the terms are not applicable, but where used by a journalist they should at least point to a source or authority.

The simple response to your post, MCG, is that there is a difference between minimizing the effect of a very real and ingrained culture of regimental protectionism (tribalism) within the UK Army's leadership which is counter-productive to the overall efficiency of the British Army and the reintroduction of symbolic devices, titles and insignia which are designed to enhance the morale of the individual soldiers, units and formations within the Canadian Army. (I appreciate that there is a long-standing, ongoing, vocal debate within the "Royalization" thread as to whether these measures actually enhance morale or not. I don't want to restart that argument but am merely pointing out that there is a difference between the UK existing "tribalism" and ours.)

I would think however that of the pejorative terms that are used by this journalist, the one which is most relevant to us is the "self-licking lollipop" one. Our command structure is equally, if not more, bloated than that of the UK and much of it is dedicated to developing and administering a plethora of policies which do not enhance the effectiveness of the CF but instead merely and needlessly binds it up. Cutting staff does not get rid of the lollipop; it just reduces the number of available lickers, the survivors of whom become very overworked and ineffective. One needs to get rid of the numerous policies etc that engage the staff on a daily basis concurrent with the staff reductions.

I would very much like to read the UK's  "The Army Command Review" source document that this article is based on to see how it deals with that issue. So far I've been unable to find it nor have I been able to find one journalist's article that goes beyond the sensationalism of the reductions in senior staff. If anyone has found a public link, please advise.

:cheers:

 

[Old Sweat]

If one tries to parse the meaningful bits in the story, it really comes down to a major down-ranking in some appointments and/or a massive reduction in the size and/or number of headquarters. Using some gunner "gross error check" math, I come with a target of 350 colonels and 125 brigadiers and up. This would be a major shakeup, and frankly, would take firm political support as well as some sort of concurrent amputations (slashing and down-sizing understate the proposal) on the part of the other services and the MOD itself. How likely is that?

This leads me to wonder if this "leak" is not a preemptive strike on the part of somebody who is hoping to discredit the CGS. On the other hand, given the budgetary situation in the MOD, how much sympathy and political support would there be for the status quo? It seems more likely this is a trial balloon, perhaps to gain political and public support or to chop off opposition at the knees.

I wonder what the erstwhile Chief of Transformation, aka the probably LPC candidate in Ottawa-Orleans would say about this, both in the British and in the Canadian context?

 

[FJAG]

Here's another, more balanced, article from the Guardian.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/pa/article-2924397/Senior-Army-officers-cut.html

This one, like most of them, refer to a Times article by Deborah Haynes from yesterday which unfortunately I can't access (because I don't want to pay 3 pounds monthly for access to their site; it's good but not that good)

The hint here is that the head of the Army, General Carter, has drawn up plans for reductions to be implemented in April, albeit that the exact numbers etc are still uncertain.

:cheers:

 

[daftandbarmy]

Here's another, more balanced, article from the Guardian.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/wires/pa/article-2924397/Senior-Army-officers-cut.html

This one, like most of them, refer to a Times article by Deborah Haynes from yesterday which unfortunately I can't access (because I don't want to pay 3 pounds monthly for access to their site; it's good but not that good)

The hint here is that the head of the Army, General Carter, has drawn up plans for reductions to be implemented in April, albeit that the exact numbers etc are still uncertain.

:cheers:

Based on where many of my contemporaries are in their careers there, teetering on the edge of retirement, I don't think they'll have trouble hitting their targets.

 

[daftandbarmy]

Might try and get an arctic smock... probably has original rolo stains

From second-hand boots to ex-Army tanks: Britain's military surplus for sale

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/industry/11374426/From-second-hand-boots-to-armoured-tanks-Britains-military-surplus-for-sale.html?frame=3179548

 

[Colin Parkinson]

screw that, I want the Vampire!!  8)

A CVRT would make a nice fuel efficient AFV for commuting as well.

 

[daftandbarmy]

screw that, I want the Vampire!!  8)

A CVRT would make a nice fuel efficient AFV for commuting as well.

Or take the kids (very safely) to school: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upHP-lgbupc

 

[Colin Parkinson]

believe me I have dreamed of this more than once. A guy down the road from me has a T-55, hmmmm.......

 

[daftandbarmy]

believe me I have dreamed of this more than once. A guy down the road from me has a T-55, hmmmm.......

I have had the pleasure of driving the crap out of a (supercharged Jaguar engined) Scimitar a couple of times and I think it made some cars I have driven feel like a 'tank' by comparison...

 

[MilEME09]

This site may be for you gents, http://www.milweb.net/classifieds.php?type=1

 

[daftandbarmy]

This site may be for you gents, http://www.milweb.net/classifieds.php?type=1

I TOTALLY want to buy Margaret Thatcher's bus.

We could present it to the EU with a sign painted on the side: GET ON THE BUS EUROPE

 

[MilEME09]

I TOTALLY want to buy Margaret Thatcher's bus.

We could present it to the EU with a sign painted on the side: GET ON THE BUS EUROPE

its odd and makes me think maybe it was all sent to Ukraine, but the site had a bunch of soviet vehicles in good condition for sale in the Czech republic including probably about 100 T-72's, T-55's, BMP-1's among others.

 

[daftandbarmy]

British army creates team of Facebook warriors

Soldiers familiar with social media sought for 77th Brigade, which will be responsible for ‘non-lethal warfare’

The British army is creating a special force of Facebook warriors, skilled in psychological operations and use of social media to engage in unconventional warfare in the information age.

The 77th Brigade, to be based in Hermitage, near Newbury, in Berkshire, will be about 1,500-strong and formed of units drawn from across the army. It will formally come into being in April.

The brigade will be responsible for what is described as non-lethal warfare. Both the Israeli and US army already engage heavily in psychological operations.

Against a background of 24-hour news, smartphones and social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, the force will attempt to control the narrative.

The 77th will include regulars and reservists and recruitment will begin in the spring. Soldiers with journalism skills and familiarity with social media are among those being sought.

An army spokesman said: “77th Brigade is being created to draw together a host of existing and developing capabilities essential to meet the challenges of modern conflict and warfare. It recognises that the actions of others in a modern battlefield can be affected in ways that are not necessarily violent.”

The move is partly a result of experience in counter-insurgency operations in Afghanistan. It can also be seen as a response to events of the last year that include Russia’s actions in Ukraine, in particular Crimea, and Islamic State’s (Isis) takeover of large swaths of Syria and Iraq.

Nato has so far been unable to find a counter to what the US and UK claim is Russia creating unrest by sending in regular troops disguised as local militia, allowing president Vladimir Putin to deny responsibility.Isis has proved adept at exploiting social media to attract fighters from around the world.

http://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jan/31/british-army-facebook-warriors-77th-brigade

 

[daftandbarmy]

Deadlier than American sniper Chris Kyle: Royal Marine has 173 confirmed kills including 90 in just one day and most came during a six-month tour of Afghanistan

The Briton recorded most of his kills during tours of Afghanistan in 2006/7
Unnamed Royal Marine, from southern England, has 173 confirmed kills
Figure puts him ahead of the US Navy SEAL commando Chris Kyle, who had 160 confirmed kills
British sniper said to have hit 90 Taliban fighters in one day at a stronghold
Married father-of-two has completed at least five tours of duty
He has served with the Navy's elite unit for more than a decade


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2935918/The-world-s-deadly-sniper-Royal-Marine-said-173-confirmed-kills-coming-one-six-month-tour-Afghanistan.html#ixzz3QbfldS19
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

 

[jollyjacktar]

I read that story as well today.  The 90 in a day, must have left his shoulder sore.  It must have been quite the Turkey shoot.  Good on him.