NAVY NEWS, NOVEMBER 2009 27
because all they see for the two weeks of Joint And right in the middle of all this prep, there’s carrier has been put through its paces like this, found myself with some strange and disturbing
Warrior is the mess, their beds and the operations breakfast: something like 850 mouths to feed at fusing skills at the high end of carrier operations,” urges. Is it wrong that I am in love with ducks in
centre. 4am (there’s another breakfast at 7 for the ‘day says Capt Ben Key, Lusty’s CO. the local pond?”
“The big regret is that we’re in here and cannot workers’…). His ship goes into refi t in Rosyth in the new year, Yes, it probably is…
be out there,” says Lt Cdr Will Peters. But it’s not Eat. Sleep. Shower. Work. It sums up the routine an overhaul which will take her out of the fold for Even the task group commander, Cdre Simon
all bad. aboard the fl agship quite nicely. around 18 months. Ancona, gets into the Dragonian spirit. According
“I had a great week driving around Scotland “FOST is much more intense, but this is more So that means she’ll be winding down then. to his ‘biography’, the commodore scraped a
looking for beaches amphibious forces could use. realistic,” says PO Lloyd Priest, in Lusty’s ops Er, no. living selling veg to soldiers, later became a bare-
People would pay good money to go on holiday room – you could call it Dragonia’s den, but we “By December we’ll have been away on and knuckle fi ghter, turned down offers to join NASA,
there, meet the locals,” he adds. “It’s great to visit never would. off for eight months this year – we’re putting the made more than £1m wheeling and dealing on the
the places, draw up a plan then carry it out.” “You have to be on the ball, respond to things hours in,” says CO Capt Ben Key, adding wistfully, stock market, and helped fi nd cures for cancer and
It’s a plan carried out at breakneck speed. “The quickly. You do get quite ‘into it’, like a real “sadly, nowhere exotic.” AIDs... which was nice.
exercise runs at three or four times normal speed,” situation, particularly And when not saving the world, he conducts the
explains Lt Cdr Pomfrett. when it’s busy.”
“That’s demanding. But demanding is rewarding. AB(CIS) Harriet
“FOST is much more intense,
NOWHERE exotic? But Berlin Philharmonic, displays his paintings at the
she’s steaming around Royal Academy and nurtures his leech farm.
Everyone gets something out of Joint Warrior.” Jones, in Illustrious’
but this is more realistic.”
off Caledonia. Putting his RN hat back on – his more offi cial
communications centre, Walk anywhere on 2 title is Commander UK Carrier Strike Group – the
EVERYONE. The fl iers. The deck handlers. The adds: “At action stations, – PO Lloyd Priest or 5 Deck on Illustrious commodore underlines the importance of Joint
loggies. The ops room team. The chefs, sorry it’s mayhem, people and you’re reminded of Warrior.
logisticians (catering services (preparation)). running around, keeping how seriously the ship “We do what we can on simulations, but there is
Each watch there are nine chefs on duty in constant communications with the ships – and takes this exercise. no substitute for getting out there and ‘doing it’,”
Lusty’s galley. With 1,000 mouths to feed three because we’re in a task group, there’s a lot of The ship does its utmost to ‘get into character’ he stresses.
times a day, it’s not been as busy as this on board comms.” with the Dragonian fl ag plastered everywhere “It is a fantastic exercise, using the hardware for
perhaps since 2001-02 during Exercise Saif Sareea But Joint Warrior is, she smiles, “better than (apart from the main mast, of course). real, testing our people, that motivates everyone
and initial operations in Afghanistan. FOST. Not as much cleaning to do.” There’s a TV channel featuring Dragonian from top to bottom.
“We turn up and do our best, working as a team, It’s also a much larger ‘playground’ than the News (‘All Dragonia, all fact’) presented by “It’s unpredictable, it’s challenging. It’s also all-
it makes the hours fl y by,” says LCH (he really waters used by FOST off Plymouth. George Pickletickle, aided by ‘weather girl’ Just encompassing. That’s what makes it special.”
doesn’t like being called LLOGS) ‘Pob’ Morrey. “Joint Warrior gives you something that the Steve – “Wrap up warm on the upper decks…” There have been murmurings in the press about
The galley team works slightly different shifts South West areas don’t – you can take advantage – and ‘Parky’-style interviewer Michael Michael Joint Warrior. Why spend millions on a massive,
from the rest of the ship’s company – “otherwise and weave in and out of the island chains,” says Lt Michaelson (yep, they’re all YOs…). largely naval, exercise when the crucible of effort
we’d be changing watches at meal times and it Cdr Michael Wood, Illustrious’ navigator. There’s the Dragonian national anthem (which by Britain’s Armed Forces is in Helmand?
would be chaotic, like going down Oxford Street “For me, this is chance to navigate a task group, bears an uncanny resemblance to the Blackadder Why? Because you never know when or where
trying to fi nd presents on Christmas Eve,” Pob to co-ordinate refuelling, co-ordinate individual theme). the next war will be.
points out. ships, or those moving in a group. And there’s the Dragonian Herald, produced “If you want to stand on the world stage,
It’s the night shift (10pm-6am) which is the “To lead them through these waters, as a group, daily with the latest news and sport from the task you need to do something,” says Cdre Ancona
busiest as bread is baked, vegetables and meat at high speed is very rewarding.” force – although fact takes second place to ‘Dear emphatically.
prepared for the following day’s dinner, stores It’s rewarding too for his commanding offi cer. Diane’, a rather warped agony aunt column. “If we don’t do exercises like this, we lose the
brought up from the bowels of the carrier. “This is the fi rst time in quite some time that a Warped? “I am a 44-year-old who has recently ability to prepare for doing the business for real.”
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