"NAVY RUNS OUT OF FUEL" [More tragic fallout of Clinton's regime]

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NAVY RUNS OUT OF FUEL

Link: The Express, Jan.23/2000

--Posted for educational and discussion purposes only--

THE Royal Navy is being forced to keep ships in harbour because admirals have run out of fuel.

To meet the crisis, 36 of the Navy's 44 principal warships have been confined to port. Over Christmas only three British warships were on patrol throughout the world.

Training exercises have been scuppered and ships' masters have been ordered to steam at no more than 15 knots - about 17mph and slower than a cross-channel ferry - to conserve fuel. The crisis has been caused by crippling cuts to the Navy's budget and soaring fuel prices.

Lord Hill-Norton, former Chief of Defence Staff and Admiral of the Fleet, said: "It is a very bad and serious situation.

"These clowns in charge don't know, understand or care about the service." The problem reached such worrying proportions last month that Navy chiefs ordered 14 ships on training exercises back to port.

A planned anti-submarine training exercise was also scrapped.

Service chiefs withdrew all Navy ships in the Pacific and Mediterranean and all drug-enforcement patrols in the West Indies were cancelled.

The frigate Westminster became the latest casualty of the budget-driven Navy when it too was ordered back to port. At the end of last week, the carrier Invincible left harbour for her first deployment this year, along with seven other destroyers and frigates heading for various destinations around the world.

The remaining 36 are docked in Portsmouth or other Royal Navy dockyards. Some are being refitted, but many are simply standing idle.

Two of the Navy's three carriers - Illustrious and Ark Royal - have been in dock since before Christmas undergoing "refurbishment".

Last week 10 of the Navy's 23 frigates were also in Portsmouth, as were five of its 12 destroyers. The remaining ships were said to be in other ports around the country.

The revelations come after Armed Forces Minister John Spellar admitted to MPs last week that the Navy's fuel budget has been cut by more than 25 per cent from £40.3million in 1998-1999 to £28.4million this year.

He admitted the Navy is having to make money-driven decisions and added: "The withdrawal of HMS Westminster needs to be set in the context of a very busy operational year for the Royal Navy and a sharp increase in fuel prices. This has resulted in some adjustment of planned activities as part of normal cash management action to ensure that the Fleet stays within its allocated budget this year."

Already this year the MoD has been forced to give the Navy an additional £9.5million to stave off the embarrassment of withdrawing ships that are part of international United Nations and Nato missions, such as those in the Gulf and East Timor.

Privately, senior MoD officials are deeply concerned at what is happening and claim the Navy is facing a £500million overspend. One admitted: "The budget has been slashed by the Treasury and we are having to cut into the core of our activity to save money.

"Everything from training to how fast the ships are allowed to steam when they are at sea has been ordered to be cut back. Our operational effectiveness is being severely affected."

Tory defence spokesman Richard Ottaway said: "The Royal Navy is the best in the world but if it's stuck in harbour it will never have the chance to prove it. The Treasury is short-changing the MoD by cutting £1billion off its budget, but the services have got to be funded properly."
) Express Newspapers, 2000

-- It's Me (Not@here.com), January 23, 2000

Answers

Sorry-- please disregard the "Clinton regime" comments-- not applicable here.

-- It's Me (Not@here.com), January 23, 2000.

See also:

http://greenspun.com/bboard/admin-q-and-a-fetch-msg.tcl?msg_id=002OGD

-- Yo ho ho (anda@bottleof.diesel?), January 23, 2000.


THEY ARE CUTTING BACK ON FUEL CONSUMPTION NOT RUNNING OUT OR RUN OUT. WORSE THAN THE MAJOR MEDIA!!!!

-- 8TH MAN (SSTOLOWSKI@TNNS.NET), January 23, 2000.

"The crisis has been caused by crippling cuts to the Navy's budget and soaring fuel prices."

...and soaring fuel prices....

I think you missed that part 8 ball...

-- Searcher (readcarefully@thenews.com), January 23, 2000.


This is a really sad come-down for the grand old 'grey funnel line.' Blair and crew won't be satisfied until they've whittled the R.N. down far enough to comfortably fit into a new "European Union Navy"...

-- John Whitley (jwhitley@inforamp.net), January 23, 2000.


Mr. Blair is Clinton/Pinocchio Lite.

-- hehe (hehe@hoho.com), January 23, 2000.

Misleading headline, but a good article. As a long time enthusiast and student of naval warfare, it breaks my heart to see how far the once magnificent Royal Navy has fallen. History shows that the R.N. has always been an easy target for Socialist politicians trying to divert funding to their various, ugly, welfare state schemes.

The article mentioned the three carriers presently on duty in the R.N. It should be mentioned that these are pitifully small and weak ships. Originally classified as "through-deck cruisers" with approximatela dozen Harriers VSTOL aircraft and Sea King choppers. At best, these are scout and support vessels and would be be in deep poop if they were engaged in a major confrontation.

The last great British carrier was the Hermes, an offshoot of the Albion class from the 1950's. While still a small ship, the Hermes had more aircraft and greater firepower...as a result it was a much more formidable vessel. It was the hub of British air power during the Falklands War.

Before idiots like Tony Blair, the world was at least a safer and slightly more orderly place when the sun never set on the British empire.

-- Irving (irvingf@myremarq.com), January 23, 2000.


One wonders why this announcement was openly published.

Sounds like saying "our Navy is not up to the role they are assigned."

Or like the fool with a sign taped to his back that says "Kick Me."

-- Bill P (porterwn@one.net), January 23, 2000.


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