To all Englishmen with salt water in their veins !

Can anybody tell me how it is that the bloody Germans, who we have beaten in two major wars in the last ninety years, can put into the field a high speed patrol boat that looks slicker than snot on a wet dog's back, and can run rings around the high speed inflatables fielded by the eco terrorists at today's G8 conference, when, in the Gulf, the Royal Navy uses inflatables that I wouldn't use to set out for a day's fishing on Hyde Park lake !? Not only that, but I bet their skipper looked like a Norse God and could handle a ship like Nelson himself, whereas our bloody salts
look like Mr. Bean and can't go to war without their frigging Ipods ! Come on England, wake up and get armed for the job !!!
BG

 

The German's have a proud history of building excellent small boats, their WW2 S-boats were without question the best of their type.

 

Absolutely without question. The S-boats (or E-boats, as they were called by the Allies) were fast, very well armed, and extremely tough. They sank two British cruisers that I know of, and dominated the English Channel for much of the war.

 

What is this wonder-craft?

 

Guess he means this boat and especially this operation at the G8-gipfel, well done

http://www.zeit.de/video/player?videoID=20070607daed20

however don´t worry BG we have also some hmmm strange stuff



Regards,
Che.

 

Classic small boat action !

Hi Che,
No, amigo, I didn't mean that little blue mutha, but really the one that is shown in the video clip you were kind enough to submit -------that boat is one real beast and can outrun and outmaneouvre even those nipply little inflatables that the eco terrorists were using. Mind you, did anyone see the tv footage of the big inflatable that the german police were also using ? At high speed they ran it right up on top of one of bad guy's boats and then parked it there !........some seamanship, eh, what !

Incidentally, yesterdays "Daily Telegraph" has the obituary of Royal Navy Captain Alasdair Watson, who on April 6th. 1945 commanding MTB 5001 and supported by MTB 781, took on six German S-boats. In a classic small ship action fought in darkness, the two British torpedo boats badly damaged the German vessels and then manouvred in such a way as to bring the S-boats into an ambush set up by more MTB's ! That's the way to fight a sea war, not pottering around in a little bumboat driven by a fat tart, only to get hoicked off by a bunch of ragheads !!!!!
BG

 

Motor torpedo boats

Whilst still on the subject of small boat actions, before my Old Man got his command of a pukka MTB, he served in the smaller Motor Gun Boats.
I seem to recall that they had quite a decent bit of armament for a small ship and might even have had a 6 pounder fitted. I certainly remember him telling me that his favourite targets were either locomotives, which needed a bloody good shooting eye when they were belting along at full whack, and which made such a spectacular smash when their boilers blew up at speed ; or he also liked gasometers, which always exploded quite colourfully in gouts of purple and orange flame, but often did so without a sound being made !
BG

 

Re: Classic small boat action !

This one?

btw, it is the British Royal Navy -- England is just one (minor ) part of the United Kingdom

 

Re: Classic small boat action !

They look like they had fun that day...

Oooh, careful, or we'll invade!

 

Re: Classic small boat action !

I thought you already had?

 

Re: Classic small boat action !

They tried :lol: ....

 

My Grandmother (a Scot) has that text on an apron...

 

I don't think these boats actually are a German design, they probably obtained them from Sweden (CB-90)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Combat_Boat_90

 

The Great Divide

Ossian,

My dear friend, noboby more than I feels his heart surge when he hears the skirl of the pipes, and the sight and sound of a Scottish regiment marching will always cause a tear to spring to my eye. Indeed, if I had to be born of a race other than the English, it would be Scotland I would choose above all others. In fact, given that I have flaming red hair and a temper to match, I would very much doubt that there was no trace of Scottish blood somewhere in my background ( I had certainly had a Great Uncle who was killed serving with the Seaforths in 1918, and, in many a Scottish pub, I have, when well mullered and in the company of others similarly afflicted, often had a great lurching Scot hang his arm around my neck and say something like " You, are not such a bad wee, little bastard at all ! " ................and I am six foot two !! ). However, given the vapourings of that damn wretch Salmond, I do not take the continuation of the Union for granted, and have long since semi prepared myself to bid Scotland adieu.......but not without the shedding of many tears on my part, I might say !
BG

 

Whoever made those boats

OK, OK, the boats in question may well have been made by Sweden and not Germany ( I am not sure if that eases or increases my pain ! ), but it was rather more the handling of the bloody thing that impressed me !
The crux of the matter is just how well the Germans conned their boat, when the only recent naval publicity we get is that of our dear Jolly Jack Tar Mr. Bean and his incompetent shipmates. !
BG

 

Re: Whoever made those boats

I like to think that a USN crew would have opened up a running gun battle with the Iranians, all the while calling in large numbers of F-18s to come to the rescue. Or even some Marine Sea Cobras.

 

I really don't see what that would have achieved except for the likely deaths of the Navy and Marine crew involved, and quite probably the sinking of the civilian vessel and deaths among her crew too. A small boarding party with a motor boat and small arms on an Indian merchantman against Iranian destroyers and you're giving them a hard time for not fighting to the last man and last bullet.

Whilst what happened after their release may seem less than noble (Let's not forget here though that Tourney apparently donated most of her fees to an RN related charity), I don't think its fair to slate these people for what happened. Military cemeteries the world over are full of dead heroes, no-one should blame anyone among the living for not wanting to join them until they've been in a similar situation.

The commander's decision to surrender ultimately saved his crew's lives, for that he should be commended not scorned.

 

Brown Jobs are up for it !

All things considered, I guess that what I am bemoaning is the loss of the sort of spirit that typified the Andrew in years past ; mind you, if Private Johnson Beharry is any guide ( and I also read of another likely British Army VC recipient this morning ! Hooray, and I'll buy that man a pint or ten ! ), then our brown jobs are still coming up to scratch !

Incidentally, I also read this morning of the launch of H.M.Submarine "Astute". One of the few of life's ambitions I have yet to achieve, is to spectate at the launch of something worthwhile ( I don't mean a minesweeper or fleet auxiliary or whatever ) for the Navy. I have immediately emailed my Member of Parliament asking that he get me an invitation to the next big slide down the slipway, but want to belt and braces my enquiry by also following another course of action to achieve the same end. Does anyone have any ideas as to an alternative method of obtaining an invitation to a warship launch ? I was going to try for an invite to one of two carriers that have been promised to the Navy, but if they are going to be built in French yards, then fergeddabouit !
BG

 

Bosworth:
I thought you held DUAL citizenship?

I believe the USS New York LPD-21, a San Antonio-class Amphibious Assault ship is yet to be christened and launched.
It contains 24 tons of steel from the World Trade Center, with seven tons being used exclusively in the "stem-bar" section of the bow. It's keel was laid 10, September 2004.
The ships' motto will be "Never Forget."

I believe it is being built at shipyards in Avondale, Louisiana... though another source quotes Pascagoula, MS as the site for construction.

Tim

 

US Navy ship launch - Hoorah !

Tim,

Dual citizenship ? I most certainly do !, but my US citizenship was granted for services rendered to to the USA, rather than an all consuming desire on my part to be a US citizen. That is not at all to say that I am not both extremely proud and grateful to be a US citizen ( of course I am ! ), but I was born an Englishman and come from a family with a reasonably long tradition ( back to 1850 ) of service in the Royal Navy, so a desire to see a Royal Navy ship of some significance being launched ( all the more so since an event of this nature is becoming rarer and rarer ! ) is quite natural on my part. As for any US Navy ship launch in Louisiana, my wife has a whole slew of relatives who live all around Mississippi, so that would make a trip to south of the Mason-Dixon Line an altogether desirable event. I am also reasonable well connected to a few members of Bill Clinton's old government, so wangling an invite should not be ( I hope ) too much of an obstacle !

Incidentally, amigo - do you have any idea how long the construction time might be ? A tad longer than the Kaiser Shipyard when turning out a Liberty ship in WW2, I expect, since I think that they got one of those turned out in about a week !
Cheers,
BG