The RAN - Fiction or fact? Newspaper article

[battlestar]

G'Day All

Now, since I joined this forum I've heard the lament of the status of the Royal Navy's decline over the past 40 years.

I've felt the same about the RAN, but it wasn't the equippment, it was the manpower side of things. But Navy PR had it that all is well, things are fine. I knew better, I'd seen the decline from both the outside, and watching friends in the RAN deal with the growing problems.

It took some time, but now even the national newspaper thinks there is something wrong. The Australian Newspaper had an article 'All hands on deck' by Cameron Stewart which was posted online on November 04, 2008.

Read the article at the link, tell me what you think!

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24596075-28737,00.html

V/R

Battlestar

[herakles]

"Submariners, who start on a salary of about $76,000 a year, are being offered an extraordinary $60,000 bonus to stay on for an extra 18 months".

This remarkable salary doesn't seem to be enough. War is very unpopular in Australia now so finding enough recruits doesn't surprise me. Perhaps now with the savage economic downturn, things will improve.

There was a long time of complacency when most people assumed that wars were no longer going to happen. Forward planning for ships and equipment was poor.

Then there's the disaster of trying to choose a fighter aircraft.

The Army too is struggling to find enough recruits. Small wonder that gutless bugger Rudd pulled us out of Iraq. There's not enough men to stay there.

But just who is the perceived enemy now? China? Indonesia?

[Maritime Michael Ian]

Seems to be the old old story... when times are good let the armed forces slide, cut them down, reduce their efficiency! Shades of the 1930s!

Herakles, your implied "possible enemies"... China, Indonesia is a good point I think! Those two, especially the latter, should be kept in the frame I reckon.... but don't forget the ruskies as well.... wouldn't trust them and if they strengthen their hold on european natural gas supplies, they could hold the whole of Europe to ransome, what consequences then??

Considering the total distance of Australia's coastline, a strong RAN is essential in my opinion, but it's money again, on the one hand, and perhaps the make-up of Australia's non-european population is another reason on the other, after all a strong navy is against China's interests and from what I hear their influence in Oz is increasing.... not a good thing.

Ian

[herakles]

Your comments on China are well noted Ian. Have a look at the new thread I've placed in the US Ships forum.