Hey come on now fella's! Security guards? thats a bit childish isn't it? For the first time since we lost the MSF's we've actually been given a job with a purpose (albeit a boring one). I wonder how many of you moaners have actually done the job operationally?. As with most jobs during wartime throughout the ages it is something like 95% boredom anyway, and that includes seamanship! And is a middle watch on the bridge as a lookout or helmsman, or a stint on the gangway of a ship really that much more riveting? I don't seem to remember it being that way myself. At least as a spo team member or upper deck sentry you can move around the ship a bit.
I also wonder how many of the present RNR have spent time away as part of the chipping/painting/cleaning and Dining hall party that existed in the post msf years?. As i've already said yes , for the most part spo is boring, but keep the faith, anyone who has been in the RNR for longer than a couple of months, will realise that it is an ever changing service, and will no doubt change again. I was deployed operationally during op telic 1 and can testify that once the ship i was on moved to open water, the spo team was stood down, we were greeted with open arms by the bosun who was only to happy to utilise our seamanship skills, and NBCD knowledge.
So i would say the message is, keep up the seamnaship skills, as well as nbcd and spo, no doubt they will be needed again once the world of spo has settled down.
