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Should I Join?

C

cutter

Badgeman
I finished my degree a couple of years ago and I've been riding a desk ever since. Lately I've come to the conclusion there must be more to life and I'm considering joining the Navy as a logistics officer. However, there are a couple of things that make me hesitate.

Firstly, I'm short sighted, very short sighted. I'm literally useless without glasses. If I was woken up in an emergency and couldn't find my specs I wouldn't be able to see the door. Are there many people with glasses serving? I'll probably take a bank loan and get corrective surgery before joining.

Secondly, and my biggest hesitation, is I'm useless at heights. I freeze up. I'm going to do some climbing wall sessions down my local leisure centre to try and conquor this but if I turn up at the Naval College and hesitate to climb something, what'll happen? Will they just bollock me or help me get over it?

Thirdly, is the CS gas chamber that bad? I choke up doing the hoovering...

Any advice greatly appreciated

C
 
If you don't want to ride a desk, the Logistics Officer could be a bad choice for you!

Shortsighted? May not be a problem, you would need to check with a careers office, DEFINITELY before having any corrective surgery. The RN allows some surgery types, but not all.

Heights. You will need some tolerance to get over a wall on an assault course!

CS gas - nah, it's a laugh, vomiting never hurt anyone. And you don't take your gas mask off these days anyway, just jump around a bit to check the seal.

Good luck, but I think you need to have a chat with a careers office....
 
cheers PS,

I know I'd be riding a desk, but at least I'd be on ship seeing different things everyday!

I could manage an assault course wall no probs, its just rock climbing/absailing/robe bridges that's I'd have a hard time with. I saw on the Dartford College website that some rock climbing is involved. (anyone ?)

Is it really true u don't even have to remove your gas mask in the CS chamber anymore? my mate juts joined the RAF and he did.

C
 
Check with the local ACLO first as he should have a list of visual acuity standards. Trust me theres nothing worse than passing AIB and then failing the medical!
 
cheers badgeman, will do

what about heights? do you have to do rock climbing at the Naval College? Or abseiling?

and how bad is the CS gas chamber? does the Navy not even require u remove your mask like Pompey says?

C
 
Well if it helps a CPO RNR instructor I know said that if anyone told him they were afraid of heights then he would accept it and just ask someone else to do it (whatever needed doing at a height). That of course is just that particular chief - I don't know what the official line on it is.

As for eyesight - I think anything lower than VA3 standard is unacceptable but I'm not at all sure about that.
 
cheers, have an appointment with liason officer next week.

so have u passed the AIB then? whats it like? whats the Royal Naval College like?
 
I am afaird of heights and in 16 years have never had to address that issue in the RN.

Glasses - as a loggie... dont worry you should be ok unless they are milk bottle bottoms !

CS - I was invited to take off my gas mask at BRNC and take a deep lungful. I did and... I was completely immune to CS gas !

Dont woory about it .. if that is the worst that you think might happen to you in your service career then you will be fine.. I think getting a shake for the morning watch at 0345 is the worst that can possibly happen to nayone but tehre you go
 
Yup, that's about all that worries me, heights (worry me a lot) and the CS gas chamber).

So is that all loggie's do then? Desk jockey? surely they must get involved in drills when ship has a contact etc.?
 
From what I've heard Logistics are lucky if they get 2 sea jobs in their career - I've just stopped my forms in their tracks after going for Logs myself to change to Warfare as I dont see the point of joining up to sit behind a desk for the majority of my career. I want to go to sea! And yeah you're right about them doign a bit more at sea than just stacking blankets - they run the damage control side of things at action.

I'm almost sure I read somewhere in the blurb I got that you cant go in if you've had corrective eye surgery in the past year but dont quote me on that. Get on to your local AFCO and they will know much more than any of us!

As for the height thing - there will be times where height is involved. For example some YO's do the Marines Endurance course during their time at BRNC which I'm sure has some high stuff in it!
 
u mean YO's have to do the Marine's course where they push you under the water tunnel?!!

Can't really join as anything else but loggy as I'm short sighted.

What do loggie's do on shore then? are they posted at naval ports? or in UK?

what happens when they promoted? where do they go?

C
 
Navy1 said:
I am afaird of heights and in 16 years have never had to address that issue in the RN.

Glasses - as a loggie... dont worry you should be ok unless they are milk bottle bottoms !

CS - I was invited to take off my gas mask at BRNC and take a deep lungful. I did and... I was completely immune to CS gas !

Dont woory about it .. if that is the worst that you think might happen to you in your service career then you will be fine.. I think getting a shake for the morning watch at 0345 is the worst that can possibly happen to nayone but tehre you go
Click to expand...

I was afraid of heights when I joined up at 15. It got cured after going 'over the mast' or more precisely, round the devil's elbow, 80ft off the ground, clinging on for dear life. It scared the hell out of me but I felt really satisfied after doing it for the first time.

Any potential recruits reading this: don't let this put you off - it's no longer done. It just used to be compulsory for 15 year old ratings during their training, up to the mid-1970s. Now that dates me!
 
The current Dartmouth buzz is that being a chap and a Loggie is an excellent way to end your first fortnight with the dreaded (SM) on your badge - because Loggie is a popular branch with the women, they're short of male volunteers for submarines, so there is a possibility of being 'volunteered' for the job. A quick VA one for the standards as I remember

S1 (Warfare/Aviation)

0 to -1.25 or +2.50

S2 (Warfare not Submarines)

-1.50 to -2.50 or +3.00

S3 The rest (including you - Logistics)

up to -6.00 short sight.


Your ACLO will give you a sight test form to take to your friendly local optician to fill in and will let you find out what standard you fit in with.
 
You don't seem to know very much about the RN, Cutter, yet you do about the Booties.

You wouldn't be taking the piss by any chance?
 
I'm -10 sight so I'd have to have corrective surgery I think.

Not sure what the 'booties' are...

So do YO's at Royal Naval College have to do the Marines Endurance course? (including water tunnel).

Do YO's also have to do a lot of climbing?
 

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