Blue ensign dick'ed

[oldbilbo]

Was intrigued yesterday, looking to leave Blagdons boatyard at Plymouth, to see the 21,500 tons bulk of HMS Ocean - Britain's biggest warship - sliding past heading upriver, with four tugs and a Pilots' launch in attendence, and a big Police boat rushing about ahead like a yellow/black collie dog.

She'd just commenced her swing to starboard to round the Rubble Bank when a yacht darted out across her bows, between the Police boat and Ocean's bows. The 'Five blasts' on her horn seemed to awaken Plymouth as far as Plympton....

And I swear I could hear Commanding Officer Captain Timothy Henry RN's own blast turn the Hamoaze air blue!

The little yacht was, of course, wearing a blue defaced ensign.

 

[sailorman]

How many aircraft did you see o/b her

 

[KevO]

How many aircraft did you see o/b her

Both of them ....

 

[oldbilbo]

How many aircraft did you see o/b her

None. But then she was towering way up above my line of sight which was, oh, down about RN Buccaneer altitude...

 

[A1Sailor]

I hope the yachtie remembered to dip his ensign...

 

[Jamesuk]

I hope the yachtie remembered to dip his ensign...

+1
Then change is trousers

 

[Angele]

I wonder.

If the boat in question had been flying a red ensign, or no ensign at all, how would you have titled your post?

Red ensign dick'ed
No ensign dick'ed

Or would you just not bother posting it because, while we all know it was a stupid thing to do, there is always one. Isn't there?

Btw. It wasn't me.

 

[Sandgrounder]

Was intrigued yesterday, looking to leave Blagdons boatyard at Plymouth, to see the 21,500 tons bulk of HMS Ocean - Britain's biggest warship - sliding past heading upriver, with four tugs and a Pilots' launch in attendence, and a big Police boat rushing about ahead like a yellow/black collie dog.

She'd just commenced her swing to starboard to round the Rubble Bank when a yacht darted out across her bows, between the Police boat and Ocean's bows. The 'Five blasts' on her horn seemed to awaken Plymouth as far as Plympton....

And I swear I could hear Commanding Officer Captain Timothy Henry RN's own blast turn the Hamoaze air blue!

The little yacht was, of course, wearing a blue defaced ensign.

RNSA?

 

[pyrojames]

I wonder.

If the boat in question had been flying a red ensign, or no ensign at all, how would you have titled your post?

Red ensign dick'ed
No ensign dick'ed

Or would you just not bother posting it because, while we all know it was a stupid thing to do, there is always one. Isn't there?

Btw. It wasn't me.

+1

I guess he just has a problem with anyone one who isn't red.

 

[A1Sailor]

RNSA?

Why would an RNSA member fly a defaced blue ensign instead of the undefaced one he/she is entitled to fly?

 

[Birdseye]

I wonder.

If the boat in question had been flying a red ensign, or no ensign at all, how would you have titled your post?

Red ensign dick'ed
No ensign dick'ed

Or would you just not bother posting it because, while we all know it was a stupid thing to do, there is always one. Isn't there?

Btw. It wasn't me.

You are always vulnerable to having a finger pointed if you seperate yourself from the mob. Drive a 38ft Bendytoy with a red ensign and no one will comment because you fade into the background. Drive a 50ft HR with a blue or white ensign and everyone is just waiting for you to cock up.

 

[Angele]

You are always vulnerable to having a finger pointed if you seperate yourself from the mob. Drive a 38ft Bendytoy with a red ensign and no one will comment because you fade into the background. Drive a 50ft HR with a blue or white ensign and everyone is just waiting for you to cock up.

Or, you are likely to have a finger pointed at you if you do anything stupid. My solution is to make sure I only do stupid things when I have the red ensign flying.

I'm going to patent a device that swaps your ensign over at the push of a button, as soon as you realise you are about to screw up. Should be a money spinner, methinks.

 

[Colvic Watson]

How many aircraft did you see o/b her

Hopefully none, she's a helicopter carrier.

 

[oldbilbo]

If the boat in question had been flying a red ensign, or no ensign at all, how would you have titled your post?

Oh, I'm sure I'd have thought of something. Aren't you....?


( But don't I wish the little 'un had been sporting a WHITE ensign! That would have earned a few chuckles at the next Plymouth QHM's drinks party...... )

 

[macd]

Hopefully none, she's a helicopter carrier.

I knew things were bad, but not that the RN had got to the stage where it carries helicopters than can't fly.

 

[A1Sailor]

As far as I know the Fleet Air Arm has (had) two types of aircraft - fixed-wing and rotary-wing. HMS Ocean has the latter.
They currently have no front line fixed-wing aircraft...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fleet_Air_Arm

 

[Colvic Watson]

So the choppers haven't had the chop?

 

[Robin]

Or, you are likely to have a finger pointed at you if you do anything stupid. My solution is to make sure I only do stupid things when I have the red ensign flying.

I'm going to patent a device that swaps your ensign over at the push of a button, as soon as you realise you are about to screw up. Should be a money spinner, methinks.

Be like me, we fly the Septic's Stars and stripes rag but back in our UK days the blue defaced club one was reserved for special club occasions like rallies, simply because a) the thing cost so much yet wore out fast and b)the defaced embroidered dolphin YC emblem weighed it down so it never flew properly , just sagged wearily. Out of sight of land we always flew the red anyway and it was almost see through by the time we left for the USA where it now hangs proudly at home. So all my cock-ups will have been mostly seen under the red ensign not the blue, thus skewing the statistics oft quoted by the flag police.:disgust:

 

[PabloPicasso]

I can't understand why the UK decommissioned its sea harriers? Were they broken and unfixable? All of them at once? Blooming stupid to get rid of them and replace with enflyingmotos. I bet that put the willies up "the enemies of the state" big time....

 

[A1Sailor]

I can't understand why the UK decommissioned its sea harriers? Were they broken and unfixable? All of them at once? Blooming stupid to get rid of them and replace with enflyingmotos. I bet that put the willies up "the enemies of the state" big time....

There was nothing wrong with them, in fact they were sold to the US. It was purely a cost cutting measure; not just the aircraft and the aircrew but it meant that Ark Royal & Illustrious could both be scrapped.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strategic_Defence_and_Security_Review#Carrier_Strike