According to the Telegraph:

Britain had to plead with US to take part in Iran flotilla - Telegraph

We really are just pathetic hangers on really. Have been for years, it's just becoming more open and embarrassing now.

Or paper writes rubbish to raise blood pressure of it's readership and sell papers

Originally Posted by AndyPipkin

Telegraph[/url]

We really are just pathetic hangers on really. Have been for years, it's just becoming more open and embarrassing now.

Which would explain why 1SL was having jolly nice rides in USN F/A-18's off USS Stennis just a few weeks ago in the hot and sandy place?

First Sea Lord is given the full carrier experience on visit to Gulf | Royal Navy

Yeah well, maybe it is time to douse our fires, fold our tents and piss off back to our damp little island off the Eurine mainland.

Originally Posted by sunnoficarus

Which would explain why 1SL was having jolly nice rides in USN F/A-18's off USS Stennis just a few weeks ago in the hot and sandy place?

First Sea Lord is given the full carrier experience on visit to Gulf | Royal Navy

I fail to see what relevance this has to the matter. No doubt USN often likes to show off its toys to other navies, not just the RN. They might also be interested in selling stuff to us.

Maybe the lack of British involvment in this situation is a blessing in disguise? Britain and France squabbling over who's Americas best mate is a bit sad though.

Originally Posted by AndyPipkin

I fail to see what relevance this has to the matter. No doubt USN often likes to show off its toys to other navies, not just the RN. They might also be interested in selling stuff to us.

You think?


http://www.navynews.co.uk/archive/news/item/3501

"…Britain’s newest nuclear submarine HMS Astute has been put through her toughest test yet – a game of cat-and-mouse with an American counterpart.
The Faslane-based hunter-killer sparred with the USS New Mexico in the Bahamas in a series of war games witnessed by the heads of the Royal and American Navies.…"


Seems the Yanks are doing a aweful lot of the very highest level schmoozing with the 'irrelevant' UK.

While it would be unflattering, it would in fact be great if the Yanks considered us so irrelevant to any Iran conflict that they didn't let us play. Too many of our blokes have died for the US over the last ten years.

Originally Posted by goatrutar

Maybe the lack of British involvment in this situation is a blessing in disguise? Britain and France squabbling over who's Americas best mate is a bit sad though.

Or maybe, just maybe, the real back story is something like…

Yo, Uncle Sam, can we come too when you thumb your nose at the Iranians?

Probably best you guys don't, this might all go a bit kinetic and we need complete political freedom of action if it does.

Oh go on.

Oh alright then.


But that wouldn't put much fuel in a Telegraph journos Outrage Bus®

They do exercises with lots of countries, sunnof:

U.S., Bangladesh Launch First CARAT Naval Exercise

The fact is the RN had to use the USN's AUTEC range because it lacks any such ranges of its own.