War rages in the Solent as Navy lays on major demonstration

A Viking from the Royal Marines’ Armoured Support Group races across Browndown Beach near Gosport at the climax of a series of demonstrations laid on by around 1,000 men and women from across the Naval Service in the Solent this week.

The four-day-long Maritime Combat Power Visit – they were re-branded last year from their traditional Staff College Sea Days title – are aimed at demonstrating what the RN can (and indeed does) do around the globe to more than 300 students from the advance command and staff at the Forces’ college at Shrivenham, plus senior officers, academics, the media, MPs, affiliates, VIPS and the like.

After a day of rehearsals on Monday, the visits kicked off in earnest, all choreographed by the Navy’s No.1 training organisation, FOST.

The cast for this year’s event were (take a deep breath) flagship HMS Bulwark, landing support ship RFA Mounts Bay, frigate HMS Sutherland, tanker RFA Black Rover, patrol boat HMS Raider, Jungly Sea Kings from 846 Naval Air Squadron, Commando Lynx from 847 NAS, grey Lynx from 815 NAS, surveillance Sea Kings from 849 NAS, Hawk jets, green berets from the Fleet Protection Group Royal Marines and the amphibious wizardry of 539 Assault Squadron RM (and breathe).

The Junglies and Fleet Protection Group teams staged a mock boarding, leaping out of a Sea King and roping on to Bulwark to show how they can take down pirates/terrorists (rather as they did in London when the ship visited at the beginning of the year).

Black Rover was on hand to demonstrate the tricky art of replenishing at sea, Sutherland showed how to deal with the threat of submarines, and Bulwark showed how she can put men and material on to hostile shores by sending the Royals and their kit on to Browndown.

The aim is to give visitors – and officers on the advanced staff course in particular – a small taste of the full range of the Senior Service’s abilities.