Play-up Pompey! Brothers join Navy just weeks apart

Pompey brothers join Navy.

Not exactly unusual. Scores of brothers from Pompey.

Except these brothers ARE Pompey, not from it: Oshane and Kurtney Pompey.

Hailing from St Vincent and the Grenadines, they’ve joined the Royal Navy just weeks apart… such that Kurtney (in his fourth week of conversion from civilian to sailor) joined his brother on the parade ground of HMS Raleigh for Oshane’s passing-out parade.

AB Oshane, a former attendee at the St Vincent and The Grenadines Community College,  joined the Royal Navy in mid-October 2023 looking for a career that would allow him to gain professional qualifications while working with people who set the highest of standards.

“It’s a brilliant and joyful feeling to complete training and be part of the Royal Navy,” the 26-year-old said of the ten-week experience at the Torpoint establishment.
“The training was what I expected – intense, disciplined and physically demanding. It gave me routine and working in a team to get tasks done allowed me to develop my own skills, as well as feel valued when adding my own contributions.”

After Christmas leave, Oshane swaps Torpoint for Gosport, beginning his professional training as a marine engineer, while his brother resumes his basic training at Raleigh – all being well he’ll pass out at the end of February, then move to HMS Collingwood in Fareham to learn how to serve as a mine warfare specialist.

Kurtney embarks on the rest of his civvy-to-sailor conversion with a spot of advice from his brother: “Just keep pushing yourself to achieve your best – then any obstacle can be overcome.”