OK, there are CNOs who have a tougher job ...
He has neither boats nor equipment and admits he has not been to sea for 23 years.Fleet Week in Mog anyone?
The interim government does not control much of the 3,000-km (1,860-mile) Somali coastline and then there is the headache of plentiful pirates.
Mr Omar said he was first put in charge of the navy in 1982, but speaking to the BBC by phone from the capital, Mogadishu, he did not sound too daunted by the task ahead.
"Today there is a big piracy problem and we are ashamed. But we think they [the pirates] don't have sophisticated equipment as they just have fishing boats and small arms which are easy to get in Somalia," he said.
Somalia's navy chief said 500 new recruits had recently joined after adverts were aired through radio stations and the men would be paid $60 (£36) per month.
Presumably the training will be classroom-based, given the situation at sea.
So maybe we might be able to offload a few boats from our reserve fleet through a sort of "lend-lease" program?
ReplyDeleteMight be a bit of an answer to the piracy issue.
So what does that make the Adm to sailor ratio now? Not like we're setting a good example...
ReplyDeleteMaybe we can offload NKO on them. Of course, without electricity it will be of little value to them. Strike that, it is about as effective without electricity as it is with electricity!
ReplyDeletePhib, you trying to hint that this might be the US Navy in 20 years?
ReplyDeleteHow about we send a few of our ships over and help "train" their Navy along their shores. Kill two birds and all that...
ReplyDeleteYet, his Navy is so "diverse" that they're all the same. And he did it without an apparent Diversity Directorate. Perhaps Roughead could learn from this guy.
ReplyDeleteWhat are the chances that anyone he could get to put to sea in whatever bucket he can get ahold of will NOT be either bribed or threatened by Al Shabaab? Methinks pretty damned slim. That is assuming he wants to solve the "pirate problem" and isn't getting his uniform pockets stuffed with cash in the process.
Can we lease them all built LCS? Remove all electronics and bolt-on as many M-2s as will fit , then it becomes effective pirate hunter... And ask Saudis for fuel :P
ReplyDelete