Flag Officer Sea Training FOST

[Little h]

News
'Thursday War': How Royal Navy Sailors Stay Operation Ready

Rebecca Ricks
28th September 2018 at 1:29pm

The organisation that prepares the Navy for war is marking its 60th anniversary with a large scale 'Thursday War' off the coast of Plymouth....

The organisation that prepares the Navy for war is marking its 60th anniversary with a large scale 'Thursday War' off the coast of Plymouth.

The Royal Navy’s Flag Officer Sea Training group (FOST) took a host of admirals to sea to celebrate the anniversary aboard a Dutch amphibious assault ship.

Six warships, Rafale fighter jets and a fast inshore attack craft were present during the 'Thursday War' to mark its 60th anniversary.

It was an example of the organisation's capabilities at sea in case they were to come under attack.

Rear Admiral Will Warrender, FOST, said:

"Thursday War is an opportunity - on a Thursday as the name would suggest - to test ships in a multi-threat environment"

"Testing them in surface, anti-surface and anti-air warfare"

"The difference with today is the number of visitors that we're able to get down here to Plymouth, to expose them to the fantastic sea training that we put their ships through from the various countries"

FOST Anniversary onboard HNLMS Johan de Witt 4.jpg

In the tradition of FOST, the day began early off the coast of Plymouth.

The Admirals were visiting the Dutch amphibious assault ship HNLMS Johan de Witt as it underwent training - within an hour of their visit, the ship came 'under attack' - as part of the exercise.

This fast inshore attack craft serial is one of the new exercises in the programme and was designed for operations in the Gulf.

The exercise focuses on dealing with the Iranian Gumboat threat - which has been a problem for ships in the Middle East for the last 20 years.

Foreign navies have for years paid to put their ships through the organisation's strict but respected programme.

HNLMS Johan de Witt is currently in its second phase of the programme.

Commodore Jan Hubert Hulsker, Commander Netherlands' Maritime Force said that they had been relying on the programme for the last 50 years.

Commodore Hulsker added:

"In the end, it's the standard that counts - to be ready for war and that's what you learn here"

Flag officer sea training not only prepares ships for war and humanitarian relief but also for their own emergencies like floods and fires.

Chief Petty Officer Dennis Carlin, Instructor of the FOST, said: "We train the way we mean to fight."

He added: "It helps them because in the real event they know what they're doing."

They cover every base including mechanical failures and damage to the ship itself.

FOST started in the wake of World War Two when standards started to slip as sailors returned from war.

In the future, they are looking at training the crew of the Royal Navy's most advanced aircraft carrier, HMS Queen Elizabeth.


Source; As the thread opening post the entire text of this article has been copied lest we lose the hyperlink FORCESNETWORK - where a video and other images can be viewed.

[Little h]

Flag Officer Sea Training (FOST) is a Royal Navy training organisation responsible for ensuring that Royal Navy and Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels are fit to join the operational fleet. It is also the name of the senior flag officer responsible for all naval sea training, based at Navy Command Headquarters.

History

FOST has been a world centre of excellence in the Royal Navy for naval basic and advanced operational training since it was established by then First Sea Lord Lord Louis Mountbatten in 1958.[2] Originally operating out of Portland, FOST moved to Plymouth in 1995 when Rear-Admiral Tolhurst transferred his flag courtesy of HMS Iron Duke and the chain of command changed from Flag Officer Surface Flotilla to Commander-in-Chief Fleet.[3]

As a result of the Royal Navy programme 'Fleet First', FOST became the single command responsible for all sea training. The submarine sea-training organisation came under FOST and surface ship training previously undertaken by Flag Officer Surface Flotilla and the squadron staffs also shifted to FOST.[4]

FOST operates a pair of Eurocopter Dauphin helicopters to allow its instructors to join vessels with minimal delay during intense training periods.[5] Plymouth Airport closed on 23 December 2011.[6] The aircraft operate from HMS Raleigh in Cornwall but are based at Newquay.[7]

As well as training Royal Navy personnel, it has also been an important source of revenue in training foreign naval crews to handle and fight their vessels, with around one third of its work used in this capacity.[5] FOST certifies crews and vessels as being sufficiently prepared for any eventuality through rigorous exercises and readiness inspections.

Training regime

The main training and testing period is called Basic Operational Sea Training (BOST), which typically lasts six weeks. It combines surveys of the physical condition of the ship with tests of the crew's readiness for deployment, including a weekly war-fighting and damage control scenario known as a 'Thursday War'. BOST thus has elements of the US Navy's Board of Inspection and Survey (INSURV) and Composite Training Unit Exercise assessments. When USS Forrest Sherman underwent a short version of BOST in 2012, comments from her sailors included "I've been through other exercises, inspections, and deployment and this was by far the hardest ... It was even more intense than INSURV".

Source; Wiki

[Little h]

NavyLookout on twitter
‏ @NavyLookout
Oct 11

.@RUSI_org article suggesting RN about to “gut its Operational Sea Training organisation” is scaremongering.

RN is undergoing transformation programme which may include adapting training system for new threats but will not axe globally respected @FOST

https://rusi.org/commentary/sea-trainin ... egic-asset …

EGntBCMXYAM-6s7.jpg large.jpg

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IMO the RUSI article is still very readable

[Little h]

Cross Reference

See; Naval Shore Bases section; UK Naval Bases forum - Royal Navy HMS Drake thread ... for post relating to FOST Hydrographic, Meteorological and Oceanographic (HM) school.

[ivorthediver]

Thank you Harry for such a detailed and interesting thread , which I feel sure will get many reads and responses .

I must admit that I knew that other countries used these facilities , but was unaware that they paid for them , so as well as being a credible bench mark that navies can aim for..[provided we maintain the standards reached ] it is a credit to the way we train in the first place don't you feel .

I recall many references being made to the "Thursday Wars " in the old Forum but not the detail you have outlined , so thanks for educating those of us who are unfamiliar with this organisation and its sterling work .

I recall the Ark Royal series of videos on the Damage control exercises and also the DVD's on Damage Control and IWM training videos all of which make you cringe when you view them whilst still valuing its vital needs to train the crews how to save the ship so to speak .

To me one of the strongest reasons for login in to our Forum is not only to educate those of use who did not have the benefit of serving in the RN BUT the benefit of learning from former crews who did and are willing to share some of their personal experiences with the like of us .and I am sure that Tim would agree with that sentiment

[timlewin]

Am I right that Adm. Roddy Macdonald was FOST at one time?

[Little h]

Am I right that Adm. Roddy Macdonald was FOST at one time?

Tim,

I knew he had been at FOST in Portland Tim, but as a Commander.

The Telegraph carries his Obituary and describes his time at FOST as being the ... first Commander Sea Training on the staff of the FOST, see:-

His next commands were the "Ton" Class minesweepers Esserton and Walkerton, as Senior Officer 104th Minesweeping Squadron in the Mediterranean. He was mentioned in despatches in 1958 for patrols off Cyprus.

In 1959, he went to Portland as the first Commander Sea Training on the staff of the Flag Officer Sea Training. This was a responsible and arduous appointment, for it was to Portland that new or recommissioning Royal Navy and other Nato warships came for their basic training and work-ups. Portland set the standard for the entire Navy.

As a newly promoted Captain, Macdonald was appointed Commander Naval Forces Borneo in 1965, during the final stages of the "Confrontation",

Source; The Telegraph 5th Feb 2001

He may have been at Portland when I was in Camperdown (D32) during our five week FOST training period in 1960; then served with him on Falmouth F113 when he was CO; after that we were apparently both in FE (Singapore) during part the Confrontation (my stay was 64-66).

[Little h]

Here is a link to the WNSF archive thread titled:- FOST & the 6-8 Week Portland Work-Up Period, Culminating in the 3 Day Mock War - comprising 105 posts across 3 pages and with approx 10 attachments/images.

[Little h]

FOST; the acronym - it doesn't mean the same as it did .... really!!! no longer Flag Officer Sea Training now Fleet Operational Sea Training .... so 'it' is still FOST - but - 'he' isn't!!


COM FOST - RN Training
@FOST
·
29 Jun
Under Navy Transformation, the Flag Officer Sea Training organisation has been renamed Fleet Operational Sea Training (so still known as “FOST”!), under the Command of Cdre Andrew Stacey.

FOST: World-Class, World-Wide

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COM FOST - RN Training
@FOST
·
29 Jun
Reporting directly to Fleet Commander, FOST trains and assesses all Ships, Submarines and Maritime Task Groups, ensuring they are at the highest standards of safety and war fighting proficiency and ready for operational tasking.

FOST: World-Class, World-Wide

[ivorthediver]

OR.... Flipping Orrible Sea Trauma...depending on one experience of RN life eh Harry ....