Simon Sparkes

[Simon Sparkes @Pilotsparky]

@mattia_n @edwardstrngr65 Logistics is everything and the US destroyed that with their Iranian adventure - not a solvable problem in the short term.

[Simon Sparkes @Pilotsparky]

@BernardGra77791 Whilst the concept is enticing it fails to answer so many technical challenges as well as ROE related ones. This is wishful thinking at its worst (I've heard some of the briefs first hand). If drone ships were so easy big business would already be there.

[Simon Sparkes @Pilotsparky]

@PaulKennard18 @NavyLookout Couldn’t agree more. Ukrainian reps at various defence conferences over the past few years have stated that helicopters are essential!

[Andrew Marr @AndrewMarr9]

BREAKING: I am hearing senior military upset at the DIP. Dan Jarvis had sentence saying that the chief of staff backed the plan but, because it’s not properly funded, they told him he had to take the sentence out.

[Dr Phil Weir @navalhistorian]

Once more to the customary maths.
£11.5bn over four years (as @jeromestarkey points out, the other £3.5bn of the £14bn reported is the usual Treasury accountancy trickery), comes to £2.875bn a year, dragging Britain a full 0.096% GDP closer to the NATO 3.5% GDP spending target.

[Tom Sharpe @TomSharpe134]

Drones complement, not replace

Now write it out a hundred times, and if it’s not done by sunrise, I’ll cut your balls off

[Edward Stringer @edwardstrngr65]

I sympathise with this. I’d go further, as every time I cycle past a changing of the guard at BP, or watch ‘The Reds’ fly over, I can’t help but contrast wth the actual numbers at readiness, and the risks to servicemen thereby being run. It must be a little galling to lose another weekend to be patted on the head and told to play along that all is well.

[Simon Sparkes @Pilotsparky]

@axispoint60 I don’t like the fact that its to Armed Forces who have to give up their hard earned weekend for what is a political platitude. As a veteran it doesn’t tell me anyone cares apart from those still in uniform.

[Simon Sparkes @Pilotsparky]

In the end @Fly_Norwegian it took 55 minutes with no information to passengers - poor customer service- there were less that 50 people with checked luggage

[Simon Sparkes @Pilotsparky]

@Fly_Norwegian it’s poor that on the last flight from Stavanger today you could not get a limited around of bags off the plane in under 40 minutes. Waiting around close to midnight with limited transport options is not good.

[Jack Watling @Jack_Watling]

This is dangerously wrong: https://t.co/2Ra7lfGo7M
The UK does not (though Ukraine wishes it did) produce 500k shells a year.
Drones are not responsible for 96% of Russian KIA
5k British troops were not wiped out by 4 UAV operators.
Garbage data in = bad conclusions out 1/2

[Navy Lookout @NavyLookout]

Rich Knighton, CDS freely saying to a House of Lord Committee that the DIP settlement that @JohnHealey_MP resigned over does not provide enough RDEL budget (day-to-day running expenses) for defence - operations and training will have to be cut.

If this is imposed, a resignation matter for Knighton and @DanJarvisMBE ?

[Robert Peston @Peston]

Nigel Farage has told Nick Ferrari that Supertramp’s “Logical Song” is one of the half dozen songs that have defined his life. But he thinks the band were American - which would be true if Portsmouth and Swindon are in the US!!! “I just like Supertramp and I think a lot of the music we had in the 70s was pretty trashy frankly, and here were these young Americans who were actually musicians.”

[Matthew Savill @MTSavill]

Personnel: if 'people are our most important asset', where is money being put on training, terms and conditions and support. If the argument is 'that isn't investment' then we are once again looking at equipment instead of capability.

[Labour Press @labourpress]

There are 5 million reasons why @Nigel_Farage hasn't held a press conference in well over a month.

[Rt. Hon Ben Wallace @BenWallace70]

this isn’t a blame game. John Healey will be experiencing the same frustrations with the Treasury as I did. the party hacks/ spinners will use the fact that 99% of people wont know the impact that capital/ revenue differences will have on the department. This government, like all the others before, will puff up the budget with Capital funding but will under funded or cut running costs. The public will see a big figure ( as will political journalists) and move on. The men and women of the armed forces will then have to
live with the hollowing out

[arf @arf84648947]

Robin Williams once said, "Politicians should wear sponsor jackets like NASCAR drivers, then we know who owns them."

[Greg Bagwell @gregbagwell]

Predictably, the MAGA fanbase mobilised for this post. I have one question for all of you. What the hell does it have to do with you anyway what happens on our beaches or borders. You want to follow an isolationist policy, so fix your own country and leave us to fix ours…

[Simon Sparkes @Pilotsparky]

@HMSPWLS @RoyalNavy @COMUKCSG Perhaps we should repost this @NavyLookout and @navalhistorian

[Simon Sparkes @Pilotsparky]

@navalhistorian @NavyLookout Late to the party - I understand they sail this weekend