• Please take a moment and update your account profile. If you have an updated account profile with basic information on why you are on Air Warriors it will help other people respond to your posts. How do you update your profile you ask?

    Go here:

    Edit Account Details and Profile

Royal Navy experience

Max the Mad Russian

Hands off Ukraine! Feet too
Gents,

Found out that in a carrier squadron of RN there is no XO post. There is CO and then Senior Pilot if this is pointy nose jet or Senior Observer if that's helicopter (in the last Phantom squadron, No 892, there were both of them). But no XO in both cases. Did somebody of you who crossdeck with RN carriers and LPHs hear explanation how they can cope without XO?
 

Renegade One

Well-Known Member
None
Gents,

Found out that in a carrier squadron of RN there is no XO post. There is CO and then Senior Pilot if this is pointy nose jet or Senior Observer if that's helicopter (in the last Phantom squadron, No 892, there were both of them). But no XO in both cases. Did somebody of you who crossdeck with RN carriers and LPHs hear explanation how they can cope without XO?
Same way I "THINK" the USAF does it...no XO, just the CO and the "Ops O" (next in the chain-of command). I could be wrong, of course, or that construct may have changed.
 

Max the Mad Russian

Hands off Ukraine! Feet too
Yeah but Who runs everyday routine? XO position is for that, afaik. OpsO reports XO. Again, Who relieves CO after his tour?
 

Brett327

Well-Known Member
None
Super Moderator
Contributor
Sorry Brett, but who's PCO? Is s/he a this squadron pilot/NFO?
As I indicated, this concept is not used in Naval Aviation squadrons, but many ships do not have the XO fleet up to CO. A new Prospective CO shows up to relieve the outgoing CO.
 

Max the Mad Russian

Hands off Ukraine! Feet too
Understood, thanks. I have read James Stockdale memoirs where he described this habit to CO being relieved by XO as a standard way back in 1960
 

Max the Mad Russian

Hands off Ukraine! Feet too
Just avoiding the new pointless thread:)

What do you think as to why the French carrier Charles De Gaulle embarks just three helicopters (1x NH90 NFH and 2x Dauphin ) in her airgroup? This is definitely not enough for both "angel" work and VERTREPs. Or the escort frigates carry more?
 

Pags

N/A
pilot
Just avoiding the new pointless thread:)

What do you think as to why the French carrier Charles De Gaulle embarks just three helicopters (1x NH90 NFH and 2x Dauphin ) in her airgroup? This is definitely not enough for both "angel" work and VERTREPs. Or the escort frigates carry more?
Depends on what the Frenchies want to do and how concurrently they want to do various things. Shrug.
 

Max the Mad Russian

Hands off Ukraine! Feet too
Depends on what the Frenchies want to do and how concurrently they want to do various things. Shrug.

Yes but two noted activities should be there in any case - plane guarding and Vertrep. Never saw more than those three helos on this ship. When conduct the flying ops, there's just one spare Dauphin, spare E-2C and a Rafale M in buddy-tanker configuration on the deck, similar trio in the air, and up to 10 Rafale Ms shuttling back and forth for quals and/or training/combat sorties. Even that NATO Frigate Helo is usually down in hangar. No Vertreps in French navy?
 

Pags

N/A
pilot
Yes but two noted activities should be there in any case - plane guarding and Vertrep. Never saw more than those three helos on this ship. When conduct the flying ops, there's just one spare Dauphin, spare E-2C and a Rafale M in buddy-tanker configuration on the deck, similar trio in the air, and up to 10 Rafale Ms shuttling back and forth for quals and/or training/combat sorties. Even that NATO Frigate Helo is usually down in hangar. No Vertreps in French navy?
I dunno. Please go ask on a French Navy forum and report back. I wouldn't want to be accused of passing bum gouge to all the hard working Komrades at Fancy Bear.
 

AllAmerican75

FUBIJAR
None
Contributor
Same way I "THINK" the USAF does it...no XO, just the CO and the "Ops O" (next in the chain-of command). I could be wrong, of course, or that construct may have changed.

They have something called a Deputy Commander or something along those lines (my memory is a bit foggy). My ex would always get confused when I complained about XO busting my balls because their XO is nothing more than a lieutenant (O2 type) who is in charge of all of the admin for the squadron. She'd always wonder why I was complaining about another JO making my life miserable.
 

cfam

Well-Known Member
None
Super Moderator
Contributor
They have something called a Deputy Commander or something along those lines (my memory is a bit foggy). My ex would always get confused when I complained about XO busting my balls because their XO is nothing more than a lieutenant (O2 type) who is in charge of all of the admin for the squadron. She'd always wonder why I was complaining about another JO making my life miserable.
Director of Operations (DO) is the job title.
 
Top