Assignment Order

Well, it has been on the cards for a few months now but I didn't think it was really going to happen! Having now had two Rear Admirals tell me that the job I am doing in the UK is considerably more important that a deployment I sort of thought that I might have at least been able to delay a deployment.

However, I am now in receipt of my assignment order to be the Deputy Staff Operations Officer to the UK Maritime Component Commander out in Manama, Bahrain for 6 months starting on the 16 Mar, ie just 4 weeks time. The job itself is both busy and interesting, is in a pleasant part of the world and with an very good infrastructure in that accommodation is in a decent hotel. It could of course be worse, ie Iraq or Afghanistan with people shooting at you, but equally it is not being at home and the deployment covers the hotest part of the year.

I'm still thinking about it all and don't really have a clear feeling one way or another. I would frankly rather not go for both personal and professional reasons but if it gets it out of the way and gives me longer in MWC I can cope with that. I am always sorry to disappoint Lucy and Sarah and they will be most affected by me being away but will reluctantly get on with it and put up with a rather unsatisfactory situation.

At the end of the day it is a classic life in a blue suit situation and once out there might even be quite fun for me at least. How it turns out will emerge on these pages.