Do British sailors normally allow themselves to be captured without a fight?

Answer 1

So what would you do?

Answer 2

From what is being reported, the sailors were captured in Iraqi waters. I´m wondering if they were deployed from a frigate or similar sized vessel, or were they operating from a shore base. If they were operating from a frigate, why was that ship not near enough to support their away team? There must have been radio contact between the two vessels, so both ships knew where they were. If they were operating from a shore base, there should have been at least some kind of air support to back them up or they should have patrolled with another boat. I´m thinking the crew was snatched because they were in the process of bording and searching a suspected smuggler. Knowing Iran, they probably set this up...sending a bait boat out and waited for the British to bord the bait, thus essentially trapping them in place, and then they rushed in their own patrol boats en mass and prevented any escape. A small boat like the one the British was using is capable of zipping away at over 40+ knots if it has to. Too bad there wasn´t an escort to warn them of any approaching danger.

Answer 3

No

Anyone with the brains God gave a pigmy marmoset knows that the Royal Navy has a long tradition of incredibly brave selfless service to their country. England expects every member of the Royal Navy to do his or her duty; and they do.

Please note though, that it is not the 1840s anymore. The era of the Opium War is long gone. There was a time when a British Admiral could sink an entire nation's navy on his own authority and then let the politicians in London sort out the mess. (Don't laugh, they did this to the Turks during the Greek Revolution. The British Admiral on scene sank the entire Turkish Navy on his own authority. London was rather upset.)

However, since the invention of the atomic bomb ALL navies, and armies, have had an unspoken additional duty added to their list of things to do. "DONT START WORLD WAR 3".

In allowing themeselves to be captured these Royal Navy Sailors and Marines were doing a very dangerious and disagreeable duty for Britian... NOT starting a war. At grave risk to their lives and their freedom, they chose NOT to involve the UK, (and by extension the UK's allies such as the USA, Australia, and those members of NATO that are not still waiting on the spine transplant) in a war with Iran. They could have fought it out, but they knew that if they did, there would be an excellent chance of a major war breaking out, and they didn't want to take that chance.

Thanks to them we are not at war with Iran as I type this. That may very well change, but if there is a war it won't be because these sailors and marines didn't do everything they could to prevent it.

Answer 4

Seems that way, being ex-Royal Navy man like Gary Dav...
no words can describe my feelings of anger for those men
that gave up without a fight of some kind or other. After
this incident and the shame it has brought to the Navy it
will never be the same again. Likewise, the Charge of the
Light Brigade which influenced me during my early days
seems like fabricated myth now.

Answer 5

They probably were under orders not to in that situation. If they did it would blow up into a major Confrontation with Iranians were there wasnt one. It would have resulted in the Sailors being killed for no reason other than being in the wrong Territory. It is up to Iranians to Hand them over now thats when the Fun starts, if they dont something has to be done. There is no War situation with Iran at moment and they have a Legal right to Detain Armed Men in there Territory Without Permission. So Dimplomatically Imprudent to cause an Incident.

Answer 6

Indeed no! As ex Royal Navy, I can assure you this is not the case. One story, whose veracity I have been unable to check, says the only RN ship ever to surrender without a fight was HMS Portsmouth. the story goes that there has never been a ship so named since, due to the ignominy it brought to the Navy.
Don't know where you got that story from, but we didn't rule the waves for more than a century with that attitude. Hope this corrects your misapprehension.
Just heard the 3o'clock news, so understand your question now. With regard to O'Yam's comment, it was a spineless cadre of officers who surrendered, and the men simply obeyed orders. I love the US and most Americans, but comments like hers make me wonder if she noticed that Britain single-handedly recovered the Falklands: when the US Marine Corps and Army ran like fools from the Chinese in Korea, it was the Brits who covered their retreat and paid with lost lives. Every country has inadvertent errors and idiocy in war: it goes with the territtory.
With regards to the men in either an outboard-powered dinghy or a rigid raider, no-one with a modicum of common sense would even consider opening fire on a larger, heavily-armed gunboat from a nation we're not even at war with. No doubt O'Yam would have criticised them for that instead. "Damned if you do, damned if you don't".

Answer 7

They were under orders. Stray into Iran, get captured, no fighting, and then the UK and the USA can use this at the UN sanctions today in NY.

Worthy of note, the sailors and army chaps, and lady, are all being treated well, unlike their counterparts held by the US.

And we are the civilised one's...some joke.

Answer 8

These British troops were in one small boat and were surrounded by 4 large Iranian vessels. They were outgunned and out numbered, and you don't provoke this situation and start WW3. Don't you listen to the news or read about it.? This has happened before when Geoff Hoon was the Defence Minister, this is nothing new with Iran.

Answer 9

ATG - I suspect a lot of the people answering this haven't actually read the news.

I think you will probably find that the personnel concerned did the right thing and followed the correct rules of engagement for the situation they were in.

If the circumstances had been different, HMS CORNWALL is more than capable of blowing most seagoing vessels out of the water.

Answer 10

this is the second time iran has kidnaped british sailors since 2004. we should just sink there whole piece of **** navy so they cant do it again. i bet the yanks would have there guys out by now. our gvmnt are letting iran make fools of our navy

Answer 11

If your talking about the Iranian kidnapping then I think they are probably trying to not cause a further kaffufel in the middle east. There are enough problems over there already.