The Royal Fleet Auxiliary are a vital component of most Royal Navy operations, and have recently proved their worth in the campaign against Iraq.

Versatile vessels such as the Fort ships, Sir Galahad and Argus not only support Royal Navy warships, but also contribute directly to the success of a mission in a secondary role – perhaps acting as mini helicopter carriers, such as the Forts and Argus, or humanitarian support ship, like Sir Bedivere.

One point of contact between the RFA and the Royal Navy is administered from a small, little-known unit which operates out of humble offices at RN air station Culdrose in Cornwall.

The Royal Fleet Auxiliary Naval Support Unit (RFANSU) started life as a very small engineering support unit covering Sea King helicopters on the back of RFAs in 1990, though they had been in business long before that in a different guise.

The aim of the 150-strong unit is to place small teams with ships to provide the kind of support which is present in the ship’s company of an aircraft carrier, but would not be expected of the civilian crew of an RFA supply ship.

And by dint of flexibility of manpower and equipment, ships can be kept at sea longer – and MOD planners have been taking notice of the working practices at RFANSU.

The basic purpose of the unit is to provide Royal Navy personnel in aviation-capable RFA ships, fielding an air wing which includes specialists such as air engineers, flight deck
officers and the like.

The unit has a considerable task – the Commanding Officer, currently Lt Cdr Andy Thorburn, is responsible for the headquarters at Culdrose, for all RN personnel embarked in RFAs (including administration such as pay, drafting, expenses and more), deployable Royal Navy support teams, Divisional matters and so on.

“It is a monumental administrative and logistical task – but when we send our aircraft to sea, if we at RFANSU didn’t get our jobs right, then nothing could happen,” said Lt Cdr Thorburn.

“It would all come to a grinding halt – which is why I am trying to further the concept of RFANSU and our business, because I think that’s where the future lies.”

The actual strength on each ship varies with its task and capabilities.

Argus – an aviation training ship which doubles as a primary casualty receiving ship – has up to 50 people on board, headed by the Senior Naval Officer Argus at the rank of lieutenant commander.

“It is a very, very popular unit, with Merlin, Sea Kings, Lynx, Junglies – the boys love it, and it has a huge hangar space,” said Lt Cdr Thorburn.

“It is almost like a mini-carrier, with a medical team, air operations, a Meteorology and Oceanography (METOC) officer and a large stores department, which all belong to us.”

Three teams cover the permanent positions on Forts Victoria and George, auxiliary oiler replenishment ships, and they are both being adapted to be able to support Merlins.
RFANSU staff are being trained for the same aircraft.

These two ships have permanent workshops on board, obviating the need for the mobile, containerised workshops, although for other ships the five ‘flying packs’, covering Sea Kings and Merlins, have to be used.

But support for the RFAs runs further than just air engineering – electrical and communications specialists, weapon engineering staff to look after defensive systems such as Phalanx, weather experts to help with matters like the best track for flying operations or finding optimum conditions for replenishments at sea, and who can help with the Rapid Environmental Assessments which task group commanders rely on for successful amphibious operations.

Forts Victoria and George – the former has just undergone refit, the latter is just starting hers – have permanent teams of 17, while Forts Rosalie and Austin require nine each (but no permanent teams).

And as operational requirements change, causing aircraft carriers to operate as helicopter carriers – as was the case with HMS Ark Royal in operations against Iraq – so planners are looking at how RFANSU tailors its teams to meet a specific need; such examples may provide useful pointers for operations using the future carriers.

RFANSU people were heavily involved in the war in Iraq, as they were in the 1991 Gulf War, the Adriatic in 1992-93, Operation Bolton in the Gulf in 1997-98, Kosovo in 1999 and Operation Palliser in Sierra Leone.

That means the magical figure of 40 per cent of the time spent alongside in base port, as
recommended by the Second Sea Lord, proves difficult to maintain – the figure for Argus actually falls below ten per cent, while Forts Victoria and George barely manage 33 per cent – “but people are still falling over themselves to come and work with us,” said Lt Cdr Thorburn.

“They love it because of the variety. And managers show a lot of imagination to get people away for courses, leave and so on – they use a roulement system.

“Because the RFA do not operate a base port system, and maximise the time units spend at sea, individual management is very important.

“We tailor their programme to suit them as best we can – someone from Hull may get time at the Hull Careers Office, for example.

“And in Argus, the Senior Naval Officer is encouraged to show flexibility in terms of leave and so on – and plenty of people extend their time on Argus.

“Our people may not spend as much time at home as is recommended – but that time is quality time, and people are happy with that.”

The RFANSU has 142 people dealing eight ships, and they are also involved in trials for the Wave-class ships which are entering service shortly.

“When I came, I could see how vital this unit was,” said Lt Cdr Thorburn.

“It is a unique section that gives me a vast amount of flexibility with my teams – and I think people are looking at the way we do things and the RFANSU concept for what we will be doing in the future.”