The Royal Navy will be all the poorer for the retirement of two of its longest-serving – and well-known – figures.

Between them, WO John Snoddon and Lt Cdr David Robinson have served under the White Ensign for more than 80 years.

Many sailors will remember WO Snoddon as the Navy’s Senior Drill Instructor, preparing them for ceremonial duties – culminating in drilling personnel for the handover of Hong Kong to China, and for the Queen Mother’s funeral.

During a career which began at HMS Ganges in 1968, the senior rate has served in 11 ships, from aircraft carriers down to minesweepers, and most recently with veteran destroyer HMS Newcastle – which at 26 has done ten years less service in the Navy than John.

The warrant officer hopes that he has made a difference in his 36-year career, which he said he has thoroughly enjoyed. “I have had a ball and I don’t regret a single day,” he said.

Cdr Jeremy Blunden, Commanding Officer of HMS Newcastle – currently on NATO patrol in the Mediterranean – said the senior rating would be sorely missed, and not just by the so-called Geordie Gunboat.

“John has served the Royal Navy very well and it is sad to see him go. He’s been an outstanding executive warrant officer in Newcastle and the ship’s company and I will miss him,” he added.

Drill will remain at the heart of WO Snoddon’s life, however – he leaves the Navy to take up the post of Head of Ceremonial and Senior Staff Instructor for the Combined Cadet Force at the Royal Hospital School, Holbrook.

But even John’s outstanding service pales with the time in uniform of Lt Cdr Robinson – known by some of the youngsters passing through the operations room simulators at Dryad as ‘Granddad’.

For the last 17 years of a career spanning five decades, the officer has been an ever-present at the maritime warfare training centre, providing command team and full team training to ops room operators from young OMs to principal warfare officers.

“I have been lucky enough to spend 50 years doing what I most enjoy, but now that the young OMs have taken to calling me Granddad and asking me to tell them what Nelson was really like, then it is probably time to move on and devote more time to my personal and family life,” said Lt Cdr Robinson.