Harry's Idea of Lying Low

You have to feel sorry for the head of the army Gen Sir Richard Dannatt. Prince Harry is in the Blues and Royals, one of the top cavalry regiments in the British Army. The prince, third in line to the throne, is determined to be a soldier and “do his job”. But Iraq is just too dangerous for him. His departure is flagged up by the Defence Secretary in the House of Commons and duly reported with gusto by the UK media. So the insurgents know he is coming and get ready to bomb his vehicle and kidnap him. Eventually, Dannatt accepts that with the media on Harry’s tail night and day, it is impossible to slip him into Iraq quietly. The prince, anxious for a bit of derring-do, is “extremely disappointed” and threatens to leave the army. So Dannatt hatches a cunning plan to keep him in.

Harry is to be sent to the British Army’s training area at Suffield, a remote part of Alberta in Canada. From there he can be smuggled into Afghanistan on the quiet. Although the Taliban are clearly just as nasty as Iraq’s insurgents, there are half a dozen different British bases  there and he could be flown straight into the massive allied air base at Kandahar and then on to any other British base without anyone in the media finding out.

All he has to do is lie low in Canada for a while and Bob’s your uncle, he’s in action in Afghanistan. The MoD feeds a line to a newspaper that he is in Canada training for the duration and everyone forgets about him. Once the media have moved on to another story, the army can fly him straight to Afghanistan from Canada. Well that was the theory anyway.

Unfortunately, the newspaper they fed the line to was the News of the World, which very smartly sent a reporter and photographer off to Canada. Reliable as ever, Harry proves he’s more than qualified to be a cavalry officer by getting smashed in a local bar, asking one of the local lovelies if she is wearing any knickers and trying to persuade her to remove her bikini top, all in front of a News of the World photographer. Er so much for lying low then Harry. Cue apoplectic fit from Dannatt who probably now feels that if Harry chooses to leave because he isn’t allowed to “do his job” it might be a very good thing all round.

Comments

[Chuck Unsworth]

Well, as I've commented before 'What, simply, does this officer Prince bring to this particular party?'

It's clear that he has mastered the arts of drinking in saloons and persuading young women to remove clothing. Is this a particularly necessary range of skills to be deployed in the wilds of Afghanistan and/or Iraq? It seems clear that this young man does not have very much in the way of foresight at all.

Drinking and whoring are soldier's pastimes (not exclusively, one might add). They always have been. But they are not obligatory. Indeed, some soldiers seem to learn when not to be seen indulging themselves. So it's probably best that Harry Wales learns that basic lesson before taking on the much greater responsibility for his soldier's lives in a theatre of war.

If I were Dannatt I would not have the slightest hesitation in refusing to post Wales. If the royal prince then decided to leave of his own volition - so be it. After all, what loss to the Army?

[Dare]

Seems like young Wales must be due an 'interview - with no coffee' with the Adjutant.

[The 3rd column]

I think sending Harry to Afghanistan is the more judcious thing to do. Woud've been a disastrous move to send him to Iraq.

As to his bar hopping in Calgary, small deal!

Had dinner with a good friend who happens to be senior level military at MoD Plans last week who reckoned that Harry should be sent to Iraq whatever the cost. Rather suprising postion on the matter but not the first one I know to voice similar opinion; on the whole, I'm finding that our senior officers are being quite gung-ho on this thing.

[frog]

The Adjudant should have an interview too. Why was the young fool out of barracks without a heavyweight 'minder' ?

But maybe this was just the Army's subtle way of encouraging him gently towards the exit ...

[Robert Burnett]

Isn't this royal the same one who wore a Nazi uniform with swatiska in public? Notwithstanding, Prince Harry's puerile mentality and shameful behavior qualified him to wear the British uniform. Now you have your answer as to why the UK got defeated in Basra and its military forced to bug out.