Priority:Very High To: Officer Corps of the BAF From: Admiral Sir Jacob McIntire KBE Location: HMS Elephant, New London
Ladies and Gentlemen
I address you today in the light of Captain Harold Sommervilles retirement from the position of Fleet Captain. He will serve her Majesties Armed Forces as a Captain again.
In his stead I have been appointed the title of Second Sea Lord to coordinate and develop on the Armed Forces strategic aims.
I take great pride in being a member of a force as great as ours. Faced with seemingly endless war and ruthless terror we have always prevailed. Yet, while the fight for the continued existence of our people has been won, we still face a multitude of challenges.
Today I will try give you an idea of how I intend to address them.
To begin with there will be a number of changes in the command structure. Overall command of the Oversector South, up until now my position, will be transferred to Commodore Martin Beck. Instead of a replacement for Commodore Beck in the role of subcommander I will in time appoint a special commander whose sole responsibility will be ensuring that our operations in and around the Dublin system are successful. Until a suitable candidate is found I will assume this role.
In the Oversector North Commodore John Khatri will be relieved of command. In his stead I will assume overall command of this Oversector. Admiral Paul McKinley will stay as subcommander and support me in this capacity.
For our strategic goals in each theatre I do not have a lot of news for you. All of us are aware that our resources are still stretched thin and that rebuilding our military might is a process that will take more time.
Instead of large new commitments I will focus my attention on using our strengths efficiently and the greatest of these are you, the officers of the Armed Forces. No other military in the sector has men and women with so many years of experience fighting not only conventional battles and insurrections but also asymmetrical wars against numerically superior enemies.
I will not discuss the details of what I envision for every theatre here. These will be discussed in a more appropriate place and with the people they concern.
But let me ask all of you to play out your strengths. Be creative in your approach and trust the men and women under your command with making decisions of their own. If we want to not only defend our house but also its interests we will have to leverage power without brute force. I believe have everything we need to achieve this.
I wish all of you a steady hand in fulfilling your duties and the best of luck in the cases where nothing else will do.