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Post by davidd on Jul 30, 2012 18:14:46 GMT 12
When it came to AB, I think the "Bodied" part was implied and understood, or have I got this all wrong? Certainly an Ordinary Seaman was abbreviated to "OS" with nothing else implied.
David D
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Post by davidd on Aug 1, 2012 0:10:03 GMT 12
In my copy of AP 1081 (RAF Pocket Book, 1937 edition) in Chapter VII (Section 34, Liaison with the Army and Navy) is included a table of relative ranks. Able Seaman and Ordinary Seaman are equated with the Air Forces LAC, AC1, AC2, and the Army's Trooper, Gunner, Sapper, Signalman, Driver, Guardsman, Rifleman, Fusilier and Private. However no abbreviations are included in this table, but it is clear that the term "Able Seaman" was the current correct title at this date. However my bet would be that, had abbreviations been included, then "AB" would have appeared beside Able Seaman.
David D
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Post by Dave Homewood on Aug 1, 2012 9:41:36 GMT 12
Thanks David and everyone else.
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Post by phil82 on Aug 1, 2012 10:19:05 GMT 12
In the "Believe it or not" category, and despite an air force career of twenty-five years,I was a Sea Cadet for three! I joined the RAF because the Navy recruiters were on a 'make and mend' [I.E. at the pub!] and the office was closed, it was raining, I was wet, and the RAF Office next door was open and I was invited in with "Fancy a cuppa son?" by a kindly Flt Sgt, and the rest as they say is history.Since a very early age I was soaked in Navy folk lore and once knew a whole heap of useless information on things Naval.
I know for example, that some of the best one-liners in history come from Royal Naval tradition, and it precedes the air force by a few hundred years which in turn explains why in the battle of service repartee the Navy will always win! To mention just one example:"The Navy has traditions, the RAF merely has habits".
Imagine, if you will, a wide-eyed messenger coming to warn Drake , gesticulating wildly at the Spanish fleet. Drake, with one hand on hip and the other holding a bowling ball, gazes nonchalantly out at the approaching sails from the clifftop bowling green and uttered a sentence with lots of "f's in it. It reads something like this: "Forfooth, methinkf we can fink yon Fpaniardf and ftill finifth our bowlf".
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Post by phil on Aug 10, 2012 8:14:14 GMT 12
I know for example, that some of the best one-liners in history come from Royal Naval tradition, and it precedes the air force by a few hundred years which in turn explains why in the battle of service repartee the Navy will always win! To mention just one example:"The Navy has traditions, the RAF merely has habits". Except RNZN has only existed since 1941. |
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Post by phil82 on Aug 10, 2012 9:52:22 GMT 12
I know for example, that some of the best one-liners in history come from Royal Naval tradition, and it precedes the air force by a few hundred years which in turn explains why in the battle of service repartee the Navy will always win! To mention just one example:"The Navy has traditions, the RAF merely has habits". Except RNZN has only existed since 1941. True, but all RNZN antecedents come from the RN. |
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Post by ngatimozart on Aug 10, 2012 14:57:49 GMT 12
Except RNZN has only existed since 1941. True, but all RNZN antecedents come from the RN. Yes and we're very proud of the history and traditions. |
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scratch
Leading Aircraftman
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Post by scratch on Aug 24, 2012 22:42:59 GMT 12
As an ex member of the Andrew, I can confirm that at the time Dave was referring to (1945), AB Ogilvy would have been Able Seaman Ogilvy. AB was the rank abbreviation for Able Seaman. As Davidd says, the 'Bodied' bit was implied, and not a part of the formal title. AB would only have been used as an abbreviation for Seaman branch ratings. Circa 1930 the path for Seaman ratings was: Boy Seaman Ordinary Seaman Able Seaman Leading Seaman Petty Officer Chief Petty Officer At AB rank, the rating would have specialised into gunnery, torpedo, submarine detection or physical trainer. Other Branches had different paths and titles. Equivalence between the Services was not very different to today. See www.teara.govt.nz/files/1_468_Defence_ArmedForcesEquivalentRanks_0.pdf for the position as published in 1966. The modern warrant officer rank in the RNZN has only existed from around 1970. |
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Post by Dave Homewood on Aug 26, 2012 12:43:48 GMT 12
Welcome Scratch, thanks for that.
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