NAVY NEWS, MAY 1<W9 Options
The
Royal Tournament
• Favourite colours - the greens of the Fleet Air Arm, the blues of Portsmouth and the reds of Devonport sweat it out in a gruelling training schedule to reach their peak in the show-stopping Field Gun competition in the Royal Tournament.
Last chance MAGELLAN 315 MENTOR to see historic extravaganza MILITARY GPS RECEIVER FULLY WATERPROOF FOR NAVAL OPS
HIS YEAR'S Royal Tournament will be the last. Press speculation that 1999 will see the end of an event that began almost 120 years ago has been confirmed by a Joint Service Defence Council Instruction.
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The DCI, issued by the Deputy Director of Personal Services (Army), also announces that this year's grand finale for the event will not, as in previous shows, be led by one Service, but will be equally tri-Service throughout. This year would have been the Navy's turn to take the lead under the normal rota system. The end of the Royal Tournament will also see the demise of its most enduring display - the Field Gun runs in which crews of RN ratings from Portsmouth, Devonport and Fleet Air Arm commands compete for coveted awards. Roots of the Royal Tournament can be traced to 1880 when the Army's Grand Military Tournament and Assault at Arms opened at the Agricultural Hall, Islington. The first true display - a musical ride by the Life Guards - was introduced into the 1882 event, and two years later Queen Victoria gave permission for the Royal prefix to be added to the show's title. The Royal Navy first took part in 1887, though it was eight more years before the event was retitled the Royal Naval and Military Tournament, moving from Islington to Olympia in the following year. The first Field Gun run - a competitive reenactment of the Navy's overland movement of guns in the Boer War - made its tournament
WORLD WIDE GRIDS AND DATUMS
debut in 1907. The speed with which the one-ton guns and their carriages are dismantled, manoeuvred over a testing obstacle course, reassembled and fired has thrilled audiences for most of this century. What makes the daily feat all the more remarkable is that the three, 18-man volunteer crews - from all branches of the Service - are given less than three months to train. After a break during World War 1, the tournament reappeared in 1919 and included the newly created RAF. The following year it adopted its present title. Again, war forced the cancellation of the annual event from 1940 until 1947 - when it was revived to increased public interest, the greater demand for tickets resulting in its relocation to the present venue at Earls Court. This year's final show will run from July 20 to August 2, with two daily performances at 2.004.45 and 7.30-10.15. There will be no performances on Sunday evenings and Monday afternoons. As well as the Field Gun Run, Naval contributions will include a dramatic Royal Marines display involving Rigid Raiders, and RN simulators among the static, interactive stands. • Ticket prices range from £6 to £20, with discounts for children, senior citizens and members of the Armed Forces. They can be booked through The Royal Tournament Box Office, Earls Court Exhibition Centre, Warwick Road, London SW5 9TA, tel. 0171 244 0244 for the credit card hotline, Monday to Friday 9am to 6pm and Saturday 10am to 2pm.
OSGB AND MGRS COMPATIBLE P/C DOWNLOAD AND UPLOAD EVER READY CASE OPTIONAL MILS DISPLAY For more information write, fax or call:
M.S.I. Ltd, HOUSTON MILL, EAST LINTON, UK EH40 3DG Tel: 0044 (0) 1620 861734 - Fax: 0044 (0) 1620 861735
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