Commander-in-Chief Fleet

The Commander-in-Chief Fleet (CINCFLEET) was the admiral responsible for the operation, resourcing and training of the ships, submarines and aircraft, and personnel, of the British Royal Navy until April 2012. CINC was subordinate to the First Sea Lord, the professional head of the Naval Service. In April 2012, the role was re-designated Fleet Commander and Deputy Chief of Naval Staff.

History of the role

Historically, the Royal Navy was usually split into a large number of commands, each with a Commander-in-Chief (e.g. Commander-in-Chief, Plymouth, Commander-in-Chief Mediterranean Fleet, etc.).

In 1971, with the withdrawal of British forces from East of Suez, the Far East and Western fleets of the Royal Navy were unified under a single Commander-in-Chief Fleet,[1] initially based at HMS Warrior, a land base at Northwood in Middlesex and, from 2004, based at HMS Excellent at Portsmouth.[2] Thereafter there were just two Commanders-in-Chief, the various fleet commands being unified under Commander-in-Chief Fleet and the various home commands being unified under Commander-in-Chief Naval Home Command ("CINCNAVHOME").

In April 2012, the role was re-designated Fleet Commander and Deputy Chief of Naval Staff[3] in the wake of the Levene report.[4]

Responsibilities

Structure of Navy Command

Full command of the Fleet and responsibility for the Fleet element of military operational capability including the Royal Marines and the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, was delegated to Commander-in-Chief Fleet,[5] with his Command Headquarters in the Navy Command Headquarters Building at HMS Excellent in Portsmouth[5] and his Operational Headquarters at Northwood, in the London Borough of Hillingdon, co-located with the Permanent Joint Headquarters.[5]

CINCFLEET was supported by:[5]

Collectively, COMUKMARFOR, COMUKAMPHIBFOR, Commander UK Task Group (COMUKTG) and 3 Commando Brigade, Royal Marines comprised the "Fleet Battle Staff".[10]

NATO commitment

The post also came with various NATO appointments including that of Commander in Chief Channel (CINCHAN) (until 1994).[11] On 1 July 1994, the Channel Command was disestablished: however most of its subordinate commands remained in existence although reshuffled: most of the headquarters were absorbed within Allied Command Europe particularly as part of the new Allied Forces Northwestern Europe.[12]

List of Commanders-in-Chief Fleet

Commanders-in-Chief have included:[13]

List of Deputy Commanders

Deputy Commanders have included:[13]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Sea Your History
  2. ↑ Plymouth Maritime Headquarters (Mount Wise)
  3. ↑ Navy Board Royal Navy
  4. ↑ "An independent report into the structure and management of the Ministry of Defence" (PDF).
  5. 1 2 3 4 Navy Command Headquarters Royal Navy Archived May 29, 2010, at the Wayback Machine.
  6. ↑ Fleet Battle Staff Headquarters Archived February 13, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
  7. ↑ Commander UK Maritime Force Archived February 11, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
  8. ↑ Cougar Archived December 11, 2010, at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ↑ New Admiral Visits Fleet Flagship Archived June 12, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
  10. ↑ Commander UK Amphibious Force
  11. ↑ NATO Handbook07, uploaded March 25, 1993
  12. ↑ Young, Thomas-Durrell (1 June 1997). "Command in NATO After the Cold War: Alliance, National, and Multinational Considerations". U.S. Army Strategic Studies Institute. p. 11. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  13. 1 2 3 Royal Navy Senior Appointments Archived March 15, 2012, at the Wayback Machine.
  14. ↑ "Admiral Sir Trevor Soar takes up Navy fleet position". Portsmouth News. 2009-06-11. Retrieved 2009-06-12.
  15. ↑ "Admiral George Zambellas takes up role as CinC Fleet". British Forces News. 2012-01-06. Retrieved 2012-01-11.
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