A very warm welcome!
“Sharkey” Ward, the author of “Sea Harrier over the Falklands” (which has now been dubbed a Military Classic by its publisher, Pen and Sword), and “Her Majesty’s Top Gun and the Decline of the Royal Navy”, is a Top Gun in his own right. He has now co-authored a third book with Dr Anthony Wells, the much-respected Naval Intelligence Guru: “How Strategic Air Power Has Changed the World Order”.
This trilogy of books charts the unwarranted neglect by the UK government of the Royal Navy and its global power projection capability, which for decades has depended upon aircraft carrier battle groups and the embarked fixed wing squadrons of the Fleet Air Arm. Verbal support for the U.K.’s Strategic Maritime Policy has not been translated into adequate funding for the same by the Ministry of Defence.
This neglect has been fashioned by unjustified, false claims by the Royal Air Force concerning the global reach of land-based tactical fighter aircraft for air defence of the fleet beyond the NATO area, e.g. the Falklands air war. These claims have never been demonstrated/come to fruition but have resulted in exorbitant investment in short range, land-based tactical air power that is incapable of policing and defending the global trade routes upon which the UK depends for its prosperity and security.
The ongoing severe disruption to international trade through the Red Sea by Iran-funded Houthi militants/terrorists is testament to the fact that RAF Typhoons are unable to provide 24/7 air defence of military and merchant shipping transiting this choke point. Supported by air-to-air refuelling from Akrotiri, Cyprus, a handful have managed to reach Yemen and deliver a small handful of bombs against undefended targets, but this is hardly a substantial cost-effective return for the £100 billion Typhoon program. Clearly, that money should have been invested in the Fleet in line with declared Strategic Maritime Policy.
Amidst the ongoing chaos within the Ministry of Defence during this tense period of global instability, our Royal Naval top brass continue to assure the public that all is well with the Fleet despite concrete evidence to the contrary. Are they being gagged by the Government or are they incompetent when it comes to fighting the naval cause?
Sharkey does not suffer fools gladly and has never been afraid to say it as it is. This has allowed him to become a respected commentator on global maritime defence issues and you can access his views here, Sharkey’s Insights . (Subscribe free to receive regular newsletters.)
During his military career, his directness and integrity has placed him in hot water (or in the ‘poo’ as he likes to call it) with his masters on many occasions and these are related in full detail in each of his books. But the luck-of-the-Irish ….”
Between them, the three books provide the reader with a “hands-on” blow-by-blow account of a remarkable albeit relatively short military flying career. They take you into the cockpits of the F-4 Phantom and the Sea Harrier all weather fighters operating from the decks of aircraft carriers in peace and war by day and night – oftentimes in appalling weather conditions. Each is full of factual, fast moving and often humorous stories that reflect the team spirit and dedication of the Fleet Air Arm and relate, with balance and honesty, many achievements as well as many self-inflicted setbacks. What more would you expect from a true war fighter?
The author’s second and third books, “Her Majesty’s Top Gun” and “How Strategic Airpower Changed the World Order” provide a unique assessment of the causes of the Decline of the Royal Navy over the past five decades – which has adversely influenced the ability of Britain to defend its Strategic Maritime Interests.
Do join the author in these fast-moving real-life adventure stories which often-times may appear “stranger than fiction”.
About the Author
Royal Navy Top Gun and Air Warfare Instructor, Sharkey was Senior Pilot of 892 Phantom Squadron in the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal during the Cold War. He introduced the Sea Harrier Fighter Aircraft to Naval Service, Commanding the Intensive Flying Trials Squadron 700A; 899 H.Q. Squadron; then 801 Squadron in HMS Invincible in the Falklands. Senior Sea Harrier advisor to the Command on all aspects of the fast jet air war, he flew over sixty war missions by day and night, achieved three air-to-air kills (& one damaged) and was involved in/witnessed eight further kills. During the war he was awarded the Air Force Cross for Services to Harrier Aviation and then decorated with the Distinguished Service Cross for gallantry. Freeman of the City of London, Member of the Royal Aeronautical Society and 1st place at Greenwich Staff College, he then served in the Ministry of Defence as Air Warfare and Air Weapons Adviser to the Naval Staff and the First Sea Lord before voluntarily retiring.
Her Majesty's Top Gun
Listen to a sample of the book:
And the Decline of the royal navy
This book relates the part played by Royal Navy Top Guns in defence of UK’s global National Interests since World War II. It is an intimate account of the author’s “technicolour” journey to Top Gun status, the fighter pilot élite of Britain’s armed forces, and provides insight into the real world behind the blockbuster movie.
Sea Harrier over the Falklands
Listen to a sample of the book:
The controversial account of what really happened in the south Atlantic skies
Sharkey Ward commanded 801 Naval Air Squadron, HMS Invincible, was senior Sea Harrier adviser to the Command, flew over sixty missions and was awarded DSC. Yet had he followed all his instructions to the letter, Britain might well have lost the Falklands War.
His dramatic first-hand story of the air war in the South Atlantic is also an extraordinary, outspoken account of inter-Service rivalries, bureaucratic interference, and dangerous ignorance of the realities of air combat among many senior commanders. As Sharkey Ward reveals, the 801 pilots were fighting not just the enemy, exhaustion, and the hostile weather, but also the prejudice and ignorance of their own side.