Navy Commander Under Investigation After 'Throwing Welcome Home BBQ' During Lockdown

A Royal Navy Commander has been placed on leave after his team were filmed taking part in a barbecue while the UK was in lockdown.

The nuclear submarine commander is alleged to have held a 'welcome home' party for his crew after they spent two months at sea.

HMS Trenchant had been on patrol before returning to Devonport for repairs, with the crew required to stay with the submarine in isolation while the repairs were made. It's reported that the commander organised the impromptu party as a 'morale booster' for the crew.

A 'Navy insider' told the Daily Mail, the commander thought it would 'help cheer his men up after a long time at sea' adding that it was his way of allowing the crew to 'blow off steam' following time working 'where they had been self-isolating anyway'.

The source went on to say the decision to throw the shindig was seen by 'some people higher in command' as a 'lapse of judgement' given the fact that the rest of the country was in lockdown.

Footage filmed during the 'party' shows the crew enjoying a barbecue while others are dancing and laughing. An unnamed source told the BBC some of the team were drinking booze.

The clips were first shared on blog Forces Compare but has since spread across social media and WhatsApp.

The commander is now under 'administrative investigation' and could be dismissed from his role. He has been accused of ignoring instructions given by his superiors not to throw the social event when the boat arrived at the Plymouth dockyard.

Forces Compare

A former naval officer told The Times: "This really comes down to the nature of the order to not do it. If it was 'you will not' then that's one thing. If it was more of a 'do you think this is a good idea?' then that's another.

"But he's been in a cramped submarine, just off patrol and they can't go home. I know where most sympathy is going to lie."

Someone else told the newspaper the event was a 'rave in the dockyard'.

A Royal Navy spokesperson told LADbible: "An investigation is underway. It would be inappropriate to comment further."

Topics: uk news

Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at LADbible who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats. You can contact Claire at [email protected]

@ClaireReid19