The Captain
Grace Fanning
“We are watching for the unusual. ‘Why is that there? Why does that look wrong? Your man is uncomfortable, what’s going on?’ We check everything, because it is easy to get away with stuff out there, we need to be watching.”
Lieutenant Commander of the LE Roisín Grace Fannining . \ Philip Doyle
Originally from Ballon, Co Carlow and now living in Kilworth village with her wife and two kids, Grace Fanning was captain of the LÉ Róisin until earlier this month. She now prepares for two years on shore (in rotation).
“My parents are dairy farmers. I have six brothers and one sister so I was sent off to the navy to do something different,” she laughs.
Early days
There are several different training options available to you when you join the navy: you could become an operations officer, engineering officer or electrical officer. Grace chose to pursue a career as an operations officer.
Lieutenant Commander of the LE Roisín Grace Fannining. \ Philip Doyle
“I wanted to be captain of a ship,” she explains. “After finishing my two years as a cadet, I was commissioned an officer in 2003 and went to college to study Earth and Ocean Science in NUI Galway. After three years I came back and did my naval watch keeping. It’s more complicated than this, but that’s basically my ship driver’s licence. I then went back and did my fourth year in college.”
Lieutenant Commander of the LE Roisín Grace Fannining onboard the LE Roisín. \ Philip Doyle
A stint as navigation officer on the LÉ Rósín followed. Then Grace went ashore for two years working in a number of different roles (including administration officer in the base hospital, working in the college, at the gym and with the military police).
Drugs
Drug interdiction (preventing illicit drugs from reaching their destination) is an important element of the work of the navy. Over the years, this has become trickier as traffickers learn different tactics.
“[Traffickers are] a step ahead,” she says. “Drones can’t do what we do; you need to be down there. It’s human interpretation. Why did [this person] stop? Why did he turn suddenly? We watch the pattern of life out here [on the water].”
Why join?
During her naval career, Grace has progressed from cadet and through the ranks of ensign, sub-lieutenant, lieutenant and – now – lieutenant-commander. She says that while the work is difficult, it is also extremely rewarding. “We want to make people aware that there are jobs and progression, because we’re having a really hard time getting people in.”
At the time of our interview, she was not long back from maternity leave. She decided to come back to work after six months as she knew the work awaiting her was going to be really interesting.
“It was horrendous leaving [my children], but even if I could reverse back, I would still join the navy,” she says.
“We are an inward-looking island.”
Andrew Bugler is a lieutenant - the ship’s XO (executive officer) – and hails from Clare (“a small place called Ogonnelloe, near Killaloe”).
Growing up, his family had a barge on the Shannon and Andrew guesses that is where the nautical interest came from.
Lt. Andrew Bugler aboard the LE Roisín with the navy. \ Philip Doyle
“I did a Nautical Science degree in the National Maritime College (NMCI), which is a branch of CIT (now MTU),” he explains. “If you want to go to the merchant navy, that’s how you qualify in Ireland – everyone in the same class; defence forces and civilians.”
Once qualified, Andrew joined the LÉ Ciara as gunnery and navigations officer before completing his two onshore years – working, again, in navigation – within the fisheries monitoring centre located on base. He then joined the LÉ Niamh in June 2013 as gunnery officer.
Andrew was in the Mediterranean from July to October 2016 on the LÉ Niamh. Such was the migration of people that the Italians needed support.
Andrew explains: “There was a bilateral agreement between the Irish and Italian governments. We were joined up with a task group of Italian ships with an Italian admiral directing us.
“The LÉ Eithne was the first ship to deploy to the Mediterranean and we (LÉ Niamh) were second. In the three months we were down there we rescued over 4,000 people.
Lt. Andrew Bugler travelled to the Mediterranean in 2016, a mission which saved the lives of 4000 people. \ Philip Doyle
“A lot of them paid to get to Europe in basically rubber tubes with plywood hulls with a small outboard engine.
“They’d be given a satellite phone and a GPS and told, ‘follow that GPS until you hear a bing, then ring this number’, which would be the coastguard in Italy’.”
As gunnery officer (on that mission) he was also the search and rescue officer.
“There were two of us at that role. When I was on the ship [gunnery], I would be in charge of the ship protection but when you’re in the ribs [search and rescue], that’s getting the migrants on to the ship.”
Visibly moved by the memory, Andrew recounts: “When you’re bringing the people on board and everything is going well, it’s not too bad. It’s when you’re dealing with bodies, that’s the tough side of it.”
Chain of command
“As XO, I’m in charge of the running of the ship, basically,” he says. “We have eight able seamen on board. Over them are three leading seamen, reporting into one PO seaman, who reports into the XO.
“The easiest way of describing it is, I look in and down to the ship [while] the captain looks up and outwards. So the captain comes up with a plan and then I make it happen.”
Why join?
“There is negative talk [about the navy], but there’s lots of perks. Particularly, with the training and qualifications. You see parts of the country that no one else sees – every inch of coastline. When you’re ashore, you get a good bit of time off.”
The trainee
Paddy McGarvey
“Even after independence, the British held the three Treaty ports (until 1938), so Irish people didn’t identify that much as a strong seafaring nation the way other countries did.”
Paddy McGarvey grew up on a small farm in Donegal. His first military experience was in the army reserves, which he joined while studying science in college.
After college, he worked for a biotech company before applying to the navy, where he is currently a trainee engineer.
Paddy completed his full cadetship (along with the other deck officers) for his first 21 months, which he tells me consisted of “running around and screaming and shouting and cleaning – the sort of stuff you see on TV”.
As he is still in training, he is working as an understudy for the ship’s main engineer.
This role keeps the ship moving and habitable – looking after all equipment on board, engines, generators and also the auxiliary machinery, plumbing, fresh water and all the firefighting.
“We do all our own firefighting, because there is no fire brigade out here – and there’s a lot of fire hazards,” Paddy explains.
Why join?
“I like the lifestyle,” he says. “It offers you the sort of experiences you won’t get anywhere else. A ship is a cool office rather than a cubicle somewhere. It’s a bit more adventurous to me.”
Tommy Healy
“When I came home from England in 2015, I started renting a farm separate to my father’s. It’s all go. When some lads were on their two weeks annual leave, I was flat-out farming. But I don’t mind.”
At the time of this interview, Tommy Healy had just bought 20 more ewes – but farming is not the main job. Despite having no military background, he joined the navy in April, 2019 and started recruit training.
“I was 26,” he says. “I was too old to join the army, but somebody told me, ‘You can join the navy at 26,’ so I said, ‘I’ll try it.’ And I’m delighted I did.”
Recruit training took 22 weeks, then Tommy had an additional 12 weeks of training once he joined his branch as a seaman.
Able Seaman Tommy Healy. \ Philip Doyle
There are four branches enlisted men can join, he explains: “Seamen, mecs, com-ops and the supplies. Com-ops would be radios, radars, communication with other vessels. Then the Mecs are in the engine room and the supplies are the logistical side. The seamen are everything else: all the rope work, the guns, the boats, the maintenance, the upkeep of the ship.”
Why join?
“Camaraderie,” he says. “Sometimes it can be hard to explain that to civvies. It wouldn’t be like a normal work friendship; it’s unique. Five of my recruit class came out to this ship at the same time.”
After these interviews were conducted, the Women of Honour revelations (an RTÉ documentary in which several female former members of the Armed Forces shared their experiences of abuse) were aired.
This has obviously led to more negativity directed toward the Armed Forces, which must be tackled if they are to increase new recruits.
We asked the Department of Defence for a comment: “The judge-led Independent Review Group, established by Minister for Defence and Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney on 25 January last following Government approval, is examining the systems, policies and procedures in place for dealing with dignity and equality issues, as well as unacceptable behaviour in the Defence Forces. “In line with the Terms of Reference for the Review, a final report is expected to be submitted to the minister before the end of the year. This final report will be brought to Government, and thereafter will be published.”
The Women of Honour group has said it believes the Department’s review is not fit for purpose. The group has called on the Taoiseach to take responsibility for the issue and to move to a statutory process.
Read more
Women only groups not for you? Great! but check your privilege before judging
'Virtually' every form of food technology covered in CAFRE
The Captain
Grace Fanning
“We are watching for the unusual. ‘Why is that there? Why does that look wrong? Your man is uncomfortable, what’s going on?’ We check everything, because it is easy to get away with stuff out there, we need to be watching.”
Lieutenant Commander of the LE Roisín Grace Fannining . \ Philip Doyle
Originally from Ballon, Co Carlow and now living in Kilworth village with her wife and two kids, Grace Fanning was captain of the LÉ Róisin until earlier this month. She now prepares for two years on shore (in rotation).
“My parents are dairy farmers. I have six brothers and one sister so I was sent off to the navy to do something different,” she laughs.
Early days
There are several different training options available to you when you join the navy: you could become an operations officer, engineering officer or electrical officer. Grace chose to pursue a career as an operations officer.
Lieutenant Commander of the LE Roisín Grace Fannining. \ Philip Doyle
“I wanted to be captain of a ship,” she explains. “After finishing my two years as a cadet, I was commissioned an officer in 2003 and went to college to study Earth and Ocean Science in NUI Galway. After three years I came back and did my naval watch keeping. It’s more complicated than this, but that’s basically my ship driver’s licence. I then went back and did my fourth year in college.”
Lieutenant Commander of the LE Roisín Grace Fannining onboard the LE Roisín. \ Philip Doyle
A stint as navigation officer on the LÉ Rósín followed. Then Grace went ashore for two years working in a number of different roles (including administration officer in the base hospital, working in the college, at the gym and with the military police).
Drugs
Drug interdiction (preventing illicit drugs from reaching their destination) is an important element of the work of the navy. Over the years, this has become trickier as traffickers learn different tactics.
“[Traffickers are] a step ahead,” she says. “Drones can’t do what we do; you need to be down there. It’s human interpretation. Why did [this person] stop? Why did he turn suddenly? We watch the pattern of life out here [on the water].”
Why join?
During her naval career, Grace has progressed from cadet and through the ranks of ensign, sub-lieutenant, lieutenant and – now – lieutenant-commander. She says that while the work is difficult, it is also extremely rewarding. “We want to make people aware that there are jobs and progression, because we’re having a really hard time getting people in.”
At the time of our interview, she was not long back from maternity leave. She decided to come back to work after six months as she knew the work awaiting her was going to be really interesting.
“It was horrendous leaving [my children], but even if I could reverse back, I would still join the navy,” she says.
“We are an inward-looking island.”
Andrew Bugler is a lieutenant - the ship’s XO (executive officer) – and hails from Clare (“a small place called Ogonnelloe, near Killaloe”).
Growing up, his family had a barge on the Shannon and Andrew guesses that is where the nautical interest came from.
Lt. Andrew Bugler aboard the LE Roisín with the navy. \ Philip Doyle
“I did a Nautical Science degree in the National Maritime College (NMCI), which is a branch of CIT (now MTU),” he explains. “If you want to go to the merchant navy, that’s how you qualify in Ireland – everyone in the same class; defence forces and civilians.”
Once qualified, Andrew joined the LÉ Ciara as gunnery and navigations officer before completing his two onshore years – working, again, in navigation – within the fisheries monitoring centre located on base. He then joined the LÉ Niamh in June 2013 as gunnery officer.
Andrew was in the Mediterranean from July to October 2016 on the LÉ Niamh. Such was the migration of people that the Italians needed support.
Andrew explains: “There was a bilateral agreement between the Irish and Italian governments. We were joined up with a task group of Italian ships with an Italian admiral directing us.
“The LÉ Eithne was the first ship to deploy to the Mediterranean and we (LÉ Niamh) were second. In the three months we were down there we rescued over 4,000 people.
Lt. Andrew Bugler travelled to the Mediterranean in 2016, a mission which saved the lives of 4000 people. \ Philip Doyle
“A lot of them paid to get to Europe in basically rubber tubes with plywood hulls with a small outboard engine.
“They’d be given a satellite phone and a GPS and told, ‘follow that GPS until you hear a bing, then ring this number’, which would be the coastguard in Italy’.”
As gunnery officer (on that mission) he was also the search and rescue officer.
“There were two of us at that role. When I was on the ship [gunnery], I would be in charge of the ship protection but when you’re in the ribs [search and rescue], that’s getting the migrants on to the ship.”
Visibly moved by the memory, Andrew recounts: “When you’re bringing the people on board and everything is going well, it’s not too bad. It’s when you’re dealing with bodies, that’s the tough side of it.”
Chain of command
“As XO, I’m in charge of the running of the ship, basically,” he says. “We have eight able seamen on board. Over them are three leading seamen, reporting into one PO seaman, who reports into the XO.
“The easiest way of describing it is, I look in and down to the ship [while] the captain looks up and outwards. So the captain comes up with a plan and then I make it happen.”
Why join?
“There is negative talk [about the navy], but there’s lots of perks. Particularly, with the training and qualifications. You see parts of the country that no one else sees – every inch of coastline. When you’re ashore, you get a good bit of time off.”
The trainee
Paddy McGarvey
“Even after independence, the British held the three Treaty ports (until 1938), so Irish people didn’t identify that much as a strong seafaring nation the way other countries did.”
Paddy McGarvey grew up on a small farm in Donegal. His first military experience was in the army reserves, which he joined while studying science in college.
After college, he worked for a biotech company before applying to the navy, where he is currently a trainee engineer.
Paddy completed his full cadetship (along with the other deck officers) for his first 21 months, which he tells me consisted of “running around and screaming and shouting and cleaning – the sort of stuff you see on TV”.
As he is still in training, he is working as an understudy for the ship’s main engineer.
This role keeps the ship moving and habitable – looking after all equipment on board, engines, generators and also the auxiliary machinery, plumbing, fresh water and all the firefighting.
“We do all our own firefighting, because there is no fire brigade out here – and there’s a lot of fire hazards,” Paddy explains.
Why join?
“I like the lifestyle,” he says. “It offers you the sort of experiences you won’t get anywhere else. A ship is a cool office rather than a cubicle somewhere. It’s a bit more adventurous to me.”
Tommy Healy
“When I came home from England in 2015, I started renting a farm separate to my father’s. It’s all go. When some lads were on their two weeks annual leave, I was flat-out farming. But I don’t mind.”
At the time of this interview, Tommy Healy had just bought 20 more ewes – but farming is not the main job. Despite having no military background, he joined the navy in April, 2019 and started recruit training.
“I was 26,” he says. “I was too old to join the army, but somebody told me, ‘You can join the navy at 26,’ so I said, ‘I’ll try it.’ And I’m delighted I did.”
Recruit training took 22 weeks, then Tommy had an additional 12 weeks of training once he joined his branch as a seaman.
Able Seaman Tommy Healy. \ Philip Doyle
There are four branches enlisted men can join, he explains: “Seamen, mecs, com-ops and the supplies. Com-ops would be radios, radars, communication with other vessels. Then the Mecs are in the engine room and the supplies are the logistical side. The seamen are everything else: all the rope work, the guns, the boats, the maintenance, the upkeep of the ship.”
Why join?
“Camaraderie,” he says. “Sometimes it can be hard to explain that to civvies. It wouldn’t be like a normal work friendship; it’s unique. Five of my recruit class came out to this ship at the same time.”
After these interviews were conducted, the Women of Honour revelations (an RTÉ documentary in which several female former members of the Armed Forces shared their experiences of abuse) were aired.
This has obviously led to more negativity directed toward the Armed Forces, which must be tackled if they are to increase new recruits.
We asked the Department of Defence for a comment: “The judge-led Independent Review Group, established by Minister for Defence and Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney on 25 January last following Government approval, is examining the systems, policies and procedures in place for dealing with dignity and equality issues, as well as unacceptable behaviour in the Defence Forces. “In line with the Terms of Reference for the Review, a final report is expected to be submitted to the minister before the end of the year. This final report will be brought to Government, and thereafter will be published.”
The Women of Honour group has said it believes the Department’s review is not fit for purpose. The group has called on the Taoiseach to take responsibility for the issue and to move to a statutory process.
Read more
Women only groups not for you? Great! but check your privilege before judging
'Virtually' every form of food technology covered in CAFRE
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