A senior officer was given a unique send-off when he left Faslane – a journey on a gun carriage.
That was the honour bestowed on Captain Alistair Willis recently when he left HM Naval Base Clyde after 18 months.
He has now left to take up a new post as head of the Maritime Logistic Improvement Programme at Abbeywood near Bristol.
A firm champion of HMS Neptune’s field gun crew during his tenure on the Clyde, he was thrilled when the team decided to ‘escort’ him and his wife, Sharon, off the base in such an unorthodox way.
He said: “Working at HMNB Clyde has been an absolute privilege and I move on with heavy heart after a hugely enjoyable and yet challenging time at Faslane. I’m proud to have overseen the delivery of a large refurbishment programme to service families’ accommodation in both Rhu and Helensburgh, and the start of the next phase of building for single living accommodation on the base itself.”
The new man at the helm is Captain James Hayes (pictured, right, taking over from Captain Willis), who in recent years has worked in the United States on a number of submarine projects, before returning to the UK where he was responsible for running the Trident equipment programme before attending the Royal College of Defence Studies.
The son of a tea grower and a long-term resident of Helensburgh, Capt Hayes was raised in East Africa, but joined the Royal Navy in 1982.
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