Chris Parry (Royal Navy officer)
| Chris Parry | |
|---|---|
| Allegiance | United Kingdom |
| Service/branch | Royal Navy |
| Years of service | 1972–c.2008 |
| Rank | Rear Admiral |
| Commands held |
Amphibious Task Group HMS Fearless HMS Gloucester |
| Battles/wars | Falklands War |
| Awards |
Commander of the Order of the British Empire Mentioned in Despatches |
Rear Admiral Christopher John Parry, CBE is a former Royal Navy officer who was the first Chair of the UK Government's Marine Management Organisation until 2011.
Education
Parry was educated at Royal Naval School Tal-Handaq, The Portsmouth Grammar School and Jesus College, Oxford, where he read Modern History.[1]
Naval career
He joined the Royal Navy as a seaman officer in 1972 and then became an observer in the Fleet Air Arm in 1979. He was mentioned in despatches for his actions during the Falklands War for his part in rescuing 16 SAS troopers from Fortuna Glacier in South Georgia and for the detection and disabling of the Argentinian submarine Santa Fe.[2] He commanded the air defence destroyer HMS Gloucester and the Maritime Warfare Centre.[1] He became commanding officer of HMS Fearless in January 2000.[3] As a commodore, he was Director Operational Capability in the Ministry of Defence and then Commander, Amphibious Task Group, in September 2003.[4]
Independent Schools Council
After leaving the navy, he became Chief Executive of the Independent Schools Council.[5] In June 2008, he spoke about the ideological divide between the independent and state sectors of education and the injustice and continuing inadequacies of state provision.[6] Wishing to concentrate more on his strategic, academic and military activities and studies, he left that post soon afterwards.[7]
Recent activities
Since June 2008, Parry has worked in the private sector and as a writer, broadcaster and speaker.[8] He is well known for his accurate strategic forecasting and expertise in the maritime and marine environment.[9][10][11]
On 12 June 2010, in an interview on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, he described the planning for the UK's 2006 deployment of 3,300 troops to Helmand Province in Afghanistan as flawed, relying too much on lessons from Borneo, Malaya and Northern Ireland. The subsequent BBC News article quotes him as saying that senior commanders had obdurately resisted "ditching the lessons from the past", preferring these to the "radical and progressive ideas" which were needed.[12]
Works
- Parry, Chris (2012). Down South: A Falklands War Diary. Viking. ISBN 978-0241959626.
- Parry, Chris (2014). Super Highway: Sea Power in the 21st Century. Elliott & Thompson. ISBN 978-1908739841.
References
- 1 2 "Rear Admiral Chris Parry". Compliance leadership forum. Retrieved 20 February 2015.
- ↑ The London Gazette: (Supplement) no. 48999. p. 7422. 3 June 1982. Retrieved 2009-07-26.
- ↑ "Captains commanding Royal Navy Warships" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 July 2015. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
- ↑ "Senior Royal Navy appointments" (PDF). Retrieved 20 February 2016.
- ↑ Independent Schools Council. "Independent Schools Council appoints new Chief Executive". Retrieved 2008-10-18.
- ↑ Polly Curtis. "Private school chief: some state pupils are unteachable". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
- ↑ Alexandra Frean (2008-06-12). "Chief of Independent Schools Council Chris Parry quits". London: Times Online. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
- ↑ Chris Parry (2008-11-23). "Promising new waters for al-Qa'ida?". London: The Independent. Retrieved 2008-11-24.
- ↑ Peter Almond (2006-06-11). "Beware: the new goths are coming". London: Times Online. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
- ↑ International Institute for Strategic Studies. "Rear Admiral Chris Parry CBE". Retrieved 2008-10-18.
- ↑ Jane's Conferences. "Rear Admiral Chris J. Parry CBE MA FCMI". Retrieved 2008-10-18.
- ↑ "UK's Helmand province mission was 'flawed'". BBC. 2010-06-12. Retrieved 2010-07-05.