| Commodore Submarine Service | |
|---|---|
 Ensign of theRoyal Navy | |
.jpg) Incumbent since 26 July 2022Commodore Paul Dunn OBE | |
| Ministry of Defence | |
| Member of | Board of Admiralty,Admiralty Board |
| Reports to | Fleet Commander |
| Nominator | Secretary of State for Defence |
| Appointer | Prime Minister Subject to formal approval by theQueen-in-Council |
| Term length | Not fixed (typically 2–3 years) |
| Inaugural holder | Rear-Admiral Douglas Dent |
| Formation | 1901 |
Commodore Submarine Service is a post in theRoyal Navy which involves command of theRoyal Navy Submarine Service. It evolved from the post ofInspecting Captain of Submarines in 1901 and would later evolve to become the post ofFlag Officer Submarines in 1944.
In 1904 the Admiralty created the post ofInspecting Captain of Submarines which lasted until August 1912 when CaptainRoger J. B. Keyes was appointed Commodore, Submarine Service. He held that position until February 1919[1] when the post holder was renamed Chief of the Submarine Service. It was for many years located atHMSDolphin in Hampshire.[2]
On 30 August 1939 Rear Admiral Submarines, Rear AdmiralBertram Watson, moved his headquarters from Gosport toAberdour, Scotland, though the administrative staff remained at Gosport. The RN started theSecond World War with 60 submarines.[3] On 31 August 1939 theSecond Submarine Flotilla at Dundee (Forth and ten submarines) and theSixth Submarine Flotilla atBlyth (Titania and six submarines) were part of theHome Fleet. The submarinesClyde andSevern, part of the Seventh Submarine Flotilla, were atFreetown under the orders of theCommander-in-Chief, South Atlantic. Ten submarines were in the Mediterranean along with the depot shipMaidstone (First Submarine Flotilla); and the submarine depot shipMedway and theFourth Submarine Flotilla were under theCommander-in-Chief, China, split between Singapore and Hong Kong.[4] Roskill writes that the effective naval strength of the British Empire on the outbreak of war included 38 submarines.[4]
During the war the major operating arenas were theNorwegian waters; theMediterranean where theTenth Submarine Flotilla fought a successful battle against theAxis replenishment route toNorth Africa; and theFar East where Royal Navy submarinesdisrupted Japanese shipping operating in theMalacca Straits.[5]
In January 1940,Vice-AdmiralMax Horton was made Rear Admiral Submarines. Horton's biographer, Rear Admiral William S. Chalmers, cites the opinion that a new regulation, which required the post holder to be an officer who had served aboard submarines in the Great War, was forced through for the sole purpose of ensuring that Horton was on a very short list of qualifiers for this post, almost ensuring his rapid transfer toAberdour, so great was the desire of some within the Admiralty to have Horton revitalize the submarine arm.[6]
From 1953 the Flag Officer Submarines was dual-hatted as NATO Commander Submarine Force Eastern Atlantic (COMSUBEASTLANT) under Commander Submarine Allied Command Atlantic (COMSUBACLANT), a major command ofSupreme Allied Commander Atlantic. Flag Officer Submarines moved fromDolphin to theNorthwood Headquarters in 1978.[7] From 1993 the post of Flag Officer Submarines was dual-hatted with the post ofCommander Operations.[8]
In 2015, Rear AdmiralJohn Weale was appointed Rear Admiral Submarines/Assistant Chief of Naval Staff Submarines, while Rear AdmiralRobert Tarrant isCommander Operations (Royal Navy), two distinct posts from 2015.[9][8] In 2016, a new entity, the Submarine Flotilla, was technically established, but its commander's post was to be held by Commander Faslane Flotilla.[10] A single submarine base was to be achieved by 2020 whenHMSTalent andHMSTriumph moved their homeports to the Clyde in 2019 and 2020 respectively.[10]
On 1 April 2020, the post of Commander Submarine Flotilla was announced atHMNB Clyde,[11] seemingly a renaming of the post of Commander Faslane Flotilla.[11]
As of December 2020, official Royal NavyFreedom of Information responses said that "the combined 2* Rear Admiral post of Assistant Chief of the Naval Staff (ACNS) (Submarines)(SM), Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland (FOSNI) and Rear Admiral Submarines has been disestablished. The ACNS (SM) role and Rear Admiral Submarines roles have been [lowered] to Commodore and retitled Deputy Director Submarines and CommodoreSubmarine Service. The role of Flag Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland role has been retitled as Senior Naval Officer Scotland and Northern Ireland (SNOSNI) and is currently held by 1* Deputy Director Submarines."[12]
Post holders have included:[8]
