In the Second World War three-quarters of Royal Navy personnel were Reserves. Ships were manned entirely by them. However, now the Maritime Reserves are limited to either bolstering manpower among regular crews or providing niche specialities that are not constantly required by the service. Therefore, what options are there for the Reserves in the future? In 2013, the programme of Future Reserves 2020 was laid out. It showed an ambitious plan to grow the Reserves of all three services but not ultimately overhaul the role they are currently playing. The article below will concentrate on the cur…
