The Royal Navy is struggling to recruit enough personnel because young people do not want to be cut off from social media for up to 90 days at a time, it has been reported.



Many articles state that the service is already suffering from a shortage of engineers and that the situation has been worsened by the need to man the new aircraft carriers, with some of the crews on the Vanguard class boats having to sail three times a year.

According to a survey for the Royal Navy by research firm PA Consulting, there are those who are unhappy about manning the submarine 90 days at a time without their smartphones or social media.

A senior officer said:

“We have never seen such a situation as we are facing.

There are recruits who want to serve in submarines, but they are getting harder to find and a massive challenge is keeping them in the Navy – many serve a few years and leave.

“Being a submariner is a way of life. You are locked away on a very important job but it is true you cannot get on your mobile phone and you cannot Facebook your friends.”

The Royal Navy’s statement is not carried in the article but can be seen below.

A Royal Navy spokesperson said:

“A career as a submariner remains both rewarding and fulfilling. The introduction of a dedicated submarine recruitment team is delivering results, and the majority of targets are now being met.”