The Crikey news: The "going down club"

Just as some of us had suspected:

This British-born Australian submarine officer and a gentleman, was not only allowed to do the interview by his command, he had been assigned to do it.

His answers were forthright, sincere and scientifically correct. To America's mainstream sailors that makes CDR Phillips discreet, as well as red-blooded. Australia's deputy chief of Navy said the offending comments made to freelance journalist John Bastik were a response to a "flippant question and the commanding officer's response was not intended to be serious."

Unfortunately, Commander Phillips fielded a couple of tricky RALPH questions about "booze, birds and biff" in a rather tactless manner, mentioning a Navy "down under club" and agreeing with RALPH’s suggestion that female sailors wearing bikinis might boost recruitment. By the time The Daily Telegraph got onto the story it’d morphed into a SUB-STANDARD S-X GAFFE eagerly picked up by other media outlets.

Ralph Magazine's Bastik had asked CDR Phillips: If female sailors all had to be hot and had to wear bikinis, would that help, recruitment?

CDR Phillips replied: It would certainly get the right demographic of young men in. I'm not sure how feasible it is.

Asked what having sex on a submarine was known as, CDR Phillips replied: I call it the going down club - then added that he was 'not aware of any sex on board.

More power to the RAN and our salute to CDR Phillips!