Many moons ago I was working in the RN calibration lab, at Monks Park in darkest Wiltshire, calibrating AVOs.
We had an AVO come in for cal. still in its "leather" case, slightly unusual but not unknown. Upon opening the case we found out why, inside was a kit of parts that had been, at one time, most of an AVO.
It turned out that Jolly Jack Tar was servicing a radar antenna and had "accidentally" dropped his AVO off the mast. Contact with the rather unforgiving steel deck converted said unit into a kit.
It was apparently less career-limiting to just send it for cal. than to report it damaged.