On T13GP. I will address my view in the next post. 1: Armament level of a GP frigate shall be "aligned" to the threat level. In pre-Red Sea Houthi conflict era, GP-frigate must be aligned to KIPION. The "as-is" armament level of, 1x 57mm gun, 2x 40mm guns, 12 CAMM, with up to 2x ...

T31 "as is" is cheap because it is simple. Just it. It’s also worth remembering that for every system added the crew allocation rises. It won’t stay at 105 for long if capabilities keep getting bolted on. Agreed. My main point remains that the U.K. must return to a balanced fleet because ...

As an amateur just trying to explore the surface level costs, it is clear that military spending is confusing at best, misleading even. Babcock apparently has variants of the Type 31 for proposal purposes, and I would be interested in knowing what a Type 31+ or Type 31++ will cost and if it compare...

But, HMS Endurance was not hit. Task for River B2 there is to be an OPV, not as an escort. Contribute to day-by-day presence. More similar to River B1/B2 "escorting" Russian cruisers in the Channel. Of course, even if it is T23 frigate escorting the Russian cruiser, T23 will NOT survive th...

I guess you are proposing to use CEC to control SM-6? In other words, using T31 only as a Mk41 arsenal and SMART-L radar picket? In that case, there is a US destroyer there. In a theater as small as Red Sea, why not the US Destroyer just do the job? "The Americans will do it" is an old mi...

To be clearer I meant the new long ranged SMART-L-EWC (Early Warning Capability) Radar in addition to Artisan. Adding Sampson is an option I guess but suspect the addition of the two will increase top weight too much, plus the fact it will not be able to be positioned high like the T45 means it’s n...

How easy would it be to add SMART-L to the last three T31s? Where it is situated on the Iver Huitfeldt-class looks little changed. Cost wise it looks in the £10mns per unit so with maybe a £100mn upgrade overall. No chance to add Sampson due to the top weight. I understand Sampson is lighter than S...

Two or three T31 for the same £1bn depending on how they are configured would add a lot more. Such a cheap T31, 330 GBP a pop, cannot do any good AAW. I am half a way between you two. I agree there is a clear need for 5 cheap GP frigates. But do not think 10 will be needed. If such money is there f...

Let’s not forget the inflation. Significant it is, especially from late 2022. If comparing cost figures, we need to “correct” them.

Two or three T31 for the same £1bn depending on how they are configured would add a lot more. Such a cheap T31, 330 GBP a pop, cannot do any good AAW. I am half a way between you two. I agree there is a clear need for 5 cheap GP frigates. But do not think 10 will be needed. If such money is there f...

The Iranians have a significant fleet of mini-subs which have really tested the Royal Navy. Agreed the threat is clear. Also UUVs will proliferate further and become a growing threat. What is needed to counter that? Is it a T26 or more likely something deployed from a T31 or T32. A Captas 2 or 4 in...

"T26 for export by even postponing RN hulls" is no problem. - Look at this build chart. Commissioning is early 2027, mid-2028, early 2030, 31, 32, 33, 34 and T26-hull8 commissioning is on early 2035. https://www.navylookout.com/type-26-frigate-construction-and-shipyard-investment-progress-...

Another hull in Tonga. Yet another in Caribbean. And one in Falkland Island.
Not an asset to fight, but showing UK flag world wide. I think River B2 was a great buy, at last.

Beautiful

SKB wrote: ↑15 Apr 2024, 12:47 I think Donald-san will visit Spey

!! Wanna go, but in truth, sadly I am NOT in Tokyo now...

I've visited HMS Daring, HMNZS Te Mana, HMAS Sydney, and FS Vendémiaire, when I was in Tokyo.

Deployment continues.

I have no idea on her fate. Artisan 3D it not there, but it can be craned easily. SeaCeptor datalink antenna has a cover, or non existing? The starboard 30mm guns is not there? Any thoughts?

https://ukdefencejournal.org.uk/bae-target-dramatic-reduction-in-frigate-build-time/ We aim to reduce the build duration from the first of class being 96 months to the eighth being 60 months. More than that, we intend to compress the interval between ships from 18 months to 12 Now that’s an opportu...

Latest article on Navylookout discusses the armament of the two ships deployed to the Indo-Pacific; Which raises the question, to what extent do we want to arm their future replacements? The US Navy is phasing out Phalanx, which is what the LPDs have now. The answer seems to depend on how available...

I'm afraid Rosyth does not have the capability to design a new escort. They have never done any. T31 design was bought from Denmark. T31-mod can be, but I'm afraid they do not know how to make it ASW-quiet enough. Babcock doesn’t need to design anything. A partnership with BMT could continue the de...

It’s a fair point, but the last thing we need is another class of ASW frigate I’m not suggesting it’s the best direction of travel but the benefits are clear. • A joint £5bn program with a NATO member to produce 10x next-gen GP Frigates optimised for off-board systems including ASW. • Rosyth is sec...

In Germany yes. Yes. So it is very rare. Also Germany shipyards are NOT sustained only by escorts. Also Germany shipyards shares designs. And, of course, they are supported by "build" export. If Babcock wants to survive, try build export. No need to order escort to keep them alive. By the...

Might not have the orders, but we definitely have the need for at least 2 x shipyards for the building of “escorts”. Why? (Almost) No other Europian Nation does it. And, for sure, UK is NOT ordering escorts in double the number compared to France, Italy, Spain, nor Germany. No the Italians, the Spa...

Scimitar54 wrote: ↑10 Apr 2024, 04:37 Might not have the orders, but we definitely have the need for at least 2 x shipyards for the building of “escorts”.

Why? (Almost) No other Europian Nation does it. And, for sure, UK is NOT ordering escorts in double the number compared to France, Italy, Spain, nor Germany.

If any additional armaments shall be considered, it shall better be "optional". In other words, keep the hull system itself simple enough to handle fishery protection and EEZ patrol. No, managing a fleet within a fleet is stupid. If we have a ship go technical at the last moment we've sho...