UK Defence Forum

Surfaced launched Spear 3 is a fantasy weapon. Not in development, but not entirely fantasy - it's in MBDA's mind as a potential future development - from TD In a maritime context, MBDA has shown an artist’s impression of SPEAR with a booster, quad packed into a CAMM launch cell. This means custome...

I don't know how you can target a pilots eyes with a laser and still claim it's not meant to harm his (or her) eyesight. I'm pretty sure that the limits of what the human eye can tolerate without being permanently damaged are well known. You don't need to damage the pilot's eyesight, you just need ...

The UK RWS 'fleet' is almost entirely Kongsberg. Again, we're heavily invested in that interface already so we would need to accept a bespoke solution for Boxer which doesn't make sense in my mind. We would need to accept a bespoke solution for Boxer Just because it hasn't yet been tested with the ...

I do wonder whether said RWS manufacturers have any interest in endorsing this integration in their already in-service hardware. For Midguard, Venom LR is a major advertising point! http://www.valhalla-turrets.com/products The EOS literature doesn't mention it (yet?), but the RWS can handle a missi...

What you have posted exactly describes the banning of "dazzlers". The British equipment was designed & used to damage the pilots vision. They are no longer fitted on any RN ship. Not so. The key word here is "permanent damage". I remember reading a post (over on ARRSE, I bel...

They have been banned. Illegal now. Dazzlers are still legal. The ban is on using lasers that cause "permanent blindness to unenhanced vision", (Article 1 , Protocol IV of 1980 Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons - came into effect in 1998). Article 3 says "Blinding as an inci...

... or buy British Further to Ron's post. https://www.overtdefense.com/2019/11/08/aei-systems-low-recoil-30mm-cannon-nears-production/ I did see a post (on here, I think) that said that the Army was assessing a 30mm cannon for the MIV/MRV(P) - possibly this is what they were looking at, rather than...

If reconfigured into a Company Level ops platform rather than a Brigade Level command ship, could the crew be reduced from the stated 325? A good question. Drawing an (not too wild) inference from the Daily Express article quoted above, it looks as if the intention is to possibly trial both amphibs...

As the "full-time trained crew" number is 1400 soul short Once again, not all of the 1400 shortfall relates to sea-going crews, especially as the RN has been pushing to fill the sea-going shortages first. (hence the 1SLs statement that the crew shortage was almost solved, some months ago)...

Interesting and echos much what’s been discussed. https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/amphibious-ships-punch-navy-could-add-missiles-assault-vessels-92626 Adding ASuW capability to a LPD is an interesting concept as is operating it with 4 LCSs. The article also fleshes out the USMC's ideas on th...

I was getting a tour of Hornet and the vet docent asked us "the USN owes the Brits for three major carrier innovations, does anyone know what they are?" Erm..... everything OK, to break it down: First take-off and landing on a moving ship Full-length flight deck Offset island Catapults Ar...

Nothing much heard lately, perhaps our man on the spot, @Caribbean, has the latest? I take it you are referring to the rumours about a base in Guyana. Personally I've heard nothing since the original statement. As you say, there's not much infrastructure to work on, but not a bad choice, though - E...

For what it is worth, I was told by a veteran that the missile flew down the length of Missouri. I was standing on her deck when he told me. "Eyewitnesses aboard both the battleship and USS Jarrett recall the missile veering sharply northwards seconds before its destruction, presumably distrac...

Bringing this over from the T31 News thread re: HMS Gloucester and Silkworm the RN fired after the missile had missed its target It is only an assumption (and, to be fair, not an unreasonable one) that Missouri was the target. However, the Missouri's Phalanxes did not activate, implying that the inc...

Dual feed is essential if you're intending to equip an infantry vehicle with HE and AP rounds. Sorry- should have been a bit clearer - do you need to equip a single vehicle with both? I guess it would depend on circumstances. I can see the HE being the "normal" round, with AP being loaded...

One point to note is, that if we stay with the "mushroom" launchers, we are not limited to multiples of 8, so (say) 15 or 18 CAMM is a viable alternative. Presumably there is a lower limit at which the additional control electronics make it too expensive

Amongst all the wailing, gnashing of teeth and rending of clothes, I just thoughtthat I'd throw n this thought - maybe the number of CAMM has been reduced to allow for a better model of 57/40mm, or to improve the fire control system to incorporate radar. As we all know, this variant of the T31 is no...

Personally, I'd rather see the effort go into an unmanned CT40 weapon station, loaded with programmable Airbursting rounds it would provide superior fire power and ammunition commonality with the AI (be that WCSP or a MIV turret variant). I would have thought that a CT40, even in an unmanned turret...

Hard and expensive to find all that outside of military capability. In reality, only the logistics stuff is primarily (though not exclusively) the preserve of the military. Most of the other skills can be obtained though the civilian sector (often as unpaid volunteers - that's how many of the medic...

Not really on topic, I know, but it's often occurred to me that the M230LF (with or without Javelin), mounted on the heavy weapons variant of the JLTV (or whatever is finally selected) might make a useful addition to a light role infantry battallion, either in the recce or the fire support sections ...

because no one lives at sea 2.4 billion people (40%) currently live within 60 miles of the coast (actually that figure is from when the population was 6 billion - it's now 7.7 billion). I've seen predictions that that will rise to more than 60%, with the population itself heading for between 9.6 an...

Still in requirements assessment phase, or something like that

what I question is with limited resources where should the UK focus it’s limited resources. ... and that is really the core question. What can we do with the c. 5-10% of the build budget left over from building the specialist components of our fleet? My personal view is that, whatever we do, every ...

but would be toast near a peer coast with capable A2D. Even in a relatively benign environment, they are hardly likely to be stooging around a few mile offshore, are they? I would expect that an LSG would also operate from over the horizon and make use of the fact that RhIBs (or ORCs) can do 30-40 ...

donald_of_tokyo, this is one of the reasons why the T31 is a waste of an opportunity. I get the GP frigate bit, but ANY frigate can do the GP bit - it needs to have a primary role - either a MHC mothership or an Amphibious Support frigate. Well, considering that the T31 can carry an EMF of c. 75 an...