Obviously Argus, as presently configured, covers two distinct primary roles: PCRS and helicopter training. Although she's a poor substitute for a "real" LPH she definitely provides a useful capability in a pinch, a bit better than what we expect from a Bay with tent hangar. Some of the com...

I don't think we could. Isn't ocean effectively replaced by POW? Yes, "replaced" by PoW for the foreseeable future. With Ocean I think it's quite obvious that her role would be rolled into other platforms, mostly because there's not really an especially good reason for a relatively small ...

What are we planning to? Independent operation, 5,000nm+ from the UK with 2 month build up (e.g. Falklands 2?) It has to have some degree of scalability, but at the "top end" would be a distant independent operation conducted at relatively short notice. Maybe not as extreme in terms of di...

But I would suggest the "expeditionary port" should be a function of 17 (sport and pastime) Regt RLC there was talk of them coming under 3Cdo Brigade. For it to be mobile enough to go where we need it within a reasonable time span we're looking at something like this, almost certainly ope...

A mini mulberry. That proposal couldn't be done cheaply with conventional military platforms. That much we're looking at a carrier, 2 x LPH, 2 x LPD, 4 x LSD, which is way more than what we can realistically expect. I think the only way we could sustain such a large manoeuvre is through a port, whi...

That's not the future. Pure Fantasy You're probably right, unfortunately. I was just trying to show the scale of shipping required if the UK ever wishes to be able to deploy a full Commando brigade. It would not be a trivial undertaking by any means. But then again, the idea that the current capabi...

shark bait wrote:Thanks, I'm confused by the previous comments, when did we have the capability to lift 5500?

Presumably pre-2010 with 2 LPD, 2 LPH (Ocean & CVS), 4 LSD (A) and most of the Points in play. Maybe even some STUFT. Real Falklands II stuff.

shark bait wrote:A commando company group is 200?

How does 2 air + 2 sea = EMF 5500

That's 4 companies in a single lift, the rest of the EMF would be delivered in follow-on lifts.

As I say, its the best of a bad bunch of options, but in reality does spending money on the design and development of a new and capable T31 in the next few years look like a sound approach? If we're seriously going down the T-31 road it can't be useless as an escort. Cutlass, with 12 CAMM and a gun...

Is it not a problem that the offensive ASW of a general purpose frigate (e.g. T31) is limited to the the helo? Most comparable vessels appear to have offensive ASW capability through torpedoes or VLS as well as a helo. Not really. Lightweight torpedo launchers on ships are essentially a suicide wea...

I have the same starting point in my thinking and if you take their availability, in practice most will be in the vicinity of the carrer(s), so what would they need them for... remember: strike carriers (even though that thinking has been slightly modified. So our global cruiser is the T26, even th...

The actual tubes are not too expensive, but strike length VSL is very intrusive on the ship design, very big and goes though many decks, the systems that fill them are also expensive. I image the hulls are just too small to fit them in. If we have strike length VSL on the T45 and T26 that is quite ...

Thee is not an argument about Merln ,but would its costs and that of the Wildcat to purchase and operate be more expensive than a vls system with an asroc equivalent The ship will be getting a utility helicopter anyway (wildcat in future) because it's an extremely flexible bit of kit for all sorts ...

If a towed array is used then there should be an accompanying system to do something about detected submarines ,wouldn't a vls system with some asroc equivalent be cheaper than a Merlin. Wildcat with Stingray is your best bet without a Merlin. Lightweight torpedo tubes would be cheap, but are essen...

Here's an idea. Re-use the 4.5" guns from the Type 23s. We're almost certainly going to be keeping that system in service on the Type 45 through to the early 2040s. We've got the 13 guns currently fitted to the 23s, plus reserve and training systems and likely a decent stockpile of spares, ammu...

So, here's a question for people to get their teeth into:

Are the B2 Rivers a clever mean of getting some cheap-ish "sloops", that could be upgraded significantly at a later date, or a total waste of money spent replacing ships that had many years of life left in them?

bobp wrote:Exactly which coastal radar station do you have in mind that can fry electronics.

I knew they'd kept that for a reason!

I think some people here are making rather dangerous assumptions about the emerging threats to shipping in the littoral. It's always been an especially difficult environment to operate in, pretty much since the earliest days of seaborne warfare. In comparison the principles of operations on the beac...

I wondered when LCS would rear its head...that appears to have gne so well the Americans are looking at something else more akin to a Frigate Not quite. They are making the towed sonar permanent (oh, look!) and adding anti-ship missiles to a slightly improved LCS. And the MCM bit is unchanged, too....

yes not a gamble we should be even contemplating! Just pointing out that while we all like to view this through the narrow lens of military capability there are also other factors at play here. Attacking a British capital ship, be it a fully loaded amphibious assault ship or a carrier, is a serious...

So whats the effect of a CVF going down with a cdo, a large chunk of helicopter lift and some F35's? You have to consider the political implications of sinking a fully laden amphibious ship, or worse, a carrier. You may scoff, but war remains "politics by other means". A potential enemy w...

but we are now getting to the point were by multitasking we are effectively putting all our eggs in one basket The exact same can be said of the specialist ships we currently operate. It's not a problem with the type of amphibious ship, but the overall mass of the force and its capacity to sustain ...

How about Caimen 90? http://www.bmtdsl.co.uk/media/6098037/AMPD002_0214_Caimen90.pdf Or French LCAT. PASCAT was tested intensively AND not go on. I think it means it has clear problem. Maybe not technical, but cost. Looking at the Caimen design, it is significantly "simple" than PASCAT. L...

I agree and we did not pursue the only way to cut this Gordion's knot: fast ship-to-shore connectors (the French did, for the reasons stated) I think it's fair to say that we haven't pursued fast ship-shore connectors yet . Clearly there was a good deal of interest, because PASCAT got funded all th...

The government promised Scotland thirteen frigates. In the current climate of "will there be another referendum?" thirteen frigates will be built in Scotland. Unless, of course, Scotland leaves the UK; then zero frigates will be built there. In this case, keeping the kingdom united and giv...