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...
I would have thought the Falkland & West Indies Guard ships do an important job, replacing escorts in both APT(N) & APT(S). Arguably, there should have been one based in Gib for many years, to perform a similar task in the Med and along the West African coast, again a job that doesn't need ...
You will simply dismiss them as you don’t wish to do them and so the argument will go around in a circle. As an effort to move the debate on. Simple question for anyone that feels like answering. What could a T26 with 48x CAMM in mushrooms and 24x MK41 Strike cells do better than a T31 with 32x Mk4...
The £11bn for all 13 was let slip by an Admiral back in 2014. The only relevant thing now is what an additional batch would cost. Adjusted for inflation the cost of the last batch of 5 is now £920m. Just with average inflation that cost will rise by £30m-£40m per annum. They are a £1bn Frigate now ...
It's been stated time and time again. What has been stated? Apart from lots of empty announcements and endless criticism of the current incumbents nothing approaching a clear vision for the future of the country has emerged yet. The cash raised from the non-doms appears to have been allocated to mu...
14 years of Tory austerity and "there's a lot of money that could be moved around". Are you aware of the state of local authorities going bankrupt? The NHS is funding disarray? Schools falling apart? The state of the roads? The lack of big infrastructure projects? Tell me about about Labo...
Rome wasn't built in a day it takes time to rebuild capability, Cammells/A&P would love the work if it is at no risk to them, SDA virtually bankrupted them again. A bit of subbing is fine, but the risk goes up the bigger the blocks are. As for Fergusons I wouldn't touch that dumpster fire with ...
Because the public accounts are FUBAR….. It’s not that simple. HMG has little fiscal headroom because it is choosing not to reallocate funding to different priority areas. UK GDP is now more than £2.2Trillion. Government spending equates to around 45% of that figure. That’s a lot of money that coul...
We will have a smaller fleet of specialists and potiential a larger group of all rounders in the middle. No sure that’s adequate. If funding remains roughly static a more balanced approach is the likely outcome IMO. - 8x T45/T83 - 8x T26 - 8x T31/T32 The cruiser idea for makes little sense for mult...
I fear you are right, because this comments on this thread seems to represent the wallcharts first requirements & strategy last approach that got us in this shit in the first place. I don’t understand why are not jumping for joy at the news? Surely an extra 5x T26 in the North Atlantic is what ...
You would need to overlook where the linage of commandos come from in 41 formed for the raids on the Norwegian and French coasts. Why start the clock in 1941? The commando raids and the invasion of Norway was all Britain could achieve at the time and Churchill wanted “action this day”. RM needs to ...
LMAO. So the Tory fiscal policy is to lose the election by making unfunded promises they can't afford, so that Labour then have to make cuts, which in 5 years might influence an election. That's your joke, right? Really pleased I gave you a laugh but it’s no joke. Why would a policy to increase def...
Because they can't fund it…. They don’t need to fund it long term, they just need to make it policy at the next fiscal event which will be just before the election. If the first thing a new Labour administration has to do is cut defence spending from 3% of GDP to 2.2% of GDP it will be a disastrous...
Difficult one, but based on 8 you are either cutting TAPS or two ASW escorts for the CSG. Is it not a small price to pay to have another 5x T26 in the North Atlantic? It’s only a one year delay on one hull before the drumbeat can adjust. Squeezing another CSG deployment out of one T23ASW would prob...
So all in all, no commitments to anything, as far as I can see..... Isn’t everything easy in opposition! The most interesting things they have said recently are around procurement and accountability. The U-Turn on UK defence posture EoS was also a highlight and a sign of things to come. The part I ...
Personally I think it is an absolute no brainer… It is an absolute no brainier. Another 5x T26 in the North Atlantic! HMG must do whatever it takes to make it happen. RN must swallow hard and accept the one year delay which is insignificant anyway will the headcount crisis. Invest in a further P8 p...
Moved across. I would add in first Priority 0 as short term, highest prioritity investment in RN & RFA Crew annual pay and bonuses, plus investment in property & accomidation - without extra money to improve crew recruitment and retention, we are going to struggle to man the equipment we alr...
It’s a world away from what people get excited about for a cheap T31 pointless class. I think it's more a case that many of us realised the potential and believed that there was more to be got from the platform. If the current plans come to fruition, then the T31 will be an extremely potent surface...
…defence of specific high value locations is probably going to cost in the region of $10-15b depending on exact numbers. IMO it’s becoming increasingly clear that a short term defence re-capitalisation is warranted. Effectively the reverse of the peace dividend and on top of a long term commitment ...
SSNs and XLUUVs are all part of the anti submarine toolkit, but are you seriously saying increasing this capability in a credible way is something that is remotely feasible in the next decade?? It cuts both ways. How do you realistically commission more T26 within a decade? I think BAE are going to...
It’s a question of priorities: 1- More P8, ideally increase to 16 2- Maximise T31 and build 8 3- More SSN, aim for 12, start asap 4- More T26 only if HMG commits to 3% GDP 5- T32 but not before mid/late 2030s In that order IMO In a perfect world the optimum escort mix is: • 12x AAW Destroyers (T45/T...