UK Defence Forum

The new US Trident D5 nuclear ICBM, being called the Trident D5 LE2

USN Vice Adm. Wolfe, Strategic Systems Programs (SSP) director speaking at the annual US Naval Submarine League symposium.

1) Has already done one life extension (LE) program to modernize these missiles, but “we’re going to physically run out of Trident D5 missiles. We bought an inventory of 533, we are no longer producing the equipment section, we are no longer producing post-boost. So we have to go build more missiles”
2) The Navy would pursue a hybrid of a life extension and a new program – keeping some components, like the rocket motors that are still in production today, while investing in new avionics and other front-end items for the missile.
3) The admiral said that many details still had to be worked out in upcoming studies, such as how many missiles to buy, how much of the new technology could be backfit onto today’s existing missiles, what industrial base capacity exists to build these missiles,
4) SSP has to create a new missile for the duration of the Columbia program – through 2084 – that is as reliable or better. The “secret sauce” to doing that, he said, is building in flexibility so that components prone to obsolescence – the avionics, guidance, post-boost system, primary battery and more – can be easily upgraded down the road as technology evolves.

Assuming one reason Dreadnought budget has contingency of £10B? to allow for any cost growth in its ICBMs.

From <https://news.usni.org/2018/11/21/navy-d ... more-38601>

1. HMS Dreadnought (S32)
2. HMS ? (S33)
3. HMS ? (S34)
4. HMS ? (S35)

Warspite, Valiant, Sovereign ?

I hope they move away from the use of class names beginning with the same letter, as the last two class of SSBN. I'm struggling with D's.

Defiant
Destroyer
Doomsday

A Warspite, Conqueror or Valiant sounds better.

Four historical names from a technical innovation point of view:

HMS Dreadnought (first turbine powered, all big gun battleship / first Royal Navy nuclear submarine)

HMS Devastation* (first battleship to dispense with sails and broadside guns in favour of steam engines and turrets)

HMS Warrior (first ocean-going ironclad warship, combining steam engines, heavy armour and breech-loading, rifled guns)

HMS Invincible (first battlecruiser... victorious at the Battle of the Falkland Islands in 1914... and her through-deck cruiser namesake is also widely remembered for fighting in the South Atlantic in 1982)

*Devastation has got to be up there with Revenge and Vengeance as an apt name for an SSBN!

I like that list!

Staying with the D's

HMS Dreadnought
HMS Defiance
HMS Destruction
HMS Devastation

Kind of sums up the apocalypse

How about;

HMS Moscow
HMS St Petersburg
HMS Kaliningrad
HMS Murmansk

At least then the recipient would know we are serious

Lord Jim wrote:HMS St Petersburg
HMS Murmansk

Only two qualify as past intervention locations... there must be more

HMS Dreadnought
HMS Jeremy Corbyn
HMS Nicola Sturgeon
HMS Caroline Lucas

Digger22 wrote:I hope they move away from the use of class names beginning with the same letter, as the last two class of SSBN. I'm struggling with D's.

Defiant
Destroyer
Doomsday

A Warspite, Conqueror or Valiant sounds better.

Yeah, since they're all supposed to be named after illustrious ships I'd go with HMS Warspite, HMS Conqueror and HMS Warrior.

HMS Valiant it is. Not a bad choice at all, but there better be a Warspite in the class. Leaving that name out would be a mistake.

Pseudo wrote:HMS Warspite, HMS Conqueror and HMS Warrior.

We need to take a little shortcut (while we are ? starting) with the super-Dreadnoughts; there were 5
- Malaya perhaps ? is a thing of the past
- Barham had an unfortunate (and quick) end

So lets's settle for
- Dreadnought, and from the super-Dreadnoughts
- Warspite and and Valiant
hmmm, one missing: Warrior is ? perfect (Warfighter... pls: no!)

HMS Warrior (the ironclad) was officially renamed HMS Warrior 1860 when she arrived in Portsmouth in 1987 to avoid confusion with the RN's Northwood Headquarters, commissioned as HMS Warrior in 1963, which was at the time the operational headquarters of the Royal Navy until its decommissiong in 1999, and Joint Forces Command was established on the site in 2012. The name is currently available for reuse.

1. HMS Dreadnought
2. HMS Valiant
3. HMS ?
4. HMS ?

Bit left field, but Victor and Vulcan?

off topic, but if we carry on naming "ships" at this rate we will be soon releasing names of ships that aren't even planned yet!

Not WARSPITE, I'm a bit surprised. Maybe #3.

Maybe they're attempting to spell out the initials of the Driving & Vehicle Licencing Authority (DVLA) in Swansea?!

Dreadnought, Valiant, L, A

Clive F wrote:off topic, but if we carry on naming "ships" at this rate we will be soon releasing names of ships that aren't even planned yet!

HMS Neverwillbe
HMS Dreamon
HMS Canweborrowyours

Clive F wrote:Bit left field, but Victor and Vulcan?

Jointness to the fore!

Pseudo wrote:Yeah, since they're all supposed to be named after illustrious ships...

We’d have four boats named HMS Illustrious!

P.S. IKWYM

Plus Warriors and Ajax's all over the place. Not to forget the 'obvious' Protector.

Nevermind, the cousins seem to start their M xyz count from the beginning, all the time. Equally, or more confusing.

ArmChairCivvy wrote:Plus Warriors and Ajax's all over the place. Not to forget the 'obvious' Protector.

Nevermind, the cousins seem to start their M xyz count from the beginning, all the time. Equally, or more confusing.

Consider ourselves lucky, it could have been as bad as the Japanese Empire's naming scheme, where everything was mandated to be named after the currently Imperial Calendar Year.

Everything.

Every year.

Mind you, this is the nation that was so confused in its procurement rivalries that the Army had an aircraft carrier because they didn't trust the Navy enough.

I like the idea of Warspite and valiant, and how about adding Nelson and Rodney to the mix.

HMS Nelson is already part of HMNB Portsmouth

I thought the Orions were the first 'Super Dreadnoughts'

HMS Orion. I like that a lot.

Shoot for the stars and all that........