Poiuytrewq wrote: ↑24 Sep 2023, 14:24
I agree that what you have proposed looks achievable in the short term but for the future 1st Div just looks too light.
IMO, by 2030,
- 3rd Div should form around CH3 , Ajax, K-9A3 , M270a2 plus either upgraded Warrior or a Warrior replacement. The money must be found.
- 1st Div should primarily form around Boxer and SupaCat HMT. Between the two main platforms all variants can be introduced, 30mm/Javelin, 120mm mortar, 105mm, Brimstone and GMLRS etc. Archer maintained for 155mm unless Boxer 155 chosen. Smaller, lighter, high mobility vehicles added as necessary. Again the money must be found but with Boxer already funded it should be possible.
- The GRF needs a high degree of air mobility with support based around a flatbed HMT chassis and modular play loads. With peer opposition plausible again the GRF needs serious investment to ensure overmatch.
- If RM is to concentrate on Short Endurance Littoral Strike then proper funding needs to be allocated to become a truly formidable capability like 3 Cdo was until recently. The changes so far look very superficial. The Norway angle needs a rethink as the move to SELS whilst maintaining the traditional Norway commitment looks strategically and tactically contradictory.
Can all this be achieved with 73,000 plus reserves? Not sure but dropping below 80,000 looks foolish IMO.
The whole point of the 1st division is to keep it light by keeping it light it remains air portable if we want to give it more teeth we have just seen that M270a2 can be airlifted by A400m
Noe in SF we will have 2 x armoured , 7 x Cavalry , 20 infantry , 7 x Logs , 11 Engineer and 6 REME regts
In the layout above i have used everything apart from 5 Infantry regts so I would look to change 3 of them into Close Combat Logistics regts and the other two into 4 x Rapid Support Units of 300 troops these 4 units would look like 1 x HQ troop , 1 x Logistics troop , 3 x Recce strike troops and a Fire group of 3 M270's these 4 units would be moved to 6th division and the army would look like
1st division
1 x Air Assault brigade = 1 x Light Recce strike , 3 x Infantry , 1 x Artillery , 1 x Logs , 1 x Engineer
2 x Light Mechanised = 1 x Cavalry , 4 x L-Mech infantry , 1 x Artillery , 1 x Logs , 1 x Engineer 1 x REME
1 x Support brigade = 1 x divisional Logs regt , 1 x CS Logs regt , 2 x Engineer
3rd Division
1 x Deep Recce Fires brigade = 2 x Cavalry , 3 x Artillery , 1 x Logistics , 1 x Engineer
2 x Armoured brigades = 1 x Cavalry , 1 x Armoured , 2 x Mech Infantry , 1 x Logistics , 1 x engineer , 1 x REME
1 x Support brigade = 1 x divisional Logs regt , 1 x CS Logs regt , 2 x Engineer
6th division
1 x 77th brigade
1 x Special Ops Brigade = 4 x Ranger regts , 1 x signals regt
1 x Scecurity Force Assistance brigade = 4 x SFA regts
1 x Rapid Support brigade = 4 x RSU's
1 x Aviation brigade = 4 x ACC regts , 1 x REME