swoop wrote:Someone needs a bollocking over the scratch in that tabletop!

The table has history tha scratches testify to it. it would be nice if the table has been on a ship before.

place the UK was when it was looking at the ACA in the early 1980s the programme that became the Typhoon 25 years later. I see a similar timeframe for our next platform I did the range saftey for the inert drops and some live fire trials for the ACA programme for the typhoon even those with the mod...

Well, isn't Faslane and Portsmouth/Plymouth for northern and southern part of the UK enough? It was more to do with the retention of the fishery vessels basing locally so having a local R.N. presence as the navy was under pressure politically to G.O.C.O. at the time. Following the fishery protectio...

Agreed, I don't see why this forward basing? Just increasing logistical costs. Newcastle isn't Bahrein. It was proposed to disperse the fishery squadrons to the U.R.N. sites at Liverpool Newcastle Milford haven (vessels in reserve storage at time) when they closed the base at Rosyth. The cost was n...

think there was some healthy scepticism about the Wiki entry giving the Tides a speed of 27kts. Well now they only do 15 (even though they’ve been tracked on AIS at over 18). Have a plotted two R.A.D.A.R. contacts on a tide tanker . Transferred the position to a paper chart and worked out just over...

Ron5 wrote:How abut not saving them? If they can't win orders, why should they be kept going? It's not like they have some unique capability.

They wont count as its not politicaly expedent. They dont unlike Rosyth have the S,N.P. screaming to keep it opern.

That's about right Bit of an empty threat given how much money has just been spent on it for F-35 I would have thought... He could close the base it wouldn't be the first time that the M.O.D spent money on rebuilding a establishment only to close it. The M.O.D. has plenty of experience of this but i...

The S.R.V.L. came about because of the amount of ordinance jettisoned by returning Harriers to clear max landing weights. This bedevilled the harriers in warm climates . I watched a Russia carrier recovery on Novorossiyk (137) which the aircraft recovery used a S.R.V.L. profile landing. According to...

As much as I would love to see a mid life CATABAR conversion, unless we can come up with a compact and cheap Catapult while having no R+D budget or political will, it will never happen other than some portable light weight drone launching thingy. Its not that the ship is not convertible to C.A.T.B....

In his well known book 'Sharkey' Ward talks about testing Harrier landings on HMS Invincible in 1981 and the risks involved in landing with the deck moving by 30 feet. It is not clear if that parameter was actually tested. Presumably some of the operations during the Falklands war must have involve...

If the plus one is more operationally designed towards covering other support tasks while providing part solid support it could be advantage. Leaving two to cover carrier support. This would cover as we are would not have two carrier groups at sea unless it was a max U.K. only effort. The third hull...

SDL wrote:I can definitely see them putting an Osprey or two onboard, if only to show the MOD how useful one or two of them might be be

Wont be a problem for the carrier to operate the Osprey's as the hanger centre section is designed to take them. A bit of forward thinking for once.

Not sure if this question has been asked before (332 pages is a lot to go thro'), Could an BN islander take off / land on a QE? If so could crowsnest be fitted? Would that save much (£) over Merlins? Would it be of benefit freeing up the Merlins? There were tests done on Hawkeyes for the Indian Nav...

IF we get four frontline F-35B squadron and an OCU/OEU I will be surprised. I can see the UK only ever having three frontline squadrons plus OCU with 41 Sqn being a joint Typhoon/F-35 OEU. Add to that around 30 F-35s in storage to maintain and manage the fleet and provide attrition replacements and...

I was involved in recovery of the drill drop tests of Stingray . A o class sub provided the target for the trials test of the west coast of Scotland. Later in 1982 the Nimrod test drops east of Gibraltar using a S.S.N. the weapon was fitted with a inflation ring in place of war head. This allowed th...

No, a split buy ( A for RAF, B for FAA ) is better solution IMHO. But only after first 48 F-35B are delivered. You can't leave RAF without 5th gen fighters. Also, A-version is also way cheaper so they might get a few more of them.. I think that the advocates of the split buy ignore the costs or run...

And that brings us back to a new HMS Reliant, this being a converted Container ship with prefabricated flight deck, hanger and support facilities plus accommodation for the troops when needed or as a Hospital alternatively. I was on R.F.A. Regent in Gibraltar. She had major problems with her Arapah...

The problem is the source codes, is it Washington will accept that London has the source codes of the Tempest Anglo-American, or American-British, while this is not the case for the F-35, although the UK is the only first level partner of the program. It's a real problem. If they follow the F35 set...

When the original purchase plan for the F35 was disclosed. The number of F35b aircraft embarked was about the same as now minus one or two airframe. Originally the carriers were to sail with 12+ F35s. But the Monk of Dunfermline (I cannot afford repeat what Mr Clarkson said) With his underfunding of...

So she replaced the WR21 cores. Only 5 years after commissioning? The cores would have been refurbished as part of the support contract with R.R. This allows the turbines this is more efficient than refitting turbines on board. Modern gas turbines are hours life cycled. Unlike the original gas unit...

I was on army vessel Samuel Morley V C when B.A.E. conducted air to ground test. Separation of bombs insert and missiles. Done at Eskmails range. There was several live weapons drops. This air to ground caperbillite was removed from the tranche one aircraft.due to politics of the early stages of the...

Mrs May doesn't care and prime minister in waiting Philip don't care as long as they can do what is politically expedient to keep them in power. They have to prove that they are more protective of the N H S than Labour because the electorate is defence blind. Any spare money in the treasury will go ...

Looking at the requirement it is the same requirement that the Royal Air Force had for 1102 mcu from the 1970 s. Covered by the Mk 2 RTTL. The crash cover for the western end of the runway was reduced prior to the hand over to the Gibraltar Squadron. The ribs were acquired so they could be a respons...

The retention of Rapier for point defence of airfield defence would be sensible given that the concentration of assist at relatively few airfields. Especially with the low procurement numbers for its replacement. The elephant in the room for this is the life remaining on the missiles themselves. The...

just wondering if chancellor did increase defence budget to 3% of gdp (which I not sure he will increase it that much) how much money would that be and what new kit could we get or would it be all swallowed up just filling black hole and just keeping the status quo without anymore cuts taking place...