The article says 90M Euro for the four plus training and support package.

Everybody must pay a fair amount. But we cannot match Russia at the moment as if they stick to buying new kit made in Russia and upgrading older kit by using Russian components they get things done far cheaper than we do. But we must not try to match the mass of the Russian military by relying on te...

Well why did the US embargo Turkey in the first place. The latter got its fingers burnt for trying to play nations off against each other. Going after the Kurds, all Kurds regardless of borders hasn't helped either.

Well the original version was bloody fast and now it is faster!!! Maybe we should equip our surface ships with it as well?

Yep the Royal Navy should join up with that programme as soon as possible, and have it also built in the UK, not just for the Royal Navy but the Army and Royal Marines, replacing watchkeeper for the former and providing a full spectrum of support facilities for all three branches covering not just t...

I know I am definitely on a glass half empty streak at the moment but to me both the T-31 and T-32 are moving the Royal Navy down a dead end street. The Navy like the RAF is really pinning its hopes on unmanned platforms to expand its mass, but in most categories unmanned platforms are still too imm...

A good point. Equally, the deterrent is v capital intensive: expensive to buy, but cheap to operate. - hence the Treasury should fund the capital cost directly, and the Navy (the proud owner - or tenant, rather) would be happy to fork out the money for 1600 submariners (+ gas, every 30 years or so)...

The ship looks fantastic, I wonder if the rest of the Rivers couldn't be painted in the other WWI and WWII camouflage schemes?

I think it may still have the "Smokey" engines that were fitted to the early and mid generation Phantoms.

Looking at our convoluted plans to finally expand the Royal Navy, with no effort being made to increase the numbers of T-26, instead building first the T-31 and then the T-32, are we accepting that the T-26 is too much of a gold plated design? How can countries with much smaller defence budgets, nam...

They are of the opinion that the only new platform that can match or surpass the capabilities of an updated P-3C is a P-8A. On the plus side it might allow the RAF to buy half a dozen or more second hand P-8As in the 2030s for a reasonably price as they introduce the Franco/German platform. So we sh...

Based on what? The MoD are playing that one close to the chest. As they should. Well given that the FCS in the Leopard 2A7V is pretty highly rated as is the improved FCS on the Abrams A2C, and as they are both the same generation we have the best of Europe and the best the USA can offer so my opini...

A more light hearted post, a interesting display by a Luftwaffe Phantom F-4F in Malta in 2009. They must have some seriously different regulations for air displays there compared to the UK and most of Europe! Good video though.

Like the Army the RAF is looking ten or more years into the future and crossing its fingers as well, though not as tightly as the Army. three E-7s for example allows you to have one protecting UK air space and that is about it. We cannot even refuel them without phoning the USAF at Mildenhall! Maybe...

Well we know the L55 has a higher muzzle velocity than the L44 but I have seen no data to really compare the latest US Army DU round verses the latest Tungsten round. Also does anyone have a comparison between the US and German programable rounds? As for FCS I would say things are even enough to not...

There are also plans under the same programme to produce a European replacement for the E-3As used by the NATO AWACS fleet.

I think everyone on here will agree with you, and in the grand scheme of things the extra £Bns or small numbers compared to what is spent on Health, Welfare and Education. However the voters want ever increasing amounts spent on two of the three which limits the available funds in the Government's P...

My nightmare, as I have gotten older the more I like my feet firmly on the ground!

Royal Artillery Regiments and those of the Horse only between 24 and 32 guns each split between three or four Batteries. Even if you include "Limber" platforms, the numbers required to equip four Regiments and cover training etc. are not that big. We would only need to purchase say 60 Arch...

Comparisons could be made between Russia under Putin and Hitler's rise to power and his actions up to the start of WW2. Cracking down on any opposition, annexing the territory of neighbouring countries, destabilising these as well and supporting anti governmental factions. You have to admire the way...

Well we seem to have finally got a set of logical and effective doctrinal aspiration for how we want the Army to operate in the 2030s but there is little out there on how we are going to get there over the next ten or so years. This leaves too much space for tinkering by people who will be in place ...

Lets hope the experiences gathered by Victoria are passed to the FSS team to ensure the aviation facilities at least equal hers and are maybe enhanced to allow the operation of UAVs in addition to 3 "Medium" Helicopters.

Does anyone know if we, the UK, have kept ion developing armour beyond Dorchester that was fitted to the Challenger 2? As for whether the Challenger 3 will be better than the M1A2C or Leopard 2A7Z, I think it will come down to how it is incorporated into a network of weapon Systems rather than how t...

Well there must be something added to the weapon system to have the latest referred to as 5th Generation. Weapons like the US Army's replacement for TOW, the French MMP and the latest versions of the Spike family are all referred to as such. Maybe they should be 4.5Gen I do not have full access to t...

Maybe even less dependant on the size of force that is believed to be required for more regular Operations. I am getting the feeling that deploying a whole Heavy BCT, together with the Deep Strike BCT, is going to be the maximum aspiration for the Army rather than a standard size. Add to this the is...