Thats an interesting refit .... Anymore designs for refit British ships? That one looks very nice, if abit 'odd'
I do hope not, if she's still using Sea Cat after a post 2004 refit then something has gone horribly, horribly wrong.And are the visible missile launchers using the Sea Cat missiles?
I do hope not, if she's still using Sea Cat after a post 2004 refit then something has gone horribly, horribly wrong.
Gigalocus It's not odd, it's British. Also, the horizontal Launcher between the funnels is supposed to be a Cruise-Missile launcher for storm Shadows.
rest: I have found an alternate Sea Cat 2 launch system. They were fitted in '95, and as a stopgap, are due to be replaced by the Seabird Naval SAM system some time in the 2010s along with the Sea Dart Mk. II ADWS.31. (Note: The Seabird is the TTL version of the PAAMS, only that instead of the French, one is working with [Censored, Official Secrets Act 1987].)
Ooh, shipbucket...!
Besides, I'm not a big fan of combined weapons system that have to do more than one job, as they tend not to do any of them particularly well.
Amen at that, lil' bro...
gaiasabre11 The problem is that the Air Defence System is short ranged, whilst the Storm Shadows are primarily land-attack, for medium and long range. Besides, I'm not a big fan of combined weapons system that have to do more than one job, as they tend not to do any of them particularly well. Neither is the Royal Navy. But anyway, there are provisions for separate launchers, so why not use them? Why spend precious money and time on a system that combines the two when the two separate ones can do it well enough? Also, in TTL the Sea Dart will be deleted as the Seabird will use both a short-ranged SAM and a Garfish-Class high performance missile as well.
There. You happy now?
Armaments: 9x 15" guns, 4x 115mm Bofors "Secondaries" ( as used on various smaller ships), 2x quad Sea Dart Mk.II launcher, 5x Sea Cat 2 launcher, 48x Sea Shadow Cruise missiles, 4x Royal Ordnance CIWS. This will be supplemanted from 2010 onwards by 16x Garfish SAMs in box launchers that will replace the Sea Darts. Not to forget the Merlin ASW/Ferry Helicopter.
The 15" are used because there were still spare guns that were intended for the KGVs, and hence the facilities to maintain/manufacture them. The Lions were last re-gunned in 1979.
Here's some more suggestions: (I should actually keep these to myself and my Alsace Class so that I can make a good arguement at "My Alsace can pwn your Lion" )
Delete the 4 CIWS guns you have now and replace them with the Bofors 57 mm mk3 CIWS guns. Bofors 57mm
Replace the Sea Cats with RIM-116 Rolling Airframe Missiles. RAM
I'm a big fan of VLSs for missiles, so I certainly do not woot for box launchers anymore.
Where's your surface to surface missiles? I demand some Exocets!
Lastly, no lifeboats? You sure are confident that your Lion is invincible.
A bit demanding on your design. Just take them as my humble suggestions.
Well the lessons from Missouri are;. I admit, I was influenced by various cold-war books and the OTL USS Missouri, but I believe that at CIWS is supposed to catch any threats and enemy missiles that make it through the SAM defences.
Oh dear. A typo again. I did mean VLS launchers. Anyway. While the 57mm Bofors looks neat, the CIWS is a proper close-in point defence system. I admit, I was influenced by various cold-war books and the OTL USS Missouri, but I believe that at CIWS is supposed to catch any threats and enemy missiles that make it through the SAM defences. For long-range Surface to Surface work, the ships have the Sea Shadows, ( Storm Shadows ), for more close range the 15" and for short-range the secondaries. Seriously though, I've read that more and more Navies are moving away from deadicated ASMs, as modern SAMS are dual-purpose in that regard, so I can tell you know, with permission of the Admiralty and HM Goverment that the Sea Cat 2 is such a DP missile. ( You cant prove me wrong as it was never built in OTL. Hah.) Also exocets? FRENCH? Seriously though, by the end of the AAR you will know why the RN can't ever buy something from the French.
Edit: There are liveboats, but I simply didn't put them on. One in-between the funnels on each side at deck level, one on each side of the superstructre between the first CIWS and the second turret, and the assorted rafts and mae vests.
gaiasabre11 The CIWS as it is now was fitted on the Lions in the 90's, alongside the Sea Cats. The next refit for HMS Lion, and subsequently spread out over the next four to five years, the other Lions is due for 2012, so the 57mm might make it aboard. The Sea Darts in OTL had around 80ish miles of range in the last version of the original one, so I figured that ~120 sea miles could be had with improved rocket fuel and a ramjet booster perhaps? Besides, the Garfish will have, from what I have heard, the range needed. The DP missiles aren't exactly my cup of tea either, but I have heard this from various naval personel and people who work the industry or are at least close to it, so it stands to reason that it happens in TTL because of less weight, less cost and so on. Besides, these give smaller ships like missile boats or frigates an even bigger punch, no? Also, for some strange, and totally not related to the Falklands reason Exocets and RN doesnt mix.