Naval/Air news thread

[General Baker]

HMS Illustrious is being used as a Helicopter Carrier, since we've given away (literally) our Harrier fleet, and it's not sufficient for other maritime jets to operate from.

If we still had STOVLs, we would almost have 2 aircraft carrier-capable vessels But as it stands: choppas.

 

[KevUK]

HMS Illustrious is being used as a Helicopter Carrier, since we've given away (literally) our Harrier fleet, and it's not sufficient for other maritime jets to operate from.

If we still had STOVLs, we would almost have 2 aircraft carrier-capable vessels But as it stands: choppas.

Well, thats not very good, is it? Never should have thrown those Harriers over the end of the Carriers. At least they were a deterrent. Ugh...

 

[imperialman]

Well, thats not very good, is it? Never should have thrown those Harriers over the end of the Carriers. At least they were a deterrent. Ugh...

Not really, the majority of the fleet were being used in Afghanistan and rarely went to sea with a carrier. We'd have been lucky to get more than a few available at any realistic notice.

 

[unmerged(255172)]

U.S. Amasses Stealth-Jet Armada Near Iran

 

[KevUK]

U.S. Amasses Stealth-Jet Armada Near Iran

Its good this is a game, yeah?

 

[KevUK]

Not really, the majority of the fleet were being used in Afghanistan and rarely went to sea with a carrier. We'd have been lucky to get more than a few available at any realistic notice.

But we need something out there surely? A carrier with just lynx's aint that good, or at least its pretty poor showing IMHO.

 

[tommo8993]

are you just plugging your blog that contains copy-pasted articles?

Not my blog and yes it copy pasted articles but it collates them and provides links to them. Rather than going to 20 different sites i go to one.

 

[imperialman]

But we need something out there surely? A carrier with just lynx's aint that good, or at least its pretty poor showing IMHO.

Well, TLAM's on our SSN's and Apache's on our carriers seem to be holding it together. The new carriers and the air wing can't come soon enough.

 

[General Baker]

http://www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/lo...wo-more-destroyers-now-says-admiral-1-3773691

 

[slornie]

http://www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/lo...wo-more-destroyers-now-says-admiral-1-3773691

Well, yeah. Going from the initial plan for 12 Type 45's down to eight, and finally to six. You have to wonder about how much of the decision was strategic and how much was down to money. I can't see the government agreeing to build another two though, not in the near-term anyway.

On a completely different note, and although not technically naval news: Oz Billionaire To Build Working Titanic Replica

 

[General Baker]

Yeap, I saw that one. He's just asking for trouble, human, iceberg or otherwise

 

[unmerged(424506)]

Don't have a link but for those in the UK there is a 2 page spread about HMS Dauntless today in The Times. Doesn't say anything new but gives a nice idea of what a T45 is capable of.

 

[General Baker]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/may/07/pilotless-planes-test-flights-astraea - does anyone see this as a possible future reality?

 

[unmerged(255172)]

Baker,

I suspect the current 5. gen fighters will be the last manned air superiority aircraft. When you leave out the on-board pilot, you save a lot of development resources, extend range and maneuverability significantly, and you don't get back coffins.

 

[unmerged(475367)]

I think its probably safe to assume that 6. gen fighters will be optionally manned but not remove the pilot all together, although since the time frame for their introduction 2030+ is so far away who knows We are still probably 20 years away from the 6th generation but probably around 2020-2025 as soon as the F-35 enters production we should have more info on that.

 

[=Mike=]

Honestly, if they do away with the pilot - then eventually they can do away with the plane!

What do planes do that missiles will not be able to do? Recon? Loiter? For that, the drone already exists...

 

[unmerged(255172)]

I'm thinking the 6th generation air superiority fighter will be a drone, or a UACV. We'll see sometime after 2030

 

[unmerged(476370)]

So NWAC 2 will be about automated drone carriers, automated missile cruisers covered in VLSs, UUVs and multi-mission drones.
To be realistic the UI will be one big red button that we press and watch the mechanical carnage from above .

 

[unmerged(255172)]

Hehe

No, if anything NWAC 2 will be about the same generation of units as NWAC 1, or earlier.

 

[Alex_brunius]

In 1937, five Battleships and 6 aircraft carriers were laid down, and all of them where ready to see action during the war. I know modern ships are a lot more technologically advanced and much more complicated to build, but come on. It is just downright depressing at how much of a fiascos these carriers are proving to be.

To be honest it's not strange.

The urgency of construction is always determined by how threatening the world is looking. In 1937 you had very aggressive naval buildplans in Germany, Italy and Japan, all of them with greedy eyes set on overseas UK colonies and territory.


Take a look at some other Carrier project and it will be put into perspective:

HMS Hermes (light aircraft carrier), ordered 1918, commissioned over 7 years later.
HMS Invincible (light aircraft carrier), ordered 1973, commissioned over 7 years later.

And these are just light carriers.

Massive supercarriers have always been really long term projects. The Nimitz for example even at the height of the arms race in the cold war took no less then 8 years to build.