Probably should happen – probably won’t happen

Like so much else in British History…:mad:

Btw, Dont think that Viraat is gonna be decommisioned Quickly.

Latest news is that the Indian Navy had decided to maintain the Carrier Operational till 2012-2014.

The Navy hopes to have two fully-operational “carrier battle groups” till the year 2008 which of the battle groups will be centred around INS Viraat, the other will be led by INS Vikramaditya, when the Gorskhov also enters the IN Fleet.
Not to Forget, The Main reason why the Navy wants the Viraat to be Operational till further 2012 because of the need of “Three Carrier Battle Groups” Blue Water Navy Dream. In 2012 The 40,000-tonne indigenous aircraft carrier, being built at Cochin Shipyard will also become fully operational.

The Navy keep on shouting for a 3 Carriers Group Fleet and its must for us to get that Mark.

Does that mean they will try and keep SHAR operating until 2012 as well?

And I thought the UK will have 2 CVFs, France 1 CdeG and 1 PA2 and no one except the UK and France respectively will have a say in how they are used. 😀

Well, lets hope so! But someone might want to share big new toys….

Progress?

Perhaps racist was too harsh Musashi? Ignorant and no grip on the current political or military set-up of Europe certainly!

Anyway, maybe things are moving, with some sort of “deal” on the price and BAE-VT agreeing a tie-up for shipbuilding

The Treasury and the Ministry of Defence (MoD) have agreed a £3.9 billion budget to build two Royal Navy aircraft carriers, The Times has learnt.

An announcement is expected before Easter after long talks between the consortium that will build the carriers — led by BAE Systems and Thales UK — and the Government.

The budget includes incentives to lower the price, with the shipbuilders taking a share of any cost reductions. This is seen as a key change in defence procurement and is likely to set the standard in future.

Under terms of the contract, the top price for the two ships will be £3.9 billion and it is hoped that savings will eventually cut that to £3.6 billion.

A further incentive programme will encourage the shipbuilders to share costs with France, which is also preparing to build a carrier. This could save a further £300 million.

Apart from BAE Systems, the consortium includes VT Group and Babcock. Thales UK is responsible for design.

The Future Carrier Alliance, as the consortium is known, is an attempt by the MoD to pool industrial talent and get away from the procurement culture of cost overruns and production delays.

Although Lord Drayson, the Defence Procurement Minister, is expected to confirm the decision to go ahead with the carriers by Easter, a formal contract is unlikely to be signed before the autumn.

The ships will be called HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales and will form the backbone of the Royal Navy for 30 years. They are due to enter service in 2012 and 2015.

mistake

Sounds like the sort of thing you would expect to hear from a well-connected (read Air Force) source.

Run down the effectiveness of the Navy’s carriers, then start telling everyone that a combination of new aircraft and in-flight refuelling means that carriers are an anachronism and should be phased out.

Where have I heard this song before? Hmmm?

Unicorn

Maybe it will backfire on them, and increase funding on new AAW vessels 🙂

Eh?

France’s Royal opposes building Anglo-Franco carrier
16/02/2007 15:53

PARIS (Reuters) …..
“If the nation is capable of freeing up money for a second aircraft carrier, I am pledging here that this … money, will not go to defence but education,” she said in a speech late on Thursday.

“I will keep the national defence effort unchanged … but I will not commit to the construction of a second aircraft carrier because I consider this effort should be made in the framework of the emergence of European defence,” she said.

And I thought co-designing your next major asset with the other major naval power in Europe IS in the framework of emerging European defence. :confused:

dire RN

So a cancellation by default, bl**dy marvellous 😡

Ja: I actually meant the RAF, not the RAAF regarding the Orions – I was specifically referring to the P-7, which was to replace RAF Nimrods, US P-3s and German and Italian Atlantiques. The Nimrod is a great aircraft, but to be honest, it is not in wide enough service to allow quantity to combat cost. I would be happy to see Nimrod MRA-4s in larger numbers, acting as both bombers and maritime patrol planes, but you need quantity as well as quality!

Sadly could be applied to anything UK built..

Why did it never sell overseas?