Similar point to that of Fedaykin’s HMS Cumberland thread, Government finding out some of the stuff being scrapped is actually needed, wonder if Osbourne’s finally getting the message?

I have no clue either way. I’m asking you guys 😉

PS: I’ll ask this again, but can anyone point me in the direction of a naval forum to discuss such matters? Thanks

You could do a lot worse than going here:

http://warships1discussionboards.yuku.com/directory

Yep, a **** up to be sure, that’s what happens when you try to plug a massive hole in spending plans and try to make cuts to the overall budget at the same time.

Everyone who knows anything about the subject knew the budget needed to go up not down.

Ahoy: Speculation alert:

Navy to buy new aircraft

Published on Tue Feb 22 13:07:21 GMT 2011

THE Royal Navy is looking to buy a fleet of maritime patrol aircraft for up to £1 billion just weeks after the Ministry of Defence scrapped the new Nimrod aircraft at a cost of £3.6 billion.

The MoD confirmed last week that the navy wanted to buy its own maritime patrol aircraft to track enemy submarines to replace the Nimrods, which are being broken up for scrap.

The new RAF Nimrod MRA4s had not even come into service when the prime minister announced last October that as part of the strategic defence review he was scrapping Nimrod.

The navy, which was furious that RAF bosses had agreed to get rid of Nimrod at a time of increased submarine activity, has already set up a team to buy a replacement and ensure that it is flown by the Fleet Air Arm. The programme is being run by Commodore Simon Kings with a team made up of naval officers.

http://www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/local/east-hampshire/navy_to_buy_new_aircraft_1_2437696

Nothings happened at all, I think people tend to forget that the 40-50 F35C that the UK buy will not happen until the end of the decade to coincide with CVF purchase. Not only does this defer payment for it now when we are cash strapped it also lets the UK sit back and watch what happens with F35 and gives it options should problems/cost rises etc occur.

Even then I don’t know why the presumption is that these 40-50 F35 will be the only UK purchase ever made until the end of the f35 line? A decade is a long time.

The argument I guess is that a purchase of 80+ Super Hornets will be better than 50 F35’s. But that rather overlooks the basic facts that under the SDSR released in October the UK has no funds to buy Super Hornets ‘now’

Stop talking sense man.

Why does everything we do cost so much?

The Spanish arm of EADS (now part of Airbus Military) has managed to build a mission system which not only fits (ha ha) into several types of aircraft without breaking any banks, but also accepts a variety of sensors without integration costing a fortune. The Brazilian P-3 upgrade uses it, for example. 8 aircraft upgraded, original contract 320 million Euros. I think there was some cost overrun, but that was absorbed by cutting numbers to 8 from 9, & it’s a year late, which is stellar performance compared to the MRA4 overruns. Less capable than MRA4, I’m sure, but look at the price!

BTW, the MRA4 has (had) a modified Boeing TMS-2000 mission system. How modified, I wonder, & how difficult to adapt to the P-8? I fear that if given to BAe that adaptation would be a ten year & few billion quid job. 🙁 Whether worthwhile would depend on whether it cost more than discarding (or selling) the equipment & taking P-8 as it comes.

Maybe it’s time to get Airbus to dig out the A319/A320 MPA. It uses an existing, well-proven mission system (& IIRC development of the modified Boeing system was a major cost & cause of delay for MRA4), & at least part of the aircraft is made here. Fatter than the P-3 & even more than MRA4 (cramped cabin always being one of the criticisms of Nimrod). There’s even a chance (unlike Nimrod) of costs being spread across other sales, as it’d be able (like P-8) to leverage off civil support networks.

Yes, in answer to your original question I’d say the answer is probably Big And Expensive.

Interesting report in the Telegraph about the capabilty gap now Nimrod is gone:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/defence/8284935/Scrapping-the-RAFs-4bn-Nimrod-fleet-risks-UK-security.html

This paragraph is particularly interesting:

That would mean P8 Poseidon probably taken from USN production slots similar to what was done with the C17. Also built to US spec (except maybe MAD boom in line with the Indian examples) and utilising USN training resources. I would also expect Boeing offering a very similar support solution to what they run with the RAF C17. Not as good as MRA4 but better then nothing and you buy into the cost savings of a huge USN purchase.

I would suggest that inferiror aircraft probably points to refitted P-3 Orions.