The High Speed Landing Craft Utility is probably better than a Heavy Lift Landing Craft Air Cushion in terms of affordability and efficiency but I wouldn’t want to loose the enormous flexibility you can get from hovercraft.

When the current LCACs need replacing I’d like to see another hovercraft design of similar capability but much more compact so more could be carried per ship. Maybe a folding or collapsible cargo deck could be developed for better storage?

You mean – like this?

And this 🙂

The HLCAC might face stiff competition from this High Speed Landing Craft Utility design http://www.systems.textron.com/pdf/products/lcur_datasheet.pdf

I think hovercraft are great but in my opinion if you want a large heavy lift capability it might be better to start thinking about amphibious Ekranoplan/Wing In Ground effect aircraft that can fly faster and for greater distances and avoid bad weather ship unloading operations by operating from distant shore bases.

I’m thinking of a C-17 sized, Pelican style Ekranoplan with a air cushion landing gear. Pelican info http://www.boeing.com/news/frontiers/archive/2002/september/i_pw.html

MoD is to spend some £300M to develop the design of the ships to the point at which manufacturing can begin.

“This project is a key to the Defence Industrial Strategy and marks the end to the ‘boom and bust’ industrial cycle. The introduction of a managed and steady work stream will allow industry to plan efficiently and to retain the highly skilled workforce that has contributed to the fine tradition of shipbuilding in this country. In addition, this project will sustain and create some 10,000 UK jobs around the country.”

Spending £300million on the design of a class of 2 ships that could operate for 50 years hardly seems like a good way of ending the ‘boom and bust’ industrial cycle.

That £300million would have been far better spent on the design of a class of ship that could replace all the carriers and amphibs currently in service over the coming years.

The CVF looks very nice but it’s far too extravagant for what the UK really needs and I can see a lot of other projects and capabilities suffering because of it 🙁

HMS Ark Royal collided with the Soviet destroyer Kotlin in 1970 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Ark_Royal_%28R09%29

Those Gyroplanes deserve a second chance, I wish the Fairy Rotodyne had made it into service.

Another possible air taxi could be the Moller Skycar http://www.moller.com/ or a Cartercopter http://www.cartercopters.com/

There is an article and pics in Janes Rockets and Missiles, ‘Smart’ round flies 116 km’. About the new long-range land-attack projectile.

Long-Range Land Attack Projectile article here http://www.ddxnationalteam.com/pressroom/details/?id=38