Rearming the UK: What equipment? and how much?

Wyvern said:
With the current situation in Ukraine obviating the need for increased defence spending (and more efficient usage of the funds), what impact is this going to have on the UK's armed forces? Are the effects known, or is it too early to say?
Click to expand...

Tip: obviating something means removing the need for it. So, Ukraine doesn't obviate increased defense spending, it makes the need more obvious.

Despite which, the UK defence budget is not set to rise significantly next year.
 
One quite visible and simple to make cut will be coming shortly which will cut the tank regiments down to the bone. One tank (Challenger 3) and possibly two or three recce/light support regiments with whatever light/airportable vehicle will do the job which the current/due to be introduced thing will not. I see a move towards infantry based maneuvre squads with heavy drone and portable anti armour assets. Artillery assets will be heavily realigned for the high mobility role with heavy investment in new tech. Command and control will also be adapted to the new role of firefighter control so the UK land forces effectively become flank guard to whichever force they are attached to. As far as being a viable independent mobile force? Gone, this will no longer be possible.

Welcome to the limited future of the British army. Good news is that they may start issuing Swiss army knives and I am certain the new double pull slingshot will prove invaluable.
 
Last edited:
One interesting development is that of the Type 32 frigate, which is likely going to be an enlarged Type 31, at least, for now. This future ship is set to offer new capabilites, such as acting as a drone mothership. The ship is also likely to be highly modular as well, depending on mission set. Finally, it may also offer the same capabilities that are present on the Danish Absalon-class frigate, a frigate that can be configured as a transport or hospital ship within a day, depending on mission set. If all goes to plan, the Royal Navy will certainly have an interesting future.
 
As I mentioned was planned and highly likely a few months ago during the heated Aukus ruckus, the RN is now down to just four operational SSNs and one in refit (the last Traflagar-class).
Apparently HMS Talent's 1-year life extension was a fudge as she never left the pier the whole time and probably not capable of doing so.
Whether the last two Astutes will appear on schedule is open to question, this article has a hint of scepticism about that (which I share).

https://www.navylookout.com/hms-tal...uR7Gr4w8O8_4WARS7jQQxlIlFcXRc-hPgzsZmL2HQzqRw
 
If this is a news thread it's in the wrong section.
 
This has rather become the de facto UK defence news thread though, 90% of the posts in this thread are news reports rather than AH speculations (though there are some in-world speculations).

Maybe this thread better fits the Military section now (the German one was moved for similar reasons).
 
HMS Echo has been reduced to low readiness and there is speculation that she may be retired early. Originally Echo and Enterprise were meant to serve on until 2028.
While a "future hydrographic vessels" are included in the National Shipbuilding Strategy, its as yet unclear what those vessels will be. Presumably the role will switch to UUVs and mothership concept like the new MCMV concepts. Whether those systems are going to be before or after 2028 is open to question however.
https://www.navylookout.com/hms-ech...GXpdqEaGHtqYdWjmu1XUXsxe83rdvGFcLSVxApTe4ijtM
 
As far as rearmament is concerned, some rather good news.

www.bbc.co.uk

UK defence spending to rise as dangers increase - PM

Boris Johnson says it will hit 2.5% of GDP by 2030, after the defence secretary called for change.
www.bbc.co.uk
The UK will increase its defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by the end of the decade, Boris Johnson has said.
As Nato members discussed their response to Russian aggression, the prime minister said the "cost of freedom" is "always worth paying".
It is expected to mean an extra £55bn by 2030, and could mean investments in future air combat capabilities for a "more dangerous" world, the PM said.
The defence secretary had reportedly called for a faster timescale.
Click to expand...
 
CJGibson said:
You must bear in mind that Boris says a lot of things. I'll believe it when I see it on the side of a bus, errr...Challenger 3.

Chris
Click to expand...
Even if it’s on the side of a Challenger 3 it probably still won’t be true….
 
If it's on the side of 200 odd Challenger 4's then you can believe it ;)
 
Given the current climate I might even change my view on the Tempest project.

Chris
 
Odd that it coincides with the hump of Dreadnought and Tempest funding plus Type 4X studies...
That implies some level of forward planning...
Though the MoD seemed shocked it was more than they thought they would get, so probably is just politicking, like saying we'll build a new nuclear power station every year for the next eight years..., they'll be lucky to get Ajax in service by 2030 let alone anything new off the Santa wishlist.
 
www.telegraph.co.uk

Ben Wallace: Submarines rather than ships could be the Royal Navy's future

Defence Secretary has asked naval chiefs to assess the 'balance' between surface and submarine fleets as he launches a major review
www.telegraph.co.uk www.telegraph.co.uk

Shades of Nott-style delusion there, methinks. Probably won't matter much in the long term though, given that it seems, despite earlier speculation that he might be kept on, Wallace is on the chopping block tonight/tomorrow.
 
Last edited:
Grey Havoc said:
www.telegraph.co.uk

Ben Wallace: Submarines rather than ships could be the Royal Navy's future

Defence Secretary has asked naval chiefs to assess the 'balance' between surface and submarine fleets as he launches a major review
www.telegraph.co.uk www.telegraph.co.uk

Shades of Nott-style delusion there, methinks. Probably won't matter much in the long term though, given that it seems, despite earlier speculation that he might be kept on, Wallace is on the chopping block tonight/tomorrow.
Click to expand...
Chopping down the tallest (potentially rival) poppy perhaps?
 
Somewhat surprisingly given reports in the last week or so, the Right Honourable Ben Wallace MP has been reappointed as the Secretary of State for Defence in the new cabinet.
 
Review of what?
Astute production is winding down, T26, T31, T32, T4X ramping up plus MARS and Royal Yacht (sic).
The only submarine programme of note is Dreadnought and that is a niche role and SSN(R) is realistically a good 2 decades away (or 4 Parliaments in political eras). Perhaps that's the reason for the review, Dreadnought hoovering up constrained budgets for the shipbuilding plan. If the economy does tank severely then some of those T26/31/4X are likely to be axed as its unlikely that the government would reduce its nuclear deterrent commitment. I said a while ago that no surface building programme on this scale has been seen since the T42/21/22/Fort Victoria splurge of the late 70s/early 80s. [And of course if Scotland leaves the UK before 2030 you can kiss 90% of the building plan goodbye, the only thing England can build is nuclear subs and the odd OPV.]
 
The much maligned Nott review recognised that our Cold War commitment was more important than the illusion created by the Falklands War that "out of NATO area" was affordable and desirable.
Now that we faced a bubbling rather than Cold War with Russia and China it is time for another look at the Royal Navy.
I have argued consistently that Denis Healey called ot right in 1966 that the SSN was the capital ship of the RN for the Cold War. Carriers appeal to politicians (that is why we now have two expensive white elephants) as visible symbols of national status but they do not survive long if a war starts (the fate of the Moskva is the latest example of big ship vulnerability).
We need more SSNs.
The Trident deterrent accepts the reality that nuclear weapons are not going to be uninvented. Ever since 1968 the submarine based deterrent has had the role of reminding Russia (and more recently China) that the UK cannot be attacked by a nuclear power without serious consequences. I see nothing to change this requirement.
 
Grey Havoc said:
www.telegraph.co.uk

Faulty French parts blamed for RAF jet engine failures

Hawk aircraft used to train fighter pilots for combat removed from service due to fault
www.telegraph.co.uk www.telegraph.co.uk

This is going to put the cat among the pigeons and no mistake about it.
Click to expand...
The article seems more worried about Rolls Royce's shareprice than anything else, that and blaming it all on the French. Presumably this compressor problem could also affect other late-series Hawks assuming its poor quality control of spare parts?

It's not good news for the training programme though, the backlog has been rising again lately, and no sign of things getting back on track.
 
Hood said:
The article seems more worried about Rolls Royce's shareprice than anything else, that and blaming it all on the French. Presumably this compressor problem could also affect other late-series Hawks assuming its poor quality control of spare parts?

It's not good news for the training programme though, the backlog has been rising again lately, and no sign of things getting back on track.
Click to expand...
It only affects the Mk.951 version it seems, though the Mk.871s have their own problems.
 
Regarding the RN's Littoral Response Groups, in particular Littoral Response Group (North):
Grey Havoc said:
Via the Royal Fleet Auxiliary's subreddit:
ukdefencejournal.org.uk

British Littoral Response Group deploys to Mediterranean

Op ACHILLEAN is a large-scale operation which sees amphibious assault ship HMS Albion lead HMS Defender, RFA Argus and RFA Mounts Bay to the Mediterranean.
ukdefencejournal.org.uk ukdefencejournal.org.uk
Click to expand...

Under plans announced in the recent defence review, there will eventually be two Littoral Response Groups regularly deployed in regions of strategic importance to the UK, one with a focus on European waters and the other looking to the east and south of the Suez Canal.

They are designed to put the UK’s commando forces in forward positions, where they will be able to react quickly to any crises but also continually work with allies.

The Ryal Navy say that this is part of the Future Commando Force modernisation, which returns Royal Marines to raiders from the sea, equips them for a new era of combat and places them in forward positions important to UK security.
Click to expand...
 
I could have sworn we had a dedicated thread for the Ajax. Merged with another thread somewhere?

www.telegraph.co.uk

Inside Britain's £5.5 billion military disaster

The Ajax tank was meant to revolutionise modern warfare – but after a succession of setbacks, is it now destined for the scrap heap?
www.telegraph.co.uk www.telegraph.co.uk

The Scimitar succession started in 1992 with Tracer – the Tactical Reconnaissance Armoured Combat Equipment Requirement, junked nine years later. That was followed by the Future Rapid Effects System (Fres), a huge order for 3,000 armoured vehicles covering 16 battlefield roles, which was cancelled in 2008 – the same year the first Fres vehicle was supposed to enter service, at which point officials conceded they were still at least seven years from doing so.

In July 2010, the MoD signed a contract with the American manufacturer General Dynamics, for what was to become known as Ajax, whose combination of firepower, manoeuvrability and armour would make it a step change from Scimitar. But Ajax has suffered the same fate as its predecessors. Manufactured in Wales, it was meant to enter service in 2017; its deadline was soon put back to 2020 as specifications changed. In 2019, in anticipation of its delivery, the Household Cavalry, which will be using Ajax, moved the regiment permanently from its urban location in Windsor to Salisbury Plain to accommodate the heft of the tanks. As yet, they are yet to materialise.

Now there is talk of 2025, but in reality no one knows for sure if Ajax will ever see a battlefield at all. Rather, it has become the latest casualty in a record that, for almost a quarter of a century to 2020, saw not a single new armoured vehicle from the core procurement programme enter operational service with the Army. How has it all gone so wrong for so long? And what has gone wrong with Ajax in particular?
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
For the moment, Ben Wallace is still Defence Secretary in the new government. That may not last long though, given widespread reports that not only is there going to be none of the promised increases in defence spending (including additional monies for the replenishment of what were already long quite threadbare stocks that have been further depleted for the Ukraine) but there are actually going to be major cuts. Wallace has already let it be known that such would be a resigning matter for him, so we will have to wait and see.
 

Similar threads

Back
Top Bottom