UK Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

Honestly I don't think it's a money issue, I even now contradict myself but you get the point

It's more management issue, there is too many black holes that haven't been plugged over the years and they have swallowed large portions of procurement budgets

You can have all the money in the world if not managed properly you will not go far

First comparing the Royal Marines to the USMC is unfair to the Royal Marines because, The Royal Marines have always operated in a Different Doctrinal set then the USMC. Both are Marines, but the Royal Marines are closer to light infantry/ Airborne then the USMC.

This is how the USMC goes to war.
Armored vehicles, AMTRACs , Tanks, Logistics, All organic to the force I mean this is for some nations a strong army
The Royal Marines bring Viking cargo carriers,
Land Rovers, Jackals
Pinzgaurd Trucks

105mm howitzers and mortars.
though they have landing craft. There LCAC carries a payload Equal to an American AAV7A1 with no armor. There largest landing craft are the MK 10 LCU which can carry 1 tank 4 vehicles or 120 infantry, below that is the Mk5 LCVP rated for a 3 man crew with 35 marines basically a update of the Higgins boats from WW2 and Rigid hull inflatable.

The RMC Command helicopter force of the Fleet Air Wing 3 squadrons of helicopters 2 with the Merlin medium lift choppers roughly equal to the MV22 in load but not speed. and one with the AW159 Wildcat, lighter in passenger loads to the UH1Y but can be better armed.
I mean already the RMC is closer to Airborne then the USMC.

TerraN_EmpirE said:

First comparing the Royal Marines to the USMC is unfair to the Royal Marines because, The Royal Marines have always operated in a Different Doctrinal set then the USMC. Both are Marines, but the Royal Marines are closer to light infantry/ Airborne then the USMC.
View attachment 43613
This is how the USMC goes to war.
Armored vehicles, AMTRACs , Tanks, Logistics, All organic to the force I mean this is for some nations a strong army
The Royal Marines bring Viking cargo carriers,
Land Rovers, Jackals
Pinzgaurd Trucks

105mm howitzers and mortars.
though they have landing craft. There LCAC carries a payload Equal to an American AAV7A1 with no armor. There largest landing craft are the MK 10 LCU which can carry 1 tank 4 vehicles or 120 infantry, below that is the Mk5 LCVP rated for a 3 man crew with 35 marines basically a update of the Higgins boats from WW2 and Rigid hull inflatable.

The RMC Command helicopter force of the Fleet Air Wing 3 squadrons of helicopters 2 with the Merlin medium lift choppers roughly equal to the MV22 in load but not speed. and one with the AW159 Wildcat, lighter in passenger loads to the UH1Y but can be better armed.
I mean already the RMC is closer to Airborne then the USMC.

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Agree for Royal Marines
For USMC on the fund your right but USMC Infantry Bns are also " only " motorized with trucks etc...

AAV-7 are rattached to an independent and enormous Bn Assault Amphibian Battalion Rgt for size but only 1200 pers coz ofc only drivers etc... with 233 vehicles including 213 AAVP-7A1 provide transport surely possible to 3 Bns but a Division ( the 1st is reinforced with in facts Bns of the 3rd ) have 9 Bns
PS these units exist since WWII with LVT family fight in first to Guadalcanal

For artillery also don't have SPG use M-777/Himars have replaced M-198
In 1989 according NATO ORDER OF BATTLE 1989 files one of the 4 Artillery Bns in a Rgt had a M-109 Bn only Army have MLRS

In more 3 Tank Bns for 4 Divisions

So saying mixed motorised/Mechanised

MBDA Sea Venom ASM dropping from the Lynx Mk8 testbed

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RAF Typhoon aircraft along-side a Qatar Mirage 2000-5

"Last year, responding to a Freedom of Information (FOI) request, the MoD confirmed the six Type-45 destroyers had spent a combined 1,515 days in UK ports for the year starting April 2015."
All Six Royal Navy Destroyers Now In Port After HMS Diamond Returns
Fri, 01/12/2017

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1515/6 = 252.5
if it's what it appears to be, it's again time for Apr 1, 2016

Jura said:

all I can say is God Save The Queen ...

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of course France ready to host Royal Marines if UK amphibious assault ships are axed

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The French Navy is considering allowing UK’s Royal Marines greater access to its amphibious ships should the Royal Navy’s HMS Bulwark and HMS Albion amphibious assault ships be axed as part of defense cuts.

This was revealed by senior French officials, according to a report in Financial Times, who said that the French Navy was ready to allow the Royal Marines to embark one of its Mistral-class amphibious assault ships.

The report comes at a time of widespread fears of possible cuts to the Royal Navy’s amphibious assault fleet ahead of a new UK defense and security review.

According to the FT report, the cooperation could be organized within the 2010 Lancaster House treaty signed between France and the UK with the aim of developing an improved cooperation between British and French Armed Forces including a joint use of equipment and materials.

While any official comments on the possible improved cooperation between the two countries are yet to be made, this would not be the first time for France and the UK to cooperate aboard Mistral-class LHDs.

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, BPC Mistral embarked two Royal Navy Mk3 Merlin helicopters from the UK’s Commando Helicopter Force for a five-month deployment to the Indian Ocean.

In addition to UK troops, French amphibious ships are a platform for cooperation with other allies. Another Mistral-class ship, BPC Tonnerre,

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embarked US marines from Naval Amphibious Force, Task Force 51, 5th Marine Expeditionary Brigade (TF 51/5) and the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit for a deployment to the US 5th Fleet area of operations.

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TerraN_EmpirE said:

First comparing ...

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thought you might want to comment on UK and US Strike Brigade Comparison

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I found this piece of news that says that Brasil has officially opened negotiations to acquire HMA Ocean



First mention appeared here

Jura said:

thought you might want to comment on UK and US Strike Brigade Comparison

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a bit of Back to the Future.
What is reads like is that the US Army and British army are both now thinking of trying to reestablish Armored Cavalry Regiments. That is a Formation of Armored vehicle, Aviation assets and organic artillery. ACR's were used extensively before the Current Brigade combat team phase started around the end of the 1999's with the Objective force.
These new Strike Brigades like the Current Stryker BCT still have major issues to fix. First is getting there. The Royal Airforce is nowhere near as large as the USAF and lacks the mega lift of the C5M, raw numbers of the 222 C17, but actually has a better tactical lifter in the A400M well also having C130's but not in the raw numbers. yet still the USAF struggles with rapid deployment of the lighter weight Stryker Interim Armored Vehicle.
I mean Stryker is half the weight of Boxer and Ajax. So deploying such an asset will need a major logistics investment. I mean the British just moved from an 8 tonnes scout to a 38 tonnes. which means The British will be needing perhaps more than ever there Point class Sealift capacity. or to make a major investment in A400M.
Good news side though if you wanted to build a Brigade on common chassis the Boxer and Ajax are not bad choices.
Boxer has as options IFV, APC, Logistics, Command post, Ambulance, recovery vehicle, engineering vehicle even a 155mm Howitzer. Ajax ASCOD base can also be outfitted as such to. moving to a common chassis tends to streamline logistics.
bad news a major step up in aviation would also be needed I mean the RSSG version of the Concept calls for 32 Attack helicopters alone that is almost half the number of Apaches in the British inventory the the other asks for 12 or roughly 1/6th although more reasonable it just shows that more investment would still be needed. There is also the increasing need of Short range Air defence as Drones have moved to the killer role.
The biggest killer is and remains $$$$$$$$ oh... wait I am sorry I meant ££££££££. It will demand a major investment.

It seems likely that the US Army will be moving to a new Vehicle concept in the next decade, the FCS, the GCCV and now the NGCV all show smoke and where Smoke there's fire. The Bradley ECP, Abrams SEP v3, M109A7 and Stryker IAV are all placeholders for some future concept that always seems pushed off again.

Trafalgar in Suez Canal !