UK Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

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.

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Royal Navy Submarine Incident Kills Two During Ice Exercise
Story Number: NNS070321-15
Release Date: 3/21/2007 5:40:00 PM

From Commander, Submarine Force Public Affairs

NORFOLK, Va. (NNS) -- The Royal Navy submarine HMS Tireless, participating in the Joint U.S. Navy/Royal Navy Ice Exercise 2007 (ICEX-2007) in the Arctic Ocean, experienced an explosion of a self contained oxygen generation candle that killed two crew members and injured one.

The explosion occurred at approximately 12:20 a.m. (EDT) March 21.

The injured member of the crew has been transported by an Alaska Air National Guard C-130 to Anchorage for treatment.

“I am deeply saddened at the loss of the crewmembers from the Tireless,” said Vice Adm. Jay Donnelly, Commander, Submarine Force. “Submariners are brothers at sea and we all feel the loss as if it were our own. We stand by to continue to assist in any way we can.”

ICEX-2007 and Royal Navy officials have confirmed that the Tireless is safe and operational and that a full assessment is being conducted.

Tireless is commanded by Cdr. Iain Breckenridge of the Royal Navy. It is home ported in Plymouth, Devon, and has been operating with the USS Alexandria (SSN 757), in joint testing on submarine operability and tactical development in Arctic waters.

The U.S. Navy and Royal Navy Arctic cooperation represents an excellent example of the shared vision and resources the two navies enjoy. Since 1986, every Arctic tactical exercise has involved both U.S. Navy and Royal Navy submarines.

The U.S. submarine force conducts exercises in waters around the globe, including the Arctic, in order to guarantee assured access to any ocean in the world. The
submarine force continues to use the Arctic Ocean as an alternate route for shifting submarines between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. U.S. submarines must continue to train in the Arctic environment to refine and validate procedures and required equipment in support of operational safety.

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bd popeye said:

My condolences to the families of those lost and the RN.

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FuManChu said:

I'm sure they will appreciate it. Thanks for your thoughts, Popeye. I know my prayers are with them.

Reminds you of that horrible episode with the US sub, doesn't it?

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The permanent ice pack at the North Pole has retreated 100 miles north in recent years and can thin in the summer to as little as 6ft. ..
Ice on the Arctic has diminished by 40% in the past 20 years, according to research.

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UK sailors captured at gunpoint

The sailors and marines are from HMS Cornwall.

Fifteen British Navy personnel have been captured at gunpoint by Iranian forces, the Ministry of Defence says. The men were seized at 1030 local time when they boarded a boat in the Gulf, off the coast of Iraq, which they suspected was smuggling cars.

The Royal Navy said the men, who were on a routine patrol in Iraqi waters, were understood to be unharmed.

The Foreign Office has demanded the immediate and safe return of the men, who are based on HMS Cornwall.

That vessel's commander, Commodore Nick Lambert, said he was hoping there had been a "simple mistake" over territorial waters.

"There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that they [British personnel] were in Iraqi territorial waters. Equally, the Iranians may claim they were in Iranian waters.

"I hope we find this is a simple misunderstanding at the tactical level."

Helicopters had reported seeing two British boats being moved to Iranian bases and there had been no evidence of fighting, he added.

He said that despite scant communication, the 15 people were understood to be safe and had reacted in an "extremely professional way, in line with the rules of engagement".

"I look forward to seeing them on their return and congratulating them."

He said naval authorities were doing everything possible to ensure their safe return.

The Ministry of Defence said: "The group boarding party had completed a successful inspection of a merchant ship when they and their two boats were surrounded and escorted by Iranian vessels into Iranian territorial waters.

"We are urgently pursuing this matter with the Iranian authorities at the highest level.

"The British government is demanding the immediate and safe return of our people and equipment."

Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett has summoned the Iranian ambassador in London to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, in an attempt to get the men released as quickly as possible.

In a statement, leader of the Liberal Democrats, Sir Menzies Campbell, also called for their immediate release.

"Whatever the rights and wrongs of military action, British forces in Iraq are now there with the authority of a UN security council resolution... and the Iranian government should be left in no doubt of the serious implications of their action," he said.

FAMILY INFORMATION LINE
(UK) 0845 7800 900

The incident comes as British Army Colonel Justin Masherevski, who is based in Iraq, says most of the violence against UK forces in Basra is being engineered by Iranian elements.

Col Masherevski said Iran was providing "sophisticated weaponry" to insurgents and "Iranian agents" were paying local men to attack British troops.

In 2004, Iran detained eight British servicemen for three days after they allegedly strayed over the maritime border.

The UK claimed the men were "forcibly escorted" into Iranian territorial waters.

While they were being held, the men were paraded blindfold and made to apologise on Iranian TV before their release was agreed.

The BBC's diplomatic correspondent James Robbins said the difference this time, and a cause of concern, is that the present Iranian government under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was much more hardline.

"The political climate is worse with Britain among those confronting Iran over its controversial nuclear programme," he added.

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bd popeye said:

This is the second incident of this type since Gulf War II began.

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FuManChu said:

I hope this was a mistake, but I have a feeling it was done deliberately given the new round of sanctions being proposed. It's almost as if the Iranians are trying to provoke military action.

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bd popeye said:

I have to wonder how far the RN sailors ship, HMS Cornwall, was from the seizure? It must have been a distance far enough away that the Iranians felt comfortable in their actions.

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You know the US conducts these sort of operations daily for years in the Gulf. Golly gee...I wonder why Iran has avoided confrontation with the USN??

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Maybe the USN provides more close-in support during these sorts of checks. But certainly if these lads aren't returned soon the RN will take a more aggressive posture.

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