The State of the Royal Navy 2007

[rumrat]

This chart shows all the R.N Fleet in 2007 not much is there, I hope nobody tries to invade or we'll but the creek without the proverbial.

Dave

[CYLLA]

hi DAVE
now that's just like today's government ,.....showing what/not ...what we have got .
A few there still no at sea .........a percentage laid up .



cylla

[astraltrader]

Dave - Dont we still have HMS Bristol in some sort of training capacity?

[rumrat]

Re BRISTOL i don;t think she's part of the fleet so to speak isn't she a sea cadet and general training facility?Certainly she's never been farther than the dockyard wall for many a year to my knowledge.

Dave

[Commodore Armiger]

These charts are very misleading. Many people know that at least one of the carriers and one of the Trident subs is under major re-fit at any given moment. But what of the rest? Most of the patrol craft for example are training vessels. And have we the trained crews and shore personnel to bring the ships that are currently out of use back to operational readiness quickly (if at all)?

[astraltrader]

Sure I realise that Dave - I just thought that would technically still make her part of the fleet. Let`s face it we have to scrabble about to make up the numbers to keep them above the size usually associated with a coastal force!

[Melv.]

...and you can strike HMS Nottingham off the list as it is returning to Portsmouth to be paid-off and sold-off (or scrapped) after having a recent multi-million pound re-fit.

[Harley]

I remember all this blowing up last year - and yet it's already passed into obscurity.

Many people are aware I'm sure that there would always be one through-deck command cruiser (sorry, can't resist that godawful term) in drydock. However, most aren't aware that out of the three we have one is now mothballed and would presumably take a lot of work and manpower to put back into commission.

I do wonder where the thousands of people to man the new carriers is going to come from. At any rate, I will be watching "Warship" tonight on Five (UK Terrestrial channel) at 9 which follows ''Illustrious'' on deployment. Since I have "Sailor" on video, I will probably cry if I try to compare the two...

Harley

[Odin]

I'm sure it is worse than the poster suggests - not sure any of the Type 22s are actually in use. Also the Type 45s (Darings) that have been built are probably not yet fully operational. Plus with other ships in refit / mothballs leaves a pretty woeful Navy. In addition there are some errors - Simitar and Sable aren't P2000s - they are the ex-Grey Wolf and Grey Fox from NI patrol days. But they do have an 'operational role', unlike the P2000s which are training vessels for the University RN Units.

The new carriers (CVFs) will be interesting if we ever get them as there will be going back more to the older style carriers with bigger planes / payloads. They will be three times the size of the current Invincible Class and at least they will be bigger than the French Charles de Gaulle. I think the Crew will be around 1200 (half of which are aircrew related). So manning could be an even bigger issue in a few years time with the Navy shrinking ever smaller.

[astraltrader]

Yet alone what bloody planes we will have to fly from them. As things stand at present we will have a handful of elderly Harriers!

[jbryce1437]

I dont think that HMS Bristol is capable of going anywhere under her own steam and is little more than a floating hostel.

[Joseph]

I'm not sure its the number of ships that we have, as ships taken up from trade (STUFT) can have most weapon systems clamped on in containers or turned into assault ships.
But as already mentioned the personnel to man them and quickly bring them to some sort of efficiency would be the question. Has the navy got the people to train up the pensioners and reserves that would be first into the breach, 5 or 15 years in today's fast changing world could mean the difference between Seacat or Seaslug trained to Principal Anti-Aircraft Missile System (PAAMS) and Electro-Optical Gunfire Control System (EOGCS).
That's hoping the engines, guns, sensors and supply department are all automatic.

Regards Charles