The First Sea Lord’s upbeat message about the state of the Royal Navy
Ahead of the First Sea Lord’s conference for RN personnel held on 10 September, Admiral Tony Radakin posted a series of Tweets highlighting progress in transforming the navy. This is a brief analysis of his messages and the state of the RN right now.
Photo essay – the Carrier Strike Group – operations in the Pacific
The UK Carrier Strike Group arrived in the North Pacific in early August. This photo and video essay covers the activities of the group during the subsequent 5 weeks.
Royal Navy warships sail for permanent basing in the Indo-Pacific region
Two brand new Offshore Patrol Vessels have sailed for the Indo-Pacific where they are expected to spend the next five years or more. Here we look at the outline plan for this deployment and the wider implications of basing these ships in this vast area.
Contracts awarded to four consortia to develop bids for the Fleet Solid Support ship competition
The MoD has announced the award of Competitive Procurement Phase (CPP) contracts to bidders to enable them to develop their design and construction proposals for the £1.5Bn Fleet Solid Support ship project.
Contenders for the Royal Navy’s interim anti-ship missile requirement
The announcement of the shortlisted options for the Royal Navy’s Interim Surface-to-Surface Guided Weapon (I-SSGW) competition should be made soon. Here we assess the background to the procurement and the likely candidates.
RFA Wave Knight supports the aid effort following earthquake in Haiti
RFA Wave Knight deployed to the Caribbean in May 2021, primarily to provide aid to overseas territories in the event of natural disasters. Following the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that hit Western Haiti on 14 August, she has now joined the US-led Task Force Bravo relief effort.
Understanding the Royal Navy’s littoral response group concept
The Integrated Review promised Royal Navy’s future amphibious capability would be built around two Littoral Response Groups (LRG). Here we look at how this will be delivered, the strategic questions raised.
Risky business? – Royal Navy goes “all in” with autonomous mine warfare
Tony Carruthers spent 8 years as an officer serving in Royal Navy minehunters. Here he articulates some of the concerns about exchanging crewed mine countermeasures vessels for autonomous systems.
Carrier Strike Group interactions with Chinese vessels described as “safe and professional”
Between the 26th of July and 1st of August, the UK-led Carrier Strike Group sailed north through the South China Sea. Details of what transpired during that week are limited but here we assess what is in the public domain.
First torpedo dropped by RAF MRA1 Poseidon aircraft
The programme to restore UK maritime patrol aircraft capability reached another milestone on 22nd July with the first weapon release from a British MRA1 Poseidon. The ability to both detect submarine targets and deliver torpedoes without warning at long ranges is one of the key advantages of the aircraft.
Abandon Ship – Book Review
£14.23 (Hardback) £9.38 (Kindle) Maritime historian, Dr Paul Brown recently published Abandon Ship described as “The real story of the sinkings in the Falklands War”. This is an engaging, if rather an uncomfortable book, based more on written and documentary evidence than personal experiences which informs much of the Falklands conflict literature.
Photo essay – the Carrier Strike Group – from Suez to the South China Sea
In this photo essay, we cover the journey of the Carrier Strike Group as it passed through the Suez Canal heading east, taking a mostly direct route and arriving in the South China Sea less than three weeks later.
