by Haijun watcher » Sat Feb 20, 2021 4:33 pm
Forbes
In an Emergency, The Royal Navy Might Have No Choice But To Stick Missiles On Its Patrol Ships
David AxeForbes Staff
Aerospace & Defense
I write about ships, planes, tanks, drones, missiles and satellites.
As successive rounds of budget cuts bit deeply into the Royal Navy�s front-line strength a few years back, the British fleet got a consolation prize: five new small, lightly-armed offshore patrol vessels that the government claimed would offset reductions in frigates and destroyers.
As currently equipped, the BAE Systems-built Batch 2 River-class OPVs, the last of which was commissioned in January, aren�t capable of fighting and surviving in a major war. �None of those gap-fillers provide the full capabilities or presence that additional high-end surface combatants would bring,� said naval analyst Eric Wertheim, author of Combat Fleets of the World.
But a few key additions could transform the $160-million-apiece OPVs into credible combatants. Albeit very small ones.
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[url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/davidaxe/2021/02/19/in-an-emergency-the-royal-navy-might-have-no-choice-but-to-stick-missiles-on-its-patrol-ships/?sh=3b4b54c324f4&fbclid=IwAR33j77tvE0hPk282dXEhBZf8H5_KsNTRusTJnNL2Zlh6h-pxtR9BWbDvjc]Forbes[/url]
[quote] [b][size=200] In an Emergency, The Royal Navy Might Have No Choice But To Stick Missiles On Its Patrol Ships[/size][/b]
David AxeForbes Staff
Aerospace & Defense
I write about ships, planes, tanks, drones, missiles and satellites.
As successive rounds of budget cuts bit deeply into the Royal Navy�s front-line strength a few years back, the British fleet got a consolation prize: five new small, lightly-armed offshore patrol vessels that the government claimed would offset reductions in frigates and destroyers.
[b][u] As currently equipped, the BAE Systems-built Batch 2 River-class OPVs, the last of which was commissioned in January, aren�t capable of fighting and surviving in a major war.[/u][/b] �None of those gap-fillers provide the full capabilities or presence that additional high-end surface combatants would bring,� said naval analyst Eric Wertheim, author of Combat Fleets of the World.
But a few key additions could transform the $160-million-apiece OPVs into credible combatants. Albeit very small ones.
(...SNIPPED)[/quote]