British Military Current Events

[Kirkhill]

Interestingly, 29 Commando is the gunner regiment for 3 Cdo Bde, and they don't spend much time talking about the guns on this video.

Perhaps because the L118s would slow down a raiding force. With its 10 to 15 km range, logistical and manpower and surveying requirements.

Even the M777 is of marginal utility for a raiding force unless it is a local raid under the umbrella of an existing M777 emplacement (20 to 70 km).

HIMARS, Ships, Helos, Air and "exotics" (Submarine Launched Hypervelocity Missiles?) seem to offer a much wider umbrella.

One really interesting comment was about the FOO/FAC team having at its disposal (I presumable that's what the gunner meant when he said "disposable" F35.

The thought of having your own personal F35 flying top cover - comms node, situational awareness, fire support in extremis with loitering small diameter bombs. And the information that Air/Ground team can supply, and the effects they can deliver before they have to expose themselves to the enemy.... Don't you think it is indicative of new realities more than just playing at being shape shifting ninjas?

 

[daftandbarmy]

Perhaps because the L118s would slow down a raiding force. With its 10 to 15 km range, logistical and manpower and surveying requirements.

Even the M777 is of marginal utility for a raiding force unless it is a local raid under the umbrella of an existing M777 emplacement (20 to 70 km).

HIMARS, Ships, Helos, Air and "exotics" (Submarine Launched Hypervelocity Missiles?) seem to offer a much wider umbrella.

One really interesting comment was about the FOO/FAC team having at its disposal (I presumable that's what the gunner meant when he said "disposable" F35.

The thought of having your own personal F35 flying top cover - comms node, situational awareness, fire support in extremis with loitering small diameter bombs. And the information that Air/Ground team can supply, and the effects they can deliver before they have to expose themselves to the enemy.... Don't you think it is indicative of new realities more than just playing at being shape shifting ninjas?

It's hard to be an invisible ninja on a coral atoll in the middle of the ocean.

What this all means, of course, is a much heavier reliance on the Navy to save their bacon than ever before IMHO.

 

[Kirkhill]

It's hard to be an invisible ninja on a coral atoll in the middle of the ocean.

What this all means, of course, is a much heavier reliance on the Navy to save their bacon than ever before IMHO.

Likewise it is hard to emplace an L118 battery on a coral atoll.

And yes there will be more jointery. Spotters and jungly islands and 200 km missiles and F35 recces.

 

[blacktriangle]

Likewise it is hard to emplace an L118 battery on a coral atoll.

And yes there will be more jointery. Spotters and jungly islands and 200 km missiles and F35 recces.

Enabling NGS & LRPF seems like yet another good reason for maintaining well-trained light forces. Navies probably like Marines that bring them targets.

I'd still want my own organic fires, though. Something that can better support forces spread over a wider area. Maybe it's something like HIMARS or NMESIS. Maybe it's something else. As long as it's in range, and can be called upon when needed.

 

[Kirkhill]

Enabling NGS & LRPF seems like yet another good reason for maintaining well-trained light forces. Navies probably like Marines that bring them targets.

I'd still want my own organic fires, though. Something that can better support forces spread over a wider area. Maybe it's something like HIMARS or NMESIS. Maybe it's something else. As long as it's in range, and can be called upon when needed.

The question, as far as I am concerned, is are you planning on staying for a while? Or do you just want to make sure the other guy doesn't hang around?

 

[daftandbarmy]

Enabling NGS & LRPF seems like yet another good reason for maintaining well-trained light forces. Navies probably like Marines that bring them targets.

I'd still want my own organic fires, though. Something that can better support forces spread over a wider area. Maybe it's something like HIMARS or NMESIS. Maybe it's something else. As long as it's in range, and can be called upon when needed.

As I recall, the US Army and USMC added artillery, tanks and other bits and pieces to their tool boxes as they progressed their Island hopping campaigns in the Pacific Theatre of WW2. IIRS the need was to overwhelm the defenders as fast as possible, with firepower, so the Navy wasn't forced to hang around waiting, as sitting ducks, for too long.

I understand the threat we face might not be the same, but it's potentially not far off.

 

[daftandbarmy]

Departing Pompey for a spot of Golly Bashing....

HMS Queen Elizabeth: Royal Navy carrier strike group 'ready' to launch attacks on Islamic State terrorists with F-35 stealth jets​

BRITAIN’S new carrier strike group is ‘ready’ to wage a deadly air campaign against the ‘sanctuaries’ of barbaric terror groups in Iraq and Syria, military top brass have insisted ahead of the naval fleet’s maiden mission.



Eighteen F-35B Lightning II stealth jets, supported by military teams from Portsmouth, will be used in the operation to weed out the last remnants of the so-called Islamic State terror group.

Embarked on the Royal Navy’s new flagship, HMS Queen Elizabeth, the jets will conduct airstrikes and surveillance missions on key IS positions.
The £3.2bn warship, carrying eight RAF F35B stealth fighter jets and 10 from the US Marine Corps, will depart tonight for Asia accompanied by six Royal Navy ships, a submarine, 14 naval helicopters and a company of Royal Marines.

Carrier strike group ready to launch airstrikes against IS terrorist 'sanctuaries'

BRITAIN’S new carrier strike group is ‘ready’ to wage a deadly air campaign against the ‘sanctuaries’ of barbaric terror groups in Iraq and Syria, military top brass have insisted ahead of the naval fleet’s maiden mission.

www.portsmouth.co.uk

 

[FJAG]

Departing Pompey for a spot of Golly Bashing....

HMS Queen Elizabeth: Royal Navy carrier strike group 'ready' to launch attacks on Islamic State terrorists with F-35 stealth jets​

BRITAIN’S new carrier strike group is ‘ready’ to wage a deadly air campaign against the ‘sanctuaries’ of barbaric terror groups in Iraq and Syria, military top brass have insisted ahead of the naval fleet’s maiden mission.



Eighteen F-35B Lightning II stealth jets, supported by military teams from Portsmouth, will be used in the operation to weed out the last remnants of the so-called Islamic State terror group.

Embarked on the Royal Navy’s new flagship, HMS Queen Elizabeth, the jets will conduct airstrikes and surveillance missions on key IS positions.
The £3.2bn warship, carrying eight RAF F35B stealth fighter jets and 10 from the US Marine Corps, will depart tonight for Asia accompanied by six Royal Navy ships, a submarine, 14 naval helicopters and a company of Royal Marines.

Carrier strike group ready to launch airstrikes against IS terrorist 'sanctuaries'

BRITAIN’S new carrier strike group is ‘ready’ to wage a deadly air campaign against the ‘sanctuaries’ of barbaric terror groups in Iraq and Syria, military top brass have insisted ahead of the naval fleet’s maiden mission.

www.portsmouth.co.uk

Okay. This makes little sense to me. They're using a multi-billion $ aircraft carrier and fifth generation jets to pound a bunch of rinky dink terrorists out of their cellars, a job that could be done by significantly lower tech, lower cost resources.

I have the jaded feeling that this is more in the nature of an advanced exercise to test out the systems and perhaps to show off the new toy the Navy has been given to play with.

 

[daftandbarmy]

Okay. This makes little sense to me. They're using a multi-billion $ aircraft carrier and fifth generation jets to pound a bunch of rinky dink terrorists out of their cellars, a job that could be done by significantly lower tech, lower cost resources.

I have the jaded feeling that this is more in the nature of an advanced exercise to test out the systems and perhaps to show off the new toy the Navy has been given to play with.

I assume you've heard of the term 'Gunboat Diplomacy'?

 

[FJAG]

I assume you've heard of the term 'Gunboat Diplomacy'?

This is the type of gunboat that the term refers to:

Not this one:

 

[blacktriangle]

Okay. This makes little sense to me. They're using a multi-billion $ aircraft carrier and fifth generation jets to pound a bunch of rinky dink terrorists out of their cellars, a job that could be done by significantly lower tech, lower cost resources.

I have the jaded feeling that this is more in the nature of an advanced exercise to test out the systems and perhaps to show off the new toy the Navy has been given to play with.

I don't really follow the Iraq/Syria stuff much anymore, but if they are actually penetrating Syrian airspace, perhaps that justifies the capability? Like you said, it's essentially an operational evaluation of their new hardware. Any Daesh targets are probably just the icing on the cake.

 

[FJAG]

I don't really follow the Iraq/Syria stuff much anymore, but if they are actually penetrating Syrian airspace, perhaps that justifies the capability? Like you said, it's essentially an operational evaluation of their new hardware. Any Daesh targets are probably just the icing on the cake.

How much do we wish to expose fifth generation operational gear and procedures in airspace where the Russians have more snooping gear than anywhere else but Russia?

 

[blacktriangle]

How much do we wish to expose fifth generation operational gear and procedures in airspace where the Russians have more snooping gear than anywhere else but Russia?

F-22s and F-35s have already been operating in that airspace for quite some time, so perhaps the Brits just want to have their turn. I understand your point of view, however.

 

[daftandbarmy]

How much do we wish to expose fifth generation operational gear and procedures in airspace where the Russians have more snooping gear than anywhere else but Russia?

If your country is freshly separated from the EU and you want to show the big boys that you're up to the job of 'World Police', just to help with the national brand in the knowledge that trade deals will be easier to negotiate, you'll happily join in with Uncle Sam and the crusade against ISIS etc.

 

[Kirkhill]

If your country is freshly separated from the EU and you want to show the big boys that you're up to the job of 'World Police', just to help with the national brand in the knowledge that trade deals will be easier to negotiate, you'll happily join in with Uncle Sam and the crusade against ISIS etc.

She also sails against the backdrop of the Diego Garcia dispute

Diego Garcia is just one of some 60 tropical islands in the Chagos archipelago. In 1965, the administration of the archipelago was transferred from Mauritius, in somewhat dubious circumstances, shortly before Mauritius gained independence. In 1973, the last of the workers who serviced the coconut plantations were removed from the island and Diego Garcia was leased to the United States for military purposes. Britain retains notional administration over the now otherwise uninhabited archipelago, as the British Indian Ocean Territory.

Virtually since independence, Mauritius has claimed sovereignty over the islands, but its campaign to regain them from Britain is now gathering steam. In 2017, the dispute was referred to the International Court of Justice, which delivered an advisory opinion in firmly favour of Mauritius. In May this year the United Nations General Assembly, by an extraordinary margin of 116 for to 6 against, voted on a deadline for Britain to return of the territory to Mauritius. Australia was one of only a handful of countries that supported Britain. The UN deadline predictably passed on 22 November without any action or even formal response from London.

Mauritius will continue to campaign for the return of the Chagos. The loss of support for Britain (and the United States) by traditional alliance partners in the UN is startling and will further embolden those campaigning for return of the islands. Mauritius has previously relied on polite diplomacy to pressure Britain, but that may now change.

We are likely to see Mauritius ramping up its tactics to embarrass Britain and the United States over the issue. This includes plans to send a ship with displaced islanders and their descendants to land on the disputed islands, which will inevitably be interdicted. This and other tactics could get ugly, creating real moral questions over British and US claims to support for the so-called “rules-based order”.

Australia’s stance on Diego Garcia dispute is increasingly untenable

A window is fast closing to resolve Mauritian claims to the Chagos archipelago and secure a crucial US base.

www.lowyinstitute.org

There isn't a lot of land in the Indian Ocean and Diego has been an important, if not critical, staging post (like Guam).

Alternative solutions likely would be appreciated. - Oman, Singapore/Malaysia and Brunei with a relocatable island likely could be useful.

 

[Good2Golf]

Cue China rushing to support Mauritius’ case for return of the Chagos Islands???

 

[daftandbarmy]

Ranger up! SOF needs a breather...

Why the UK is investing in a new ranger regiment​

WASHINGTON — The decision by the United Kingdom to create a new ranger regiment was driven by a need to place long-term special operations capabilities in partner countries, with a key focus on the African continent, according to the chief of the British Army.
Gen. Mark Carleton-Smith, the Army’s chief of the general staff, told Defense News during a recent visit to Washington that the creation of the new unit is based around the fact that “the future is growing unpredictability, and [with] uncertainty and volatility.”

The new regiment, made up of four battalions, is expected to come online before the end of the year. U.K. officials said the group is actively modeled on the American Green Berets. Britain’s recent integrated review of defense, security, foreign policy and international development called for £120 million (U.S. $170 million) over the next four years for the unit.

Asked why Britain would create the unit now when the country and the U.S. are jointly focused on great power competition and drawdowns in the Middle East, Carleton-Smith pointed to the experience in Iraq and Afghanistan, which he described as being “engaged in a campaign of proxy management,” one where the allied special forces focused on building local partner capacity.

“That’s a long-term game and a long-term investment, but it’s also a specialist sport, particularly with respects to the cultural dimension. It’s also become almost a house style,” Carleton-Smith said. “And we think in the future that house style is going to have greater applicability in regions of the world such as Africa, which continues to incubate violent extremist threats. And we therefore needed to build greater capacity.”

The challenge will be building partners’ capabilities while transforming Britain’s existing “tier one” special operations forces to prepare them for great power challenges, the general said. “In order to find that time and the resources for that [transformation], they will need to relinquish some of the responsibilities that have been their daily diet in the post-9/11 world and hand off responsibility to the conventional force,” he explained.
Hence, the rangers, who will “give us the capacity for raising, training, mentoring, advising and accompanying local surrogates in high-threat and hostile environments, a role that was previously almost the exclusive preserve of our tier one special forces, but we now need within the conventional force as well.”

Why the UK is investing in a new ranger regiment

Gen. Mark Carleton-Smith, the Army’s chief of the general staff, explains the creation of a new unit based on America's Green Berets.

www.defensenews.com

 

[Blackadder1916]

Jude makes history as first woman admiral

For the first time in the centuries-long history of the Royal Navy, a woman officer will be appointed to the rank of admiral.

www.royalnavy.mod.uk

Jude makes history as first woman admiral​

For the first time in the centuries-long history of the Royal Navy, a woman officer will be appointed to the rank of admiral.

Commodore Jude Terry, who has served her nation and Navy for nearly a quarter of a century, has been selected for promotion to rear admiral – making her the most senior woman in the Royal Navy, past or present.

She will be responsible for sailors and Royal Marines from the moment they are recruited to their final day in Service – spanning their entire careers by overseeing training, welfare and career management.

The 47-year-old from Jersey will be promoted to rear admiral next year and take over as the Royal Navy’s Director of People and Training and Naval Secretary.

Of making history she says simply “someone has to be first”. She continued:

“I have always thought of myself as a naval officer first, then a logistics officer, then Jude and finally as a female. The Navy genuinely doesn’t look at your gender and is an equal opportunities employer – it wants you to be part of a team and deliver outputs to support operations.

“I have been really lucky throughout my career. I’ve enjoyed great jobs, wonderful support from my family, worked with great people, seized the opportunity to see the world and contribute to a number of operations which have made a difference to people’s lives including Afghanistan, Somalia and Sierra Leone to name a few.”

She currently serves as deputy director of the department she is earmarked to take over, with the goal of helping to shape the Royal Navy and its people up to 2040.

Jude? Isn't that the patron saint of lost causes?

 

[dimsum]

Jude makes history as first woman admiral

For the first time in the centuries-long history of the Royal Navy, a woman officer will be appointed to the rank of admiral.

www.royalnavy.mod.uk

I'm actually surprised the RN hasn't had a female RAdm (or higher) already.

 

[Blackadder1916]

I'm actually surprised the RN hasn't had a female RAdm (or higher) already.

Only if you count the Princess Royal

https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/60271/supplement/17883

Vice Admiral Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal KG KT GCVO QSO to be promoted to Admiral with effect from 15th August 2012 and to be Admiral, Chief Commandant for Women in the Royal Navy

Otherwise, there are currently six female commodores in the Royal Navy and 19 women holding the rank of captain. (according to this article). I assume the six include Cmdre Terry who isn't scheduled to be made RAdm until August next year.