News blog

For many, the first admiral that springs to mind is Nelson. Today his descendant's, alongside the Hardy children issued a stern warning to the various groups campaigning for proper funding for the RN.

"Tough decisions lie ahead in the coming years, those who campaign need to work harder then ever before and gather support from all, working as a team, not just the hand picked." These damning words where particularly directed at the National Defence Association (UKNDA) which has yet to utilize the support offered from big names such as Nelson and Hardy. They are known to have considerable financial muscle alongside public political clout.

The Nelson and Hardy families are renown for staying out of naval debate and in the shadows. Untill now it seems.

Labels: Captain Hardy

The MoD recently surveyed 9,000 servicemen to gauge morale and attitudes. Worryingly, 47% of RN personnel are considering leaving. About 64% say morale in the RN is low. More than half of those who responded to the survey were not satisfied with standards of equipment and resources. The good news is that most officers and more than half of ratings are proud to serve in the RN despite the poor conditions. Although it is well known sailors like a grumble, with the current over-stretch caused by high tempo of operations, lack of money for new equipment, an ageing fleet and many ships putting to sea under-manned, these complaints are fully justified. There will be money for improving living accommodation in the next 10 years and this is welcome but most fundamentally, a heavy investment in manpower, ships, submarines and aircraft is what's really needed.

Recently we have received a few comments that the site is rather depressing and focused on the negative stories surrounding the RN. Where there are good news stories we do try to cover them (and wish there were more!) but this site is mainly designed to highlight how the government is underfunding the RN at present and how that will impact its' future. The RN is an amazing organisation, still very capable and doing all kinds of positive things around the world. However that capablity is in serious decline and we are trying to demonstrate this and call for change, often this means covering bad new stories. Anyway to keep you happy here a very few examples of the excellent work done by the RN in recent days: HMS Chatham, Montrose and Edinburgh seize 23 million of drugs in the gulf, HMS Endurance visits South Africa on a break from patrolling and supporting scientific community in Antarctica, Royal Marines and RN personnel continue to serve in the battle against the Taliban in Afganistan, RN vessels continue to patrol the gulf in support of the re-building of Iraq, clearing mines and maintaining the flow of oil. This is just scratching the surface...

At long last the £4.2 billion formal order for 2 mighty aircraft carriers that will form the core of the future RN have been placed. This is good news for a navy that aspires to global influence. But lets face it, this order has been placed not because this government understands the need for carriers, but rather for political ends - ie keeping mainly Scottish workers employed. The RN needs a balanced fleet of escorting ships, submarines and auxiliaries together with enough trained men to operate the carriers effectively and present government policy is starving the RN of these assets. The order for the carriers is a stick that policy makers can use to beat down any request to fund additional naval assets. There are many challenges and controversies around this project but most seriously, the new aircraft (JSF F35-B) that are supposed to fly from these ships will not be ready in time and these huge ships may initially put to sea ,flight decks empty but for a handful of worn out GR9 Harriers (which are currently being flogged hard in Afganistan) and a few helicopters. By 2014 (being optimistic, this is when the first carrier is supposed to be operational) the RN may not even have enough ships to escort them into hostile waters and these tempting targets will be either dependent of foreign co-operation or restricted to 'safe waters' hardly the point of £billion warships!

It has been confirmed that there will be no more orders for Type 45 air defence destroyers beyond the 6 already building. Given this government's laughable management of public finances, this comes as no surprise but clearly demonstrates the shambles of current defence policy which is driven purely by the treasury. The UK is committed to building 2 aircraft carriers and they will need escort ships. With just 6 Type 45s, the RN will probably only be able to maintain 2-3 fully operational at any given time. There were originally 14 Type 42s destroyers they are replacing and the 2004 Defence Review promised the RN 12 of these excellent ships. However capable they are, a ship can only be in one place at a time and we call for the full 12 to be built. It is a hard fact that the RN is being made to pay for the cost of the wars in Iraq and Afganistan at the expense of its future. The good news is that there is some sign of hope that the FSC (Future Surface Combatant - Frigate replacement program) maybe started sooner rather than later.

On Wednesday the Sun newspaper lead with a front page effectively blaming the RN for the death of 26 Dolphins in Cornwall. Although it is possible that low frequency sonar could cause distress to marine mammals, there were no RN vessels in the area using this type of sonar but the fact that there were warships in the area was sufficient for the media to jump to conclusions. (The reality is that the RN has precious few of the highly effective low frequency Type 2087 sonar sets). There have always been mass standings of dolphins and whales long before sonar was invented (in the 1930s) and to blame sonar is just "quasi-science" Add to this the Sun's website carried an embarrassing videophone recording of HMS Superb's executive officer foul-mouthed blasting of junior rates for incompetence. HMS Superb later hit a rock in the Red Sea and is currently in Souda Bay being inspected before returning, to the UK, possibly to be scrapped. The enquiry into the tragic death of 2 men aboard HMS Tireless when an oxygen generator exploded has found that the units became contaminated due to poor handling and storage by MoD logistics.
Searching for Good news this week; The F35B aircraft which should equip the new aircraft carriers flew for the first time in the US this week. The remaining Type 23 Frigates continue to be upgraded with new equipment, albeit slowly.

With HMS Nottingham silently decommissioned, HMS Exeter and HMS Southampton are still active (for another few months at least) but it has now been revealed their primary weapon system (The Sea Dart area air defence missile) has been disabled as a cost saving measure. The Sea Dart operators have been re-deployed to cover manpower shortages in other ships and the missiles removed and the system de-activated. Effectively they could not fulfill their primary role of defending ships from air attack. With this kind of 'invisible' cost saving measure, the government can keep the apparent numbers of active ships up when in fact 2 of then are 'lame ducks' operating without their main weapons. HMS Exeter recently deployed to the Mediterranean (minus Sea Dart - doubtless great for crew morale!) but is now confined to home waters and is doing little more than a PR jolly, touring UK ports. HMS Southampton is conducting local navigation training and she has also had her 2 phalanx CIWS guns removed. There are now only 5 active Sea Dart carrying ships to provide air defence for the entire fleet.

Together with the Fleet Air Arm, The RN submarine branch is suffering ongoing crew shortages (in particularly nuclear watch keepers who are vital to the safe operation of SSNs). Submarines are putting to sea short handed with sailors forced to cover the gaps. Why is this the case? It takes a particular type of person to be a submariner, especially in modern nukes which stay submerged for months at a time and rarley visit foreign ports. Competition from better paid '9 to 5' jobs ashore is leading to a retention problem. Even bonuses for joining and better pay than the surface fleet are failing to halt the decline in the number of submariners. With a shrinking and aging submarine fleet that has suffered a series of recent accidents and a service that offers average pay and a difficult lifestyle, more resources are urgently needed to recruit and retain RN submariners.

The RN continues to be plagued by a series of mishaps that are reported in the media (while the often more positive work of the RN is ignored). The latest in this series is that submarine HMS Superb, has hit a rock in the Red sea damaging her sonar and requiring urgent inspection in dry dock. Earlier this week, lewd pictures of RN sailors from HMS Illustrious on a run ashore in Instanbul were featured in the Turkish press 'offending Muslim sensitivities'. Whether you approve of this behavior or not, in most countries this would not be news but the crew should have been instructed to be more careful while ashore in a Muslim country. Also while in, Istanbul a flight-deck tractor fell overboard almost taking a Merlin helicopter with it. Additional recent problems have included; the infamous HMS Cornwall incident (2007) when her boarding party was kidnapped by Iran; An explosion aboard HMS Tireless killed 2 sailors (2007); HMS Grimsby hitting a rock in Norway (2006); recent revelations that tracing paper covering a chart was part of the reason HMS Trafalgar hit a rock doing £5 million damage in 2002. While naval accidents will always happen, It has to be asked if the general overstretch and lack of resources is forcing corners to be cut and the standards of training to fall? The only positive news on the PR front is the recent TV series "Warship" (currently being aired on Channel 5 on Monday nights) following HMS Illustrious on deployment which is a solid, if not outstanding, documentary on RN life and operations.

The Government is about to place the order for 2 giant aircraft carriers that will form the cornerstone of the future Royal navy. We broadly welcome this announcement although there are many political, financial and technical challenges to be overcome (see article) before these ships put to sea as effective units. Not least is the issue of their main armament, the Joint Strike Fighter which is undergoing a troubled development program in the US. Additionally these carriers will need escort ships and support vessels if they are to be a truly useful asset and there is little sign of a commitment to create a balanced future fleet. A cynic will say that these vessels have only been ordered to safeguard jobs in important Scottish Labour-held constituencies by a government that has little understanding of their strategic importance and value. Anyway we cautiously look forward to the day that a fully equipped and operational HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales put to sea, making the RN a first rank navy again.

According to an unconfirmed report, when HMS Nottingham returned from her recent South Atlantic Patrol on 25th April, the crew were told she would be going into "extended readiness" and will probably never go to sea again before she is decommissioned in 2010. The RN has just lost one more surface escort but the MoD has made no announcement, just quietly cutting another ship hoping no one will notice. Decommissioning her is particularly daft because in 2002 £39 million was spent on returning her to the UK and major repairs after hitting a rock off the coast of Australia. If it made sense to spend a large sum on returning her to service in 2002, then how much more is she needed in 2008 with a fleet desperately short of escorts and air defence vessels in particular?

Frigate HMS Westminster, deployed to the Indian Ocean has been ordered to stand off the coast of Burma ready to offer aid and assistance to the victims of the cyclone. Although it remains to be seen whether the despotic and negligent military government of Burma will accept desperately needed foreign aid, this is an excellent demonstration of the flexibility of naval forces and the value of having them deployed around the globe. Let's hope the RN is allowed to make a small but direct British contribution to helping the people of Burma.

The MoD has signed a contract with the newly formed Naval Design Partnership for a series of concept studies to develop the specification for the Future Surface Combatant. The FSC is the term used to cover the next generation of ships which are needed to replace the Type 22 and 23 Frigates currently in service. (it may also include other derivative designs to replace mine warfare, patrol and survey vessels) This kind of feasibility study is welcome but should have been done years ago. If the current ships are not to be run-on way longer than the approximately 25 years they were designed for, then orders for new ships are needed soon. By commissioning studies at little cost and leisurely pace, the government can claim they are working towards procuring new ships but without proper funding it is hard to envisage orders being placed in time. In the mean time the RN's over-stretched escort force is flogged hard and it is pretty certain their replacements will not be available in time, storing up problems for the future.

Good news... It appears that elderly Type 42 destroyers HMS Exeter and HMS Southampton will now serve until 2009 at least and reports of them going into "extended readiness" this summer are premature. However they are unlikely to leave UK waters.
The MoD has placed a £24m contract with BAE for refurbishment and repair of the RN's live and practice Spearfish heavyweight torpedoes. The contract is an extension of a 2005 deal worth £58m to supply submarine weapons. The MoD is considering the long-term options for for managing the heavyweight Spearfish and lightweight Sting Ray torpedoes throughout their lifespan. A decision on a long term contract for is expected by March 2009.
The bad news... Aside from these small developments, the "overwhelmed" MoD's finances continue to be in meltdown as the budget simply can't stretch to meet even its basic commitments and there is much speculation as to which equipment programmes will be slashed. The RN's Carrier programme seems safe as it is "politically convenient" for Gordon Brown, however virtually everything else is vulnerable to cuts or delays.

An excellent article in the Daily Telegraph further highlights the precarious postion of the RN's tiny harrier force. As we've pointed out on this site before, the merging of the RN's Harrier force with an RAF squadron has had a disastrous effect on naval fixed-wing flying. The Joint Harrier force is now overworked and over-stretched, being the longest serving unit in Afganistan and many pilots have never had the opportunity to go to sea. The Afganistan mission should have been carried out by an RAF squadron while the Fleet Air Arm retained its own aircraft and pilots who could maintain their critical and specialist deck landing skills. As it stands there are just a handful of pilots able to land on a carrier and even fewer who could operate at night. The loss of this skill will be very difficult to replace and who will 'pass the baton' on to the future generation of pilots needed for the new aircraft carriers?

News that a hole has been discovered in the hull of the decommissioned SSBN, HMS Revenge highlights the lack of action or ideas about how to dispose of old nuclear submarines in the UK. It is vital that the RN acquires a new generation of nuclear subs but while the old ones are hanging about with no plan for disposal, it gives environmental and disarmament campaigners very reasonable cause for complaint and in our increasingly 'green' society makes the the RN look foolish and irresponsible. The MoD must dispose of these old warriors quickly and safely before one of them (moored at Rosyth and Devonport) causes a really disastrous environmental problem. The continuing decay of these vessels is not just a potential danger to the local population but a PR nightmare and a serious incident could further tarnish the fading reputation of the RN.

The official RN website recently announced that Harriers had re-joined HMS Illustrious on her 'Orion 08' deployment. What they didn't mention was that due to the pressures on the Joint Harrier force operating in Afganistan and a shocking lack of trained pilots, only 4 Harriers had embarked and they are not even staying with the ship for the whole deployment. The RN's lack of aircraft and pilots is embarrassing, with 2 operational carriers but so few pilots and aircraft they are reduced to carrying a few ASW helicopters or borrowing aircraft from friendly nations. The specialist skills in operating fixed wing aircraft at sea are being eroded with the RN having already lost its critical air defence fighters, now it even has to beg for a few strike aircraft.

In an unconfirmed report by the Daily Mail, apparently in a move led by army chiefs, the heads of the 3 armed services invoked their constitutional right to a meeting with Gordon Brown and threatened resignations. Dressed full uniform they confronted Brown with the truth about the effects of his shambolic treasury-led defence policy. He was forced to agree to a "defence capability review" and which could mean that he is unable to make the latest round of cuts he was planning. If this is really the case, then full marks to the defence chiefs for risking their own positions and making a stand. This kind of action is long overdue and will hopefully 'draw a line in the sand'.

Richard Carling of the UKNDA created a petition on the Downing Street website calling for defence spending to be increased to 3% of GDP (currently it is about 2.3.%). The petition closed on 18 Feb with (with a depressingly small 216 signatures) However the government has now posted it's response. Predictably they open with a classic smoke screen about figures and statistics and totally miss the point by saying that it "does not set the level of defence spending as a proportion of an economic model". Of course not, but GDP percentage it is a simple and easily understood reflection of government priorities. There is the usual line about the current equipment procurement program etc and they even manage to twist the figures to suggest the defence budget has actually grown. The 1.5% increase they mention actually translates to a 7.5% decrease if you consider equipment inflation is around 9%. An increase to 3% of GDP would actually mean a 40% increase in the defence budget. The rebuttal then goes to say how spending on equipment for troops engaged in Iraq and Afganistan has increased (About time!) Fundamentally though, it doesn't address the fact that defence spending, as a proportion of overall spending, has fallen dramatically in the last 20 years and as a result the RN is half the size it was in 1990 and ships are being decommissioned without replacement even as this is being written.

Despite earlier promises that they would serve until 2009, the destroyer HMS Southampton, having cancelled a last visit to her namesake city, arrived at Portsmouth last week to go into what the MoD calls "very low readiness". Her sister ship, HMS Exeter will follow her into mothballs later this summer. These ships are both elderly (around 28 years old) and are costly to run and maintain. However they are being decommissioned without replacement and despite their poor state, they could still perform useful service for the RN which is already short of escorts. "Very low readiness" is a spin-doctor's term used by the MoD for ships that are either in deep refit or mothballed to save money and will never probably see active service again (unless there is a major emergency). At least they are not being immediately scrapped or sold (They are not attractive prospects for foreign buyers) and form some sort of reserve fleet. This leaves the RN with just 6 active Type 42 destroyers to provide air defence for the fleet which is already without fighter cover. The delivery of the 6 new Type 45s that are replacing what was once a fleet of 14 Type 42s, can't come fast enough.