General Naval Topics

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Ministry of Defence Update

Statement made on 19 July 2022 by Mr Ben Wallace
Mr Ben Wallace is the Conservative MP for Wyre and Preston North, and has been an MP continuously since 5 May 2005. He currently holds the Government post of Secretary of State for Defence.

I am today announcing the Government’s decision on pay for the Armed Forces for 2022-23.

The Government is taking the opportunity to support our aim to reshape Defence and grow 21st Century skills, as outlined in the Integrated Review’s Defence in a competitive age command paper, and it also looks forward to the recommendations of the Haythornthwaite Review of Armed Forces Incentivisation next year. This pay award supports wider recruitment and retention and addresses the requirements of smaller but highly skilled Armed Forces whilst recognising affordability.

The Government received the Armed Forces’ Pay Review Body (AFPRB) report on 2022 pay for Service Personnel up to and including 1-star rank on 13 June 2022. This has been laid before the House today and published on GOV.UK. The Senior Salaries Review Body’s (SSRB) 2022 report which includes recommendations for the senior military has been laid today by my colleagues in the Cabinet Office.

The Government values the independent expertise and insight of AFPRB and SSRB and takes on board the useful advice and principles set out in response to the Government’s recommendations outlined in the report.

The Government is accepting the AFPRB’s and SSRB’s recommendations in full, for the 2022 Pay Round. This award will benefit the whole of the Armed Forces and is the biggest percentage uplift in 20 years, recognising their vital contributions and the cost of living pressures facing households.

Pay awards this year strike a careful balance between recognising the vital importance of public sector workers, whilst delivering value for the taxpayer, not increasing the country’s debt further, and being careful not to drive even higher prices in the future. Sustained higher levels of inflation would have a far bigger impact on people’s real incomes in the long run than the proportionate and balanced pay increases recommended by the independent Pay Review Bodies now. Pay awards should be viewed in parallel with the Government’s £37 billion support package for the cost of living, which is targeted to those most in need.

In addition to this package, the MOD has frozen the daily food charge for our personnel. We are also limiting the increase in accommodation charges to 1%, ensuring the Council Tax Rebate reaches those in military accommodation, and are increasing the availability of free wrap-around Childcare from the start of the new academic year. Any service families facing hardships, of any kind, should approach their welfare officer so that further support can be discussed.

This year the AFPRB have recommended:

See - https://questions-statements.parliament ... 19/hcws237

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The oldest ship in the Royal Naval Service to become the new Littoral Strike Ship


Following the news RFA Argus will be extended in service beyond 2030 it has been confirmed she will be upgraded to perform in the Littoral Strike Ship role (LSS). Here we look at the background to the decision and consider the pros and cons of the conversion.

The Defence Secretary had implied on 6th July that the RN was still considering its options for LSS, but on 11th July the Defence Minister told Parliament “Upgrading RFA Argus and operating her alongside the Bay-class RFAs in their current configuration represents the optimum solution to support a forward-deployed Littoral Response Group. This will provide a sustainable air manoeuvre, surface manoeuvre and command and control capability with the ability to manage availability as platforms undergo maintenance”.

The LSS concept was first publicly announced in early 2019, although the idea has been around for some time. Early indicators were that a chartered commercial vessel might be adapted for the role. Subsequently, the 2021 Integrated Review (and the later National Shipbuilding Strategy refresh) stated that £50M had been allocated to modify one of the Bay class LSDAs to become the LSS (South) based in the Gulf and Indo-Pacific region. The concept has been de-scoped again with Argus earmarked to become the primary LSS, although the implication is she could be periodically relieved by an available Bay-class.

In depth article continues at - https://www.navylookout.com/the-oldest- ... rike-ship/

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Royal Navy captains talk of pride at commanding training establishments

https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-l ... r-captains

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Ministry of Defence

This time last year Defence was challenged to improve hair and uniform policies for servicewomen in the Armed Forces.
Meet AB Kay and AB Rogerson who recently joined the Navy, as we chat to them about life as a woman in defence.
Video at - https://twitter.com/DefenceHQ/status/15 ... 3025519618

Also - https://www.gov.uk/government/news/defe ... -forces--2

And video at - https://twitter.com/DefenceHQ/status/15 ... 9297495040

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The Future of Anti-Submarine Warfare (sponsored)

Most of the world’s global commerce travels by sea. Consumer goods transfer from one maritime nation to another along significant sea routes. However, the international sea route is risky, and functionality only exists if free movement occurs. As a result, countries endeavour to protect their homelands by preventing conflicts in their regional waters and abroad.

To achieve these means, governments worldwide have invested heavily in next-generation submarines and advanced surface ship sonar equipment to help detect, identify, and track their competitors in the maritime environment. This short paper seeks to define the problems facing modern navies, introduce the concept of “do more with less” with potential remedies, and summarize an approach that modern navies should pay close attention to.

Continues at - https://www.shephardmedia.com/news/nava ... sponsored/

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UK to Phase Out Admiralty Paper Charts by 2026

See - http://www.oldsaltblog.com/2022/07/uk-t ... more-59487

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ST PETERSBURG, Russia, July 31 (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin on Sunday signed a new naval doctrine which cast the United States as Russia's main rival and set out Russia's global maritime ambitions for crucial areas such as the Arctic and in the Black Sea.

Speaking on Russia's Navy Day in the former imperial capital of St Petersburg founded by Tsar Peter the Great, Putin praised Peter for making Russia a great sea power and increasing the global standing of the Russian state.

After inspecting the navy, Putin made a short speech in which he promised that what he touted as Russia's unique Zircon hypersonic cruise missiles, cautioning that Russia had the military clout to defeat any potential aggressors.

Shortly before the speech, he signed a new 55-page naval doctrine, which sets out the broad strategic aims of Russia's navy, including its ambitions as a "great maritime power" which extend over the entire world.

The main threat to Russia, the doctrine says, is "the strategic policy of the USA to dominate the world's oceans" and the movement of the NATO military alliance closer towards Russia's borders.

Russia may use its military force appropriately to the situation in the world's oceans should other soft powers, such as diplomatic and economic tools, be exhausted, the doctrine says, acknowledging that Russia does not have enough navy bases globally.

Russia's priority was to develop strategic and naval cooperation with India as well as wider cooperation with Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and other states in the region, according to the doctrine.

"Guided by this doctrine, the Russian Federation will firmly and resolutely defend its national interests in the world's oceans, and having sufficient maritime power will guarantee their security and protection," the document said.

Putin's speech did not mention the conflict in Ukraine, but the military doctrine envisages a "comprehensive strengthening of Russia's geopolitical position" in the Black and Azov seas.

Relations between Russia and the West have undergone deepening strain during the five months of the Ukraine conflict.

The doctrine also sets out the Arctic Ocean, which the United States has repeatedly said Russia is trying to militarise, as an area of particular importance for Russia.

Russia's vast 37,650 km (23,400 mile) coastline, which stretches from the Sea of Japan to the White Sea, also includes the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.

Putin said the delivery of Zircon hypersonic cruise missiles to the Admiral Gorshkov frigate would begin within months. The location of their deployment would depend on Russian interests, he said.

"The key thing here is the capability of the Russian navy... It is able to respond with lightning speed to all who decides to infringe on our sovereignty and freedom."

Hypersonic weapons can travel at nine times the speed of sound, and Russia has conducted previous test-launches of the Zircon from warships and submarines over the past year.

In Crimea, Sevastopol governor Mikhail Razvozhayev said Ukrainian forces struck the headquarters of Russia's Black Sea Fleet in the Russian-held port city early on Sunday, wounding five members of staff. read more

Attached photo - "The Russian corvette Aleksin fires missiles during a parade marking Navy Day in Baltiysk in the Kaliningrad region, Russia July 31, 2022"

6 More photos within article at - https://www.reuters.com/business/aerosp ... 022-07-31/

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Details emerge of Team UK’s Fleet Solid Support ship proposal


The consortia competing to build three Fleet Solid Support ships (FSS) have now submitted their detailed bids to the MoD. The winner of this major shipbuilding contract is expected to be announced by the end of March 2023. For the first time, we can reveal some details of the all-British proposal entered by Team UK.

The RN needs these naval logistics vessels in service as soon as possible, primarily to resupply the carrier strike group on global operations but the project has been drawn out and highly politicised. Assuming the competition winner can deliver what the contract demands, the first ship is expected to be in service and replace RFA Fort Victoria by 2028, with all three vessels delivered by 2032.

Public information from the FSS competitors has been somewhat limited by the MoD insisting on a Non-Disclosure Agreement. Team Resolute applied the most relaxed interpretation of the NDA and their initial design concept and their build strategy are outlined in previous articles. TUK has been tight-lipped until now, but the images above and below indicate some of the main features of their design.

The ship
The TUK proposal is based on an existing naval platform design. The hull form and propulsion is derived from a ROPAX (roll-on/roll-off passenger) ferry design developed by Danish Naval Architects OSK-ShipTech. Two ferries using this design are being constructed by Hyundai Mipo Dockyard (HMD) in South Korea for New Zealand state-owned enterprise KiwiRail. This hull form has considerable capacity, the ferries have a gross tonnage of 50,000 tonnes, are 220m long, have a beam of 30.8 m and a draught of 7m. They have four diesel generators providing electrical power for two podded azimuth thrusters.

Utilising the existing platform saves some costs and development time but there is still demanding design work to re-purpose for the FSS role and reconfigure an entirely different superstructure arrangement. The FSS will have similar dimensions although the beam has been increased by the addition of sponsons on each side to increase the working area around the replenishment rigs. This would not be the first time azipods have been used in UK naval service as the Bay-class RFAs and Echo-class SVHOs are equipped with them. Early designs for the QEC-class aircraft carriers featured azipods but they were ultimately discarded as they did not meet warship shock resistance standards.

Other features of note are the very large bridge with full-height windows, the midships RAS control room (RASCO) which runs the full width of the vessel and a large hangar with a Chinook-capable flight deck. The main superstructure and bridge is set forward, similar to RFA Fort Victoria. (The BMT-designed Team Resolute proposal places the bridge aft, astern of the RAS rigs in a similar arrangement to the US Sealift Command T-AKE-1 stores ships.) The standard defensive CIWS and cannons are fitted as expected but the inclusion of BAE Systems’ Artisan (Type 997) medium-range 3D radar would be the most capable sensor yet fitted to an RFA.

Continues, including images, at - https://www.navylookout.com/details-eme ... -proposal/

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Royal Navy survey ship helps safeguard Tyne shipping on UK mission

A Royal Navy survey ship has carried out extensive analysis of the River Tyne to help keep shipping flowing freely as she continues an epic deployment around the UK.
Diminutive inshore survey vessel HMS Magpie – named after the only warship to be commanded by the late Duke of Edinburgh – is now in Scotland after completing three months of survey work around the Port of Tyne, ensuring seafaring charts used by mariners are accurate.
Continues at - https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/news-and-l ... -uk-waters

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Ben Wallace: Defence secretary orders audit of military flying training as RAF leadership in 'tailspin' over leaks

Last Friday, Sky News revealed that nearly 350 trainee pilots - more than half of the total pool of RAF, Royal Navy and army trainee aviators - were in limbo as of May.

See - https://news.sky.com/story/ben-wallace- ... s-12670861