Dr Phil Weir
@navalhistorian
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Historian, author and (occasional) broadcaster. 19th/20th Century naval history, particularly naval aviation. "Dunkirk & the Little Ships" out now @ShireBooks
Joined December 2011
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Last Seen Profiles
Pinned Tweet
Well, as the
#new
header now says - today's the day!
#DunkirkAndTheLittleShips
is now officially out in the wild & available from
@amazon
@Waterstones
@WHSmith
& others! I hope those of you who've already bought & received your copies enjoy!
#Dunkirk
#WW2
18
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The
#shipwreck
of Akagi was discovered & provisionally identified by
@VulcanInc
's RV Petrel, using sonar, in 2019. The
#live
feed from
@EVNautilus
in the next few minutes will be the 1st time Akagi will have been seen since she sank on 5th June 1942.
#WW2
2
708
826
Grim news.
It looks like the salvage vessel Chuan Hong, notoriously connected with the illegal destruction & salvage of a number of
#WW2
#shipwrecks
, has been spotted off Kuantan, Malaysia over the locations of the wrecks of the
@RoyalNavy
's HMS Prince of Wales & HMS Repulse.
@historicfirearm
@FranticGoat
@UKDefJournal
@NavyLookout
Need your help to spread the news. Apparently, there's an ongoing illegal salvage operation on suspected location where the HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse sunk by Chinese-registrated salvage ship.
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Report by
@malnick
in
@Telegraph
that the
@RoyalNavy
's frigates & destroyers lack anything beyond their 4.5in main gun to strike targets ashore for operations against the Houthis.
Okay, to the usual lack of popular demand😉, time for another little "let's unpack this"
#thread
🧵
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Greek researcher Kostas Thoctarides & team have discovered of the
#shipwreck
of the
#WW2
@RoyalNavy
submarine HMS Triumph, lost in January 1942 with Lt John Huddart & his 63 crew after delivering MI9 officers & Greek resistance ashore at Antiparos.
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52
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BBC News - Cdr John Lorimer, the last of the X-Men group of
#WW2
@RoyalNavy
submariners who attacked the German battleship Tirpitz in Alten Fjord using X-Craft mini-submarines on 22/09/1943, has died aged 97
11
154
396
In the words of Captain Jack Aubrey "That's good. I want more."
Now ditch the 24 Sea Ceptor cells they are scheduled to receive & insert the 16 Mk41 cells they were designed for, which - with quad packing - would give them up to 64 additional missiles on top of their current 48.
BREAKING:
Royal Navy’s Type 31 frigates to be fitted with Mk41 vertical launch system
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A picture of the
#WW2
Liberty Ship SS Jeremiah O'Brien amid the Pier 45 fire taken earlier this morning
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@haynesdeborah
I'm beginning to wonder if this sort of thing a sign that we are on the brink of a new golden age for historians where people want to hear from us actually & learn about the past, or whether it's more a sign that we should all just give up, go home, cry & take up alchoholism?
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The
@RoyalNavy
aircraft carrier
@HMSQNLZ
has a problem with one of her propeller shafts.
Okay, time for another little "let's unpack this"
#thread
🧵
As with the
@HMSPWLS
in thread in 2022, to get the statement of the bleeding obvious out of the way, yep, this is not a good thing
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34
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1) Okay, so with the dreadful
#news
of Russia's invasion of
#Ukraine
this morning, there is a renewed emphasis on reinforcing & reassuring
@NATO
allies, so here's a little
#thread
🧵 on the
@RoyalNavy
's role in this.
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31
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Instead, the Type 45s ended up with a gym with a very high deckhead - the fabled "Mk 41 Gym" - which was very much cheaper than Mk 41 VLS & its contents, & great for the health of the crew in peacetime, but perhaps less great for both health & the ships' utility in wartime.
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9
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Interesting. It does look like the Russians placed at least one, long-range artillery piece on Snake Island - a Tornado-G MLRS with a 90km range, presumably to try counter-battery fire to forestall what actually happened, though one suspects issues of aim without things like the
TB2 video from the Ukrainian military showing strikes on Russian Tornado-G MLRS on Snake Island yesterday during the retrograde.
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1) A fascinating snapshot of the current status of the
@RoyalNavy
's destroyer & frigate force by
@NavyLookout
.
So, amid questions from
@CommonsDefence
on its ability to "fight tonight" & "could Britain still retake the Falklands?" here's a little thought experiment
#thread
🧵
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The last known shots of
@RoyalNavy
battlecruiser HMS Hood, lost on this day 1941, sailing to her final battle. Two aerial shots on 22nd May from
@HMS_HoodUK
, the famous stern shot from HMS Prince of Wales on 23rd May, & from
@USNHistory
the explosion that finally claimed her.
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With Angry R2D2 at the bow, of course😉
May the Forth be with you!
@hms_albion
coming into the Forth today and passing under the iconic bridges 🏴
#RoyalNavy
#UKResponseGroup
#StarWarsDay
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1) An excellent
#thread
🧵 by
@WarintheFuture
on the oft neglected southern front in the
#UkraineWar
& its importance, covering many aspects ashore, so here's a little additional
#thread
🧵 looking into some of the naval & maritime aspects that hopefully further enrich the picture.
Eleven days since the Russian invasion of Ukraine began. In the past 24 hours, we have seen limited Russian progress in the north and east, and another broken Russian ‘ceasefire’. Today - the war in the south, and why it matters. 1/25
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"This is a story of the Battle of the Atlantic, the story of the ocean, two ships, and a handful of men"
Hmmm It seems "The Cruel Sea" is on
@BBCTwo
in 10 minutes... I *guess* that counts as 'research'...🤷♂️😁
#WW2
#BattleOfTheAtlantic
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1) Okay, since there seems to be something of an interest Russian military logistics at the moment, to the usual lack of public demand, a little
#thread
🧵 on why Russia's naval logistics, particularly in the Mediterranean, have always been a critical time limit on the
#UkraineWar
I must confess, I've been wondering for a while how sustainable Russia's significantly reinforced fleet in the Mediterranean was going to be (niche, I know🙄). The scrapping of the 2015 access agreement with Cyprus would certainly make it harder...
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One for the dedicated model-makers!
Thread. My Dad is 80.5 years old. In 1972 he started building a model of
#HMSVictory
at 1 to 48' scale.
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Both France & the US have both cruise missiles on their submarines, surface ships, *&* aircraft on & off aircraft carriers. France even has (while the US & India are working on it) cruise missiles on carrier aircraft. One, & no other, is an unfortunate, peculiarly British fallacy
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BBC News - Plans have been approved for a museum at Bughtrig House in Coldstream,
#Scotland
, family home of
@RoyalNavy
Admiral Sir Bertram Ramsay, who masterminded the evacuation of Dunkirk in 1940 & the return to the Continent at D-Day in 1944
#WW2
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The
@RoyalNavy
's
@HMSArcher
,
@HMS_Pursuer
& four Wildcat helicopters from
@815NAS
, along with
@Sjoforsvaret
Skjold Class corvettes, are taking part in Exercise Tamber Shield off Bergen, Norway🇳🇴, to help develop tactics for fighting in confined waters.
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A quiet entrance, as is befitting from the head of the "silent service", but it seems the head of the
@RoyalNavy
's submarine service, Commodore Jim Perks has officially surfaced here as
@CdreJimPerks
. Welcome!
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For anyone after some excellent
#WW2
war film viewing this afternoon, the outstanding
#BattleOfTheAtlantic
film The Cruel Sea starring Jack Hawkins, Donald Sinden, Denholm Elliott & Virginia McKenna is on
@BBCTwo
in 15 minutes
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On this day 1941, the German battleship Bismarck was sunk in the Atlantic by the
@RoyalNavy
Home Fleet under Adm Sir John Tovey after an epic, five day chase.
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There was (& is still) much talk of "Why do you need surface ships that can fire missiles at targets ashore. That's what we have RAF aircraft for. Plus if you have that, why would you need aircraft carriers, or Tomahawk on SSNs?" as though such capabilities are not complementary.
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November 1940 was one of the most eventful & significant months of
#WW2
at sea for the
@RoyalNavy
with fleets in action in the Atlantic & Mediterranean, while in the war against merchant shipping one particular loss in the Indian Ocean would go on to have far reaching effects.
11
23
136
On this day 1941,
#WW2
@RoyalCanNavy
Flower Class corvette
@HMCSSACKVILLE1
was launched at the Saint John Shipbuilding and Drydock Company of Saint John, New Brunswick. Today she is a
#museum
ship - the last surviving example of these fabled
#BattleOfTheAtlantic
escorts.
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Cruise missiles are great for hitting static targets at long range through defences that might cause problems for aircraft, but are expensive, single shot deals that are difficult to reload.
Aircraft can respond faster, hit more targets, with cheaper weapons & return to reload.
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5
139
This should not come as a particular surprise.
Due to budgetary constraints, the
@RoyalNavy
's Type 45 destroyers were famously designed "for, but not with" 16
@LockheedMartin
strike-length Mk 41 Vertical Launch System cells, between the 4.5in gun & the Sylver A50 VLS for Aster.
3
7
138
Type 23 frigate
@HMSNORT
escorting ships transporting Danish reinforcements for the
@BritishArmy
-led battlegroup in Estonia🇪🇪.
Note the "mushroom farm" caps for the Sea Ceptor missiles have been removed for readiness to fire... All of them...
(Sharp-eyed spot by
@Gabriel64869839
)
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Slightly late seaon's greetings to one and all, and I hope everyone has had a good one, even if circumstances may not have allowed us all to be with loved ones this year
(pic HMS Theseus off the Korean coast, 8th December 1950 A 31790
@I_W_M
)
#KoreanWar
#MerryChristmas
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11
128
Destroyers were crucial to the Allied evacuation of
#Dunkirk
in 1940. Most were from the
@RoyalNavy
& the
@MarineNationale
, but just one survives today - the Polish Navy's ORP Blyskawica. Find out more in
#DunkirkAndTheLittleShips
on 29th October
#WW2
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1) Please, please, please, please, please let this be true.
2) Please, please, please, please, please don't screw it up.
#MasterAndCommander
EXCLU: 20th Century developing new MASTER AND COMMANDER movie with Patrick Ness penning the script
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For those following the activities of
@EVNautilus
, the ROV Atalanta has just gone back in the water to begin a new survey, this time (if I recall correctly) of the
#shipwreck
of the
#WW2
Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier Kaga.
Descent time is usually about three hours...
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On this day 1940 Adm/Flt Sir Charles Forbes, CinC
@RoyalNavy
Home Fleet set sail from Scapa Flow aboard his newly returned flagship, the battleship HMS Nelson, with V/Adm Sir Jock Whitworth's flagship, the battlecruiser HMS Hood, recently returned from Gibraltar
#BattleOfBritain
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1) Okay, since "coastal-defence equipment" for
#Ukraine
has been mentioned by the British Defence Secretary, a few days late & to only slightly more than the usual lack of public demand (😉), a little
#thread
🧵with a few thoughts on what that might mean.
#UkraineWar
'“There will be more lethal aid going into Ukraine,” he [Ben Wallace] told Sky News. Long-range artillery ammunition, coastal-defense equipment, more antiaircraft missiles and protected vehicles are among the items that would be provided, he said.'
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The bow of the
#WW2
Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier Akagi, scuttled on 5th June 1942 after damaged suffered at the Battle of Midway, seemingly buried pretty deep into the seabed, 17566ft below the surface of the Pacific.
(via the
@EVNautilus
#live
feed)
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"Remember, we need to fire two broadsides to her one. Do you want to see a guillotine in Piccadilly!?
Want to call that raggedy-arse Napoleon your king!?
You want your children to sing the "La Marseillaise!?"
Mr. Mowett, Mr. Pullings, starboard battery!"
For the Aubrey Maturin lovers , I do hear whispers indeed that a second voyage is perhaps potentially pre-proposed a possibility . So O’Brian affectionate’s and aficionados , let
@20thcenturyfox
know of your pleasure .
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A little exciting news (for me at least!), I've finally got my hands on physical copies of
#DunkirkAndTheLittleShips
as release date on 29th October approaches (it is available to pre-order). Thanks to
@Shire_Editor
& the team at
@ShireBooks
!
#Dunkirk
#WW2
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With the
@RoyalNavy
's
@HMSQNLZ
operating off the Norwegian coast, & the
@USNavy
's
@Warship_78
in the Eastern Med,
@NATO
now has carrier strike groups covering its northern & southern flanks.
Perhaps despite perceptions, this has long been a critical element of
@NATO
war plans.
2
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On this day 1940 the
@RoyalNavy
's Gibraltar-based Force H, formed just 3 days before under V/Adm Sir James Somerville with the battlecruiser HMS Hood, aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal & battleships HMS Valiant & HMS Resolution, bombarded the French Force de Raid at Oran, Algeria
3
31
116
The Duke of Edinburgh served in the
@RoyalNavy
throughout
#WW2
aboard the battleship HMS Valiant at the Battle of Cape Matapan & the evacuation of Crete, the destroyers HMS Wallace for the invasion of Sicily, & HMS Whelp for the surrender of Japan, commanding HMS Magpie 1950-1951
BBC News - Buckingham Palace announces the death of the Duke of Edinburgh, Lord High Admiral & husband to HM Queen Elizabeth II, aged 99
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@shashj
ammunition explosion), so until we know more, it may not be possible to entirely rule out things like a catastrophic failure on an S300 VLS launch during an attempt to engage a TB2, or similar, but at the moment, I would agree the odds have to be on the missile strike.
0
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An interesting point here from
@Gabriel64869839
. Following the successful firing trials in July 2023, if it tactically works there is a distinct likelihood that the
@815NAS
Wildcat helicopters aboard
@HMSDiamond
&
@HMSLANCASTER
may start chalking up some air-to-air drone "kills".
With LMM / Martlet having gone through air to air firings recently, i wonder if there is any chance of attempting to fly drone-busting CAPs with HMS Diamond's WILDCAT helicopter. Now that would be pretty unique...
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Interesting
@ForeignPolicy
piece by Emily Ferris of
@ISS_RUSI
looking at Russia's reliance on & troubles with rail transport in its
#UkraineWar
However, it's worth bearing in mind, particularly amid further talk about Odesa & Mykolaiv, that Russia also has a port opening problem.
The Russian army’s failure to capture important logistical hubs in Ukraine means they cannot commandeer local railway infrastructure to transport their infrastructure and soldiers farther into Ukraine and capture more territory.
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On this day 1944 Captain Frederic "Johnnie" Walker, Captain of HMS Starling, commander of the famous 2nd Escort Group & the
@RoyalNavy
's most successful
#WW2
U-boat hunter, died in hospital in
#Liverpool
of a cerebral thrombosis
#BattleOfTheAtlantic
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37
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Happy
#JamesBondDay
! On 5th October, 1962, the world's most famous spy &
@RoyalNavy
officer Cdr James Bond first stepped onto the silver screen in Dr. No, so here's a brief reminder of his appearances in uniform.
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If there aren't laws in place to ensure that everyone flying their Hurricane/Spitfire/Swordfish, on a sunny afternoon, turns up in such a car, there bloody well ought to be...
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On this day 1940 the German heavy cruiser Hipper, commanded by Cpt Wilhelm Meisel, began an attack on the large, Allied troop convoy WS5A, 800 miles west of Cape Finisterre.
Opening fire at 0838 Hipper's first targets were the HMT Empire Trooper & the SS Arabistan hitting both.
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30
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Later on this year, the
@RoyalNavy
will apparently fit a laser air defence weapon aboard a Type 23 frigate for its first trials, which are due to last until 2025
@IISS_org
7
9
112
On this day 1940 the
@RoyalNavy
Mediterranean Fleet under Adm Sir Andrew Cunningham took on the Italian fleet under Adm Inigo Campioni in the 1st major fleet engagement of the new war in the Mediterranean, the Battle of Calabria
#WW2
3
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On this day 1941
@BritishArmy
12 Commando & Norwegian Independent Company 1, supported by a combined
@RoyalNavy
Polish Navy &
@Sjoforsvaret
force under Home Fleet Rear Admiral Destroyers, R/Adm Louis Hamilton, raided the occupied Lofoten Islands, capturing an Enigma machine.
4
19
112
The
@RoyalNavy
/
@RFAHeadquarters
contribution here alongside
@Warship_78
I think is
@HMSDefender
,
@HMSNORT
&
@RFATideforce
.
Happy
#WarshipWednesday
!
@Warship_78
🇺🇸 recently sailed with
@RoyalNavy
🇬🇧,
@RFAHeadquarters
🇬🇧, &
@Forsvaret_no
🇳🇴 Allies while operating in the
#NorwegianSea
.
The
@USNavy
's largest aircraft carrier is currently under
@STRIKFORNATO
command and control.
#StrongerTogether
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Above the bow & anchor chains & stocks of the
#WW2
Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier Akagi, scuttled on 5th June 1942 after damaged suffered at the Battle of Midway.
(via the
@EVNautilus
#live
feed)
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79
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Defended by
@RoyalNavy
Type 42 destroyer HMS Gloucester, which famously used her Sea Dart missile system to shoot down an Iraqi Silkworm missile (seemingly, actually a Chinese-made CSSC-3 “Seersucker”) bound for
@USSMissouri
, at around 0500 that morning.
#OTD
in 1991 - During Operation Desert Storm, USS Wisconsin (BB 64) and USS Missouri (BB 63) provide naval gunfire support and other operations.
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noting that - remarkably - that Tornado-G did seem to manage to survive the Ukrainian onslaught, right up until it was at its most vulnerable - packed up & ready to be evacuated from the pier.
2
1
108
BBC News piece on the fabled
@BritishArmy
Lancashire Fusiliers "Six VC's before breakfast" awarded in the aftermath of the
#WW1
#Gallipoli
landings & brought together for the first time by
@FusilierMuseum
with help from
@LordAshcroft
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However, in theory (& here, proponents of "spiral development" should beware lest it become the new FBNW), the Mk 41 cells could be fitted at a later date should the need arise & when the ships were more mature, for example at a big, mid-life upgrade that might begin in the 2020s
3
3
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Notable point from today's
@CommonsDefence
session with
@AdmTonyRadakin_
at 16:35:45 that one of the
@RoyalNavy
's Astute Class submarines is likely to be away from the Fleet for some time owing to lack of nuclear-capable dry dock space at
@HMNBDevonport
.
7
17
107
First sight of the
#shipwreck
of the
#WW2
Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier Akagi, scuttled on 5th June 1942 after damaged suffered at the Battle of Midway.
(via the
@EVNautilus
#live
feed)
1
74
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The sad sight of
@IndianNavy
aircraft carrier INS Viraat, formerly the
@RoyalNavy
's HMS Hermes, flagship of the
#FalklandsWar
task force, being towed out of Mumbai on her final journey to the scrapyard...
6
30
97
1) The wings fold.
2) Takes the maritime/ASW package.
3) Apparently does ramps
4)
@RoyalNavy
@HMSQNLZ
@HMSPWLS
Hmmmmmm...🤔
.
@GenAtomics_ASI
today unveiled a new MQ-9B variant at
#IndoPacific
2022, the international maritime exposition currently held in Sydney, Australia. The MQ-9B STOL is designed to operate from flat top amphibious ships. By
@Benfeltondef
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Interesting little undersea infrastructure tidbit, amidst talk of energy prices & gas supplies.
The lefthand image is of the perhaps now rather familiar UK undersea internat cable network. The righthand image is of the perhaps rather less familiar undersea natural gas pipelines.
6
28
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Contrasting afernoon viewing, with the stunning,
#live
feed from
@EVNautilus
, exploring the
#shipwreck
of the fabled,
#WW2
@USNavy
aircraft carrier USS Yorktown on the left screen, &
#UKRENG
on the right (not saying which I'm watching more😉)
6
36
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So what happened?
Well, the Power Improvement Programme to cure the ships of their unpleasant tendency to abruptly lose power in warm waters, which required the addition of an extra diesel generator, cut some of the margin to also accept the additional weight of 16 Mk 41 cells.
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A few useful additional data points on the Russian evacuation of Snake Island, taken from what appear to have been Russian Mil Mi-24 gunships carrying out the evacuation of personnel, noting an apparently abandoned Pantsir-S1 Surface-to-Air-Missile system.
#Ukraine
: Interesting images taken from Russian Helicopters during the hurried evacuation from the (in)famous Snake Island in the Black Sea on June 29th.
As can be seen, a Pantsir-S1 SAM system was abandoned; other equipment is also likely.
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One of the more interesting points in the
#thread
🧵 is that the Russian Navy Mediterranean force, headed by the big Slava Class cruisers Marshal Ustinov & Varyag, seems to have possibly moved forward into the central Mediterranean, west not only of Cyprus, but of Crete too.
***UPDATE***
Still a significant
#Russian
Navy presence in Mediterrean, in support of operations in
#Ukraine
Highlights:
* Nuclear submarine (tbc)
* 2 SLAVA Class cruisers near NATO Carriers
W/
@detresfa_
See thread for more details
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The
@RoyalCanNavy
is to send a fact-finding mission to South Korea & Japan, looking at the former's KSS-III & the latter's Taigei-class as potential replacements for the Victoria Class submarines, with
@Comd_RCN
suggesting the boats would be built abroad.
4
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Interesting little snippet of
#news
from Britain's sole independent commercial aircraft producer
@BrittenNorman
Britten-Norman reveals plans to increase production rates and to repatriate aircraft production to its UK base on the Isle of Wight. (1/3)
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On this day 1944 HMS Vanguard, the last & largest
@RoyalNavy
battleship, was launched from John Brown's yard in Clydebank by the then Princess Elizabeth, with then 1st Sea Lord Adm/Flt Sir Andrew Cunningham looking on
#WW2
5
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@shashj
It rather depends on how far back you go. The RN had a few during WW1, but in the more modern era, a couple of rocket enthusiasts aboard USS Ranger, back in 58 had a good go while trying to obtain fuel for a rocket motor they had built, while a previous USS Bon Homme Richard had
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Said upgrades to the Type 45 destroyers were duly announced in March 2021, & included useful additions, like Ballistic Missile Defence capability. Of the Mk 41 cells they were designed for, however, there were none. In their place would be 24 Sea Ceptor.
It look like some detail has now been added to the Integrated Review announcement about upgrades to the
@RoyalNavy
's Type 45 air defence destroyers
@HMSDragon
,
@HMSDaring
,
@HMSDauntless
,
@hmsdiamond
,
@HMSDefender
&
@HMSDuncan
with work taking 2026-2032
2
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5
94
Okay, so the
@RoyalNavy
's new Type 31 frigates are apparently now going to receive 32
@LockheedMartin
Mk 41 Vertical Launch System cells, to fire as-yet-unspecified missiles.
Time for a little, belated (& hopefully better-late-than-never!) "let's unpack this"
#thread
🧵
BREAKING:
Royal Navy’s Type 31 frigates to be fitted with Mk41 vertical launch system
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aerially assisted direction the Ukrainians had from their TB2s, limited ammunition supply, sheer disparity in firepower against that available (& suppliable) ashore were insurmountable. Inability to find cover would almost certainly have been an issue too, though it is worth...
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"Darling. Just got VC [Victoria Cross]. Don't know why. Letter follows. All my love. Nick" Brilliant!
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On this day 1940,
@RoyalNavy
Mediterranean Fleet under Adm Sir Andrew Cunningham launched an airstrike from HMS Illustrious against the
@ItalianNavy
at Taranto damaging the battleships Littorio, Caio Duilio & Conte de Cavour, the latter beyond repair for the loss of two Swordfish
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Having spent yesterday filming the
#shipwreck
of the fabled,
#WW2
@USNavy
aircraft carrier USS Yorktown, the crew of
@EVNautilus
are currently sending their ROV Atalanta down to survey the
#shipwreck
of the Imperial Japanese Navy aircraft carrier Akagi.
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On this day 1950, as news of the invasion of South Korea by North Korea broke,
@RoyalNavy
aircraft carrier HMS Triumph & her escorts, then sailing near Hong Kong, were ordered to the area. The cruiser HMS Jamaica & sloop HMS Black Swan, then off Japan, were ordered to join her.
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24/05/1943 saw one of the most significant Allied victories of
#WW2
as, faced with the catastrophic loss of 41 of his boats (including U-954 with his son, Peter on 19/05/1943), German U-Boat commander Adm Karl Doenitz ordered the withdrawal of his forces from the North Atlantic.
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BBC News - Look at the repainting of the Bombay-built, Napoleonic era
@RoyalNavy
sailing frigate HMS Trincomalee at
@HpoolQuay
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However, the financial aspect was almost certainly also in play, for Britain, alongside France & Italy, is currently developing Future Cruise/Anti-Ship Weapon - what looks to be two missiles to replace Exocet & Harpoon, & Storm Shadow/SCALP/MdCN on ships, submarines & aircraft.
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On this day 1940 a
@RoyalNavy
,
@Australian_Navy
& Free French force under V/Adm Sir John Cunningham, aboard the battleship HMS Barham, with the battleship HMS Resolution & aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal approached Dakar, Vichy controlled French West Africa
#WW2
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Obituary for
@RoyalNavy
Lieutenant-Commander Doug Taylor, the naval engineer whose ‘ski jump’ take-off for aircraft carriers helped make such a seagoing success of the Harrier & Sea Harrier & now assists the F-35Bs taking off from
@HMSQNLZ
&
@HMSPWLS
(£)
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Arguably the most powerful gun armament ever carried aboard a
@RoyalNavy
vessel - the nine 16in guns aboard HMS Rodney cutting loose
#WW2
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It's worth remembering that although
#VEDay
brought the war in Europe to an end, fighting went on in the Far East. Alongside the
@BritishArmy
's XIV Army, F/M Sir William Slim's "Forgotten Army" & the
@RoyalAirForce
Far East Air Force, were two
@RoyalNavy
fleets
#WW2
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The anti-ship FC/ASW is due to enter service in 2028, but the land-attack cruise missile is not due until 2034, by which time the Type 45 dstroyers will be approaching retirement & not worth fitting for the new missile, so an "interim" purchase of Tomahawk would needed for now.
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On this day 1920 Adm/Flt Lord John "Jacky" Fisher, whose stint as 1st Sea Lord from 1904-1910 saw the creation of the Dreadnought, battlecruiser & much else, shaping the
@RoyalNavy
that fought
#WW1
& returning as 1SL for that war before resigning in the shadow of
#Gallipoli
, died
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On this day 1940
@RoyalNavy
Fairey Swordfish torpedo bombers from
@815NAS
& 819 NAS took off from the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious to bomb Italian airfields on Stampalia & Rhodes in the Dodecanese islands, signalling the start of Adm Sir Andrew Cunningham's new operation: MC2
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Laurence Olivier served as a
@RoyalNavy
aviator during
#WW2
. Daring, with a reputation for low fly-pasts, flying under bridges & so on (he allegedly "borrowed" a Swordfish to take Vivien Leigh out for dinner too), he had countless near misses & completely wrote off three aircraft
The ashes of Laurence Olivier were buried in the Abbey
#OTD
1991.
Olivier won an Oscar for his work on the 1944 film adaptation of Shakespeare's Henry V. The date chosen for the interment of his ashes was no coincidence - 16th September is also the anniversary of Henry's birth.
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@shashj
I'd have thought a key marker would be some unusual activity from their submarine support/rescue ships. The North Sea Fleet has at least four, & PLAN has at least three DSRVs, including an LR-7 they bought from Britain.
I've not heard anything, but haven't been closely watching🤷♂️
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On this day 1941, the battleship HMS Prince of Wales & battlecruiser HMS Repulse of the
@RoyalNavy
Eastern Fleet under Adm Sir Tom Phillips was sunk by Japanese aircraft off Kuantan, Malaya, with the loss of 840 lives
#WW2
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@shashj
a lucky escape back in 70 with a simultaneous electrical fire in the port side magazine & someone dropping a Bullpup missile in the starboard while in port in San Diego, so you never know, & the Russians have certainly had their share of accidents (technically, Kursk was an...
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Just to add a key point, currently, the decommissioning of the *last* Type 45 destroyer is scheduled for 2038, so absent a Tomahawk purchase, they would have less than 10 years with FC/ASW & there is no way the Treasury would accept that as value for money
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