...And then there were Two (end of HMS Invincible)

[MikeH]

It's just a shame she hasn't died yet.

[SaxonKing]

We were lucky. We wouldn't be able to do it today.

Na.. We'd smash the Argies again and again. The navies learned a lot about air defence since then, all they have to do is get the troops ashore and they'll take care of the rest.

And the new carriers will never arrive on time, looking at the recent MOD projects it'll be 2020 before we'll even have them delivered and 2030 before they're fully operational.

[MikeH]

We don't have the transport or escort ships to mount that size of operation any more. We barely did back then but there've been a lot of cuts since.

[Whaleboy]

Argies don't have smart bombs, and our special forces kick ass. We could take the Falklands with 50 blokes and a laptop.

[Az]

I think argies have "smart" bombs by now.

[SaxonKing]

We don't have the transport or escort ships to mount that size of operation any more. We barely did back then but there've been a lot of cuts since.

I actually think the amount spent on the navy is higher than it was back then but I'm not positive. I disagree with you that we dont have the escorts for it, despite recent cuts we still have one of the largest surface navies in the world. As for transporting the troops we'll scrape together whatever we can if it means the navy commandeering every cruise ship it can get its hands on.

[MikeH]

If you don't believe me, maybe you'll believe the senior officer in the senior service.

If nothing else, it compares the fleet sizes then and now.

Adml Sir Alan West, the First Sea Lord and Chief of the Naval Staff, said that the Government's defence cuts have left the Navy with too few ships to sustain even moderate losses in a maritime conflict, despite Ministers' assurances

Sir Alan added that with a target number of only 25 frigates and destroyers it was likely that only a dozen would be available at any one time for war fighting. In 1982 the fighting element of the Royal Navy consisted of three aircraft carriers, 15 destroyers, 50 frigates and 33 submarines.

http://portal.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/02/13/navy13.xml

[Az]

Sea Lord is such an awesome title.

[SaxonKing]

If you don't believe me, maybe you'll believe the senior officer in the senior service.

Yep, its sad how much the fleet has been cut in recent times.
However if we had to go down to the Falklands again the navy could scrape through, the ships are now equipped with the best air defence systems in the world and has learned the painful lessons of the Falklands. The navy will just have to make damn sure that they dont take many losses.
For the navy it'll be a close run thing but just get the troops on the ground and we'll take care of the rest.

[Kuciwalker]

Originally posted by SaxonKing

Na.. We'd smash the Argies again and again. The navies learned a lot about air defence since then, all they have to do is get the troops ashore and they'll take care of the rest.

And the new carriers will never arrive on time, looking at the recent MOD projects it'll be 2020 before we'll even have them delivered and 2030 before they're fully operational.

[MikeH]

Troops can't do anything if they don't get supplied with ammo/fuel etc.

[SaxonKing]

Troops can't do anything if they don't get supplied with ammo/fuel etc.

No they cant but if the Navy does its job properly (never a given) then supplies will get to the troops. The navy just has to do what it did last time, it might not have as many ships as it did back then but its still more than capable of holding its own against the Argie airforce.

[SaxonKing]

Incidently have a look at the Royal navies website, those are some mighty impressive toys.

[chequita guevara]

Why does Great Britain need such a large navy for anything besides nostalgia?

[Az]

.

well, not just nostaligia, it's also a core component of europe's naval power.