1 hour ago The Royal Navy is to alteration the mode it operates implicit the adjacent fewer years. Britain's six Type 45 destroyers, designed for aerial defence, volition nary longer beryllium replaced by the planned Type 83 versions.
Instead, the Navy is to get respective cheaper ships called Common Combat Vessels that volition enactment arsenic hubs controlling a fleet of uncrewed vessels oregon drones.
The alteration is portion of the agelong delayed but present updated Defence Investment Plan (DIP) being announced by the authorities this week.
It's called hybridisation – combining accepted crew-operated weapons platforms similar frigates, with fleets of uncrewed and autonomous systems.
In the Royal Navy's case, it gets to support the frigates, which volition beryllium updated with caller versions successful the pipeline. But the big, almighty and costly Type 83 destroyers, yet to beryllium built, are present being scrapped successful favour of the drones.
Drones instrumentality antithetic shapes and sizes and these naval ones are precise antithetic from the tiny, inexpensive quadcopters being deployed with deadly effect connected the battlefield of the Donbas.
Instead, they measurement astir 100 metres agelong and volition beryllium deployed successful the North Atlantic to face the menace from Russia's submarines and "research" vessels that person been taking an unhealthy involvement successful the susceptible undersea cables that transportation much than 90% of the UK's data, including trillions of dollars' worthy of fiscal transactions.
The Royal Marines, portion of the Royal Navy, are besides being allocated astir £500m for accelerated Commando Insertion Craft and onslaught drones, portion of a Rapid Response Force.
The plans being announced are controversial, to accidental the least.
John Healey resigned arsenic defence caput this month successful protestation astatine what helium said was the government's nonaccomplishment to walk capable wealth to decently support Britain against the existent scope of threats, chiefly coming from Russia.
With a reported yawning £28bn spread successful Britain's defence fund and the further £13.5bn earmarked to capable it, Healey's resignation was swiftly followed by that of Al Carns, the equipped forces minister, for the aforesaid reasons.
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