Queen Elizabeth class Aircraft Carriers

[andré herc]

Hr.Ms. Beatrix of Maxima klinkt beter hoor 

Vind jij; ik vind het vreselijk klinken......

Ik niet

[KapiteinRob]

Hr.Ms. Beatrix of Maxima klinkt beter hoor 

Vind jij; ik vind het vreselijk klinken......

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Hr.Ms. Beatrix of Maxima klinkt beter hoor 

Maandag aanbesteden graag!

[Marc66]

Hr.Ms. Beatrix of Maxima klinkt beter hoor 

[dudge]

http://localhostr.com/file/yhdDMQe/HMSQE.jpg

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Bows wow as giant future carrier section joins her sister in Rosyth

29 March 2012

The bow of future carrier HMS Prince of Wales has joined that of her sister Queen Elizabeth on the Forth after a 900-mile barge journey.

The 400-tonne bulbous section was transported from Appledore in north Devon to Rosyth, where the biggest ships built in the Royal Navy's history are being assembled.

Pictures: Aircraft Carrier Alliance

SIDE-by-side for the very first time are Her Majesty's Ships Queen Elizabeth and Prince of Wales (nearest the camera) – well their bows at least.

The very bulbous section of the second of the Royal Navy's two future carriers was delivered to Rosyth on the Firth of Forth, where the 65,000-tonne leviathans are being assembled.

Just under two years since the bow of Queen Elizabeth was completed at the Appledore yard in North Devon, the same segment for her younger sister was floated on a sea-going barge up the Torridge and Taw estuaries into the Bristol Channel, around Land's End, along the South Coast, through the Dover Strait and up the East Coast, before passing under the iconic Forth road and rail bridges and into Rosyth.

At 400 tonnes, the bulbous bow weighs the equivalent of nearly 40 double-decker buses and is similar in size to the front of a submarine.

It arrived at the Babcock yard under what was described as a "typically gunmetal sky" – ie grey – and is now sitting next to the specially-enlarged Dock No.1 where the 900ft carriers are being assembled one at a time.

Half a dozen yards around the UK are involved in the carrier project, with some 10,000 people directly or indirectly involved in building sections, parts or providing equipment for what will be the largest ships ever built for Britain's Navy.

Although there is intense media speculation about the outfitting of the two ships – whether they'll be conventional carriers with 'cats and traps' or serve as launchpads for jump jet versions of the F35 Joint Strike Fighter – work on the vessels continues apace.



Lower Block 05 is accurately weighed in the huge ship construction hall in Portsmouth

In Portsmouth, Queen Elizabeth has been 'fired up' for the first time. With all the switchboards wired, Lower Block 02 was switched on – the first time power has been applied to any part of the ship.

The work was due to be carried out in Rosyth, but with things going faster than expected, the decision was taken to power up six months ahead of schedule.

The team at the BAE Systems facility are now preparing that section, and another giant slice of Queen Elizabeth – Lower Block 05 – for transportation to Scotland.

Block 05 leaves at the end of April, 02 a month later – but before they leave the construction shed and are lowered on to a barge, they have to be weighed.

Obviously bathroom scales won't do. Carefully-position hydraulic jacks and sensitive load cells convert force into an electrical signal which in turn is translated into an accurate measurement of the block's weight.

"Getting the weight and centre of gravity right is really important when it comes to arranging for sections to be safely lifted – or moved by barge," explained Paul Bowsher of the Aircraft Carrier Alliance, the combined BAE-Thales-Babcock and MOD team working on the huge project.

"We weigh each section at least three times to make sure the readings are accurate."

http://navynews.co.uk/archive/news/item/4171

[ARM-WAP]

Defence cuts: Carrier 'fully operational in 2030'

Britain may be without a fully operational aircraft carrier until 2030, according to a report published by the Commons spending watchdog.
The public accounts committee said two carriers being built would cost more, offer less military capability and be ready much later than planned.
It said the Royal Navy would be without a carrier until 2020.
The MoD said carrier-based joint strike fighter capability would begin in 2020 and increase over subsequent years.
The public accounts committee also said the cost of scaling back the carriers was not fully known.
The government says it expects to save £4.4bn over 10 years on the programme.
But the committee's Labour chairman Margaret Hodge said the final cost could end up being £12bn over budget.
"Whilst today we're reporting predicted costs for this of £6.2bn, my fear is that that's not the end of the story," she said.
"Indeed one insider said to me that the cost could escalate up to an amazing £12bn for this project."
The ships - HMS Queen Elizabeth and HMS Prince of Wales which were to be based in Portsmouth - were saved from defence cuts under the coalition government because, it said, it would cost more to cancel the projects than proceed with them.
Over budget
In last year's strategic defence review, ministers agreed to change the design of one, or both, of the aircraft carriers to make them compatible with the US Navy's version of the Joint Strike Fighter, rather than the short take-off, vertical-landing (STOVL) version that had been planned.

Rather than two carriers, available from 2016 and 2018, at a cost of £3.65bn, we will now spend more than £6bn, get one operational carrier and have no aircraft carrier capability until 2020" - Margaret Hodge Public Accounts Committee chairman

HMS Prince of Wales will be mothballed and kept as a reserve vessel - while HMS Queen Elizabeth is expected to go into service around 2020, with both said to cost £5.9bn.
The government said the two carriers were already £1.6bn over budget when it came to power - and that changes in the defence review reduced overall spending on the "carrier strike programme" by £4.4bn over 10 years.
But the committee disagreed, saying the government concentrated on immediate cash savings and not on long-term value for money.
"Changes to the aircraft carriers and the aircraft flying from them in the 2010 Strategic Defence and Security Review have changed the risks and costs involved in ways that are not fully understood," said Mrs Hodge.
"Rather than two carriers, available from 2016 and 2018, at a cost of £3.65 billion, we will now spend more than £6bn, get one operational carrier and have no aircraft carrier capability until 2020 - almost a decade."
The report also said there is "considerable uncertainty" about the costs of modifying one of the carriers to accommodate a different type of fighter jet - and the full costs would not be known until December 2012.
'Gaping hole'
While the change had reduced the technical risks associated with the STOVL aircraft - the fact that its full costs would not be known for another year left the project "at risk of cost growth and slippage", the report said.
And it added there were other technical risks associated with integrating new aircraft with the carriers and suggested full carrier strike capability might not be achieved until 2030.

The National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee have both acknowledged that our decision to build a second aircraft carrier makes financial sense" - Quote Philip Hammond Defence Secretary

Labour said the report showed there was a "gaping hole" in the government's credibility on defence.
Shadow defence secretary Jim Murphy said: "It is high time ministers took responsibility for their actions. The rushed, Treasury-driven defence review left Britain without aircraft flying from an aircraft carrier for a decade."
But Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said the government was trying to get the MoD's finances "back into balance" having inherited a "black hole" from Labour.
He stressed the two aircraft carriers were already £1.6bn over budget when the coalition came to power - and said government spending cuts would save £4.4bn over 10 years on the carrier strike programme.
"The National Audit Office and the Public Accounts Committee have both acknowledged that our decision to build a second aircraft carrier makes financial sense, he said.
"Converting one of the Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carriers to operate the more capable carrier variant of the Joint Strike Fighter fast jet from 2020 will maximise our military capability and enhance inter-operability with our allies.
"Operating the more cost effective carrier variant fast jet will, in the long-term, offset the conversion costs and provide us with aircraft that have a longer range and carry a greater payload."
He added that the Libya campaign had showed how Britain could use its bases and over-flight rights to "project decisive air power", before its new aircraft carrier capability came into service.
An MoD spokeswoman said: "It is incorrect to claim that a full carrier strike capability will not be achieved until 2030.
"The more capable carrier variant of the joint strike fighter fast jet will begin operating from our aircraft carrier from 2020, with six UK jets available for operations.
"By 2023, this number will increase to 12 UK jets onboard and we will be able to work with our allies to increase that number because of the interoperability that the carrier variant joint strike fighter allows."

Bron: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-15928953

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

http://www.defensieforum.nl/Forum/post.html;topic=16639.0;num_replies=52

Vreemde verwijzing. 

Bijzonder.... dat dan weer wel!

[Lex]

http://www.defensieforum.nl/Forum/post.html;topic=16639.0;num_replies=52

Vreemde verwijzing. 

[Ace1]

Ik dacht dat op deze link had gelezen dat een E-2D Hawkeye goedkoper is dan een AEW V-22 Osprey. maar kan het niet zo gauw meer terugvinden


http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/e-2d-hawkeye-the-navys-new-awacs-03443/

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

Dat ziet er zo uit.

http://www.timawa.net/forum/index.php?topic=23102.0

Interessant!

[Ace1]

Ik heb ergens gelezen dat Boeing bezig is met een Awacs versie van de V-22 Osprey, wie weet hier meer over?

Dat zou een goed idee zijn !

Dat ziet er zo uit.

http://www.timawa.net/forum/index.php?topic=23102.0

[Harald]

United Kingdom – Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System Long Lead Sub-Assemblies
 
WASHINGTON --- The Defense Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress today of a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of the United Kingdom for one long lead sub-assemblies for the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System/Advanced Arresting Gear (EMALS/AAG) and associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $200 million.

The Government of the United Kingdom (UK) has requested the long lead sub-assemblies for the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System/Advanced Arresting Gear (EMALS/AAG).

The EMALS long lead sub-assemblies include: Energy Storage System, Power Conditioning System, and Launch Control System. The AAG includes: Power Conditioning, Energy Absorption Subsystems, Shock Absorbers, and Drive Fairleads. Also proposed are other items for Aircraft Launch and Recovery Equipment, spare and repair parts, support equipment, personnel training and training equipment, publications and technical documentation, software support, U.S. Government and contractor engineering, technical, and logistics support services, and all other related elements of program support.

The estimated cost is $200 million.

This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to maintain and improve the security of a key NATO ally that has been, and continues to be, an important force for major political stability and economic progress throughout Europe.

The proposed sale will improve the UK's aircraft carrier capability to meet current and future threats of adversaries at sea. The sub-systems will introduce state-of-the-art technology in the areas of aircraft launch and recovery onboard the UK's future aircraft carrier program. The UK will have no problem absorbing these additional sub-systems and support into its armed forces.

The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

The prime contractor will be General Atomics in Rancho Bernardo, California. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.

Implementation of this sale will not require the assignment of additional U.S. Government or contractor representatives to the UK. There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/cgi-bin/client/modele.pl?shop=dae&modele=release&prod=130410&cat=3

[jurrien visser (JuVi op Twitter)]

[ik vindt het nog steeds jammer dat wij weer zo'n JSS bouwen terwijl we al 2 LPD's hebben...Dat had gewoon een HPD en een LPD moeten zijn in mijn ogen.

Er zijn bij mijn beste weten nog steeds vage plannen voor een 2e JSS. Wat mij betreft maken we daar een LHD van en verkopen we de Rotterdam.

Dan houden wij over:

1 LPD, 1 JSS en 1 LHD.

Al zullen er dan ook een aantal extra helies moeten worden aangeschaft.

Maar dit is weer behoorlijk Off-topic 

[Oorlogsvis]

Ik heb ergens gelezen dat Boeing bezig is met een Awacs versie van de V-22 Osprey, wie weet hier meer over?

Dat zou een goed idee zijn !