How about a Paypal link to where they don’t deploy unless the Japanese, Koreans, Taiwanese and whoever else benefits from secure sea lanes pay first?
What are the ship's missions to include expected location(s)?
What are the resources available? (initial cost, upkeep, personnel, etc.)
How long of a service life is expected? (reliability)
What supporting vessels will the ship class need to operate or need available? (Escorts, resupply, tenders)
FWIW - I am a former Surface Warfare Officer turned Intelligence Officer.
"Ceterum censeo Islam esse delendam."
Garde la Foi, mes amis! Nous nous sommes les sauveurs de la République! Maintenant et Toujours!
(Keep the Faith, my friends! We are the saviors of the Republic! Now and Forever!)
LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)
??????????
Why did you post a whole new thread on this conversation?
The ongoing thread is here:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-vetscor/3544347/posts
An internet connection, so I can play World of Warcraft.
The rise of the Nazis after WWI, and the recent rise of ISIS shows us that just going in, kicking butt, and leaving opens a power vacuum that bad guys are more than willing to fill. Because we stayed in Japan and Germany, there was no power vacuum.
It took us around 50 years to get Germany and Japan to a point where we could leave them alone, and they had civilization before the war with them. Building a nation where none existed before will be a much longer term endeavor than we are willing to undertake. It will require more force that we are willing to expend. The American public hasn't the stomach to stay in a country as an occupying force for more than a couple of years. This is sad, but it is reality.
So with no intent to occupy, we must be prepared to quickly enter, make war, and leave with no gradual buildup and no gradual draw-down.
More big guns on the ships, less aluminum.
Aside from China, which can mass quite a few guys and material in a giant movement, all other opponents in this modern day are moving in small fast groups with little armor and little to no navy or air component.
Our enemy lives light and travels in convoys of less than 100 transport vehicles. They have various sizes of conventional ammo and anti-armor rockets, along with anti-air rockets. The only heavy armor they have is the pieces they capture.
It seems that what we need is an adaptation from a massive land war theory to a light and fast battalion sized unit theory that can respond with power on short notice, bringing in as many of these units to do the job and get back out in as little time as possible. It will be more and more important to use surprise as a means of taking away the morale of the bad guys.
In the end, victory or defeat will come down to the courage of politicians to take a stand and call the bad guys the bad guys. That appears unlikely at the moment.
Should have Phasers and Photon Torpedos...
Talk to Bu-9
At $20 trillion in debt and counting, free would be a good feature.
Small, unnamed, cloaked, able to work in a swarm, autonomous, nuke powered, subsurface capable, laser, particle beam, or kinetic weapons, self repairing, and generally self sufficient. One order KILL, KILL.....
Travel anywhere — land or sea.