Posted on 06/17/2018 1:05:50 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
Britain's six Type 45 destroyers, described as the backbone of the Royal Navy, spent 80 per cent of last year in dock.
The ships, costing £1billion each, need a multi-million pound refit after repeatedly breaking down in the Persian Gulf. But the work is not due to start until 2020.
Two of the cutting-edge warships, HMS Dauntless and HMS Defender, did not go to sea at all during 2017 – which had been hailed by officials and ministers as 'the year of the Navy'.
All six warships, which entered service from 2008, were made with an engine system which cuts out in warm seas, leaving sailors stranded for hours in total darkness.
Britain's six Type 45 destroyers, described as the backbone of the Royal Navy, spent 80 per cent of last year in dock
This led to fears that these key vessels – designed to shield the rest of the fleet from air or missile attacks – had become 'sitting ducks'.
HMS Dragon spent 309 days in Portsmouth last year, followed by HMS Daring with 232 days and HMS Diamond with 203.
HMS Duncan spent the most time at sea, but was still in dock for 197 days.
From January to March this year, HMS Daring, HMS Dauntless and HMS Defender have not left port.
Shockingly, engine-makers Rolls-Royce claim the Ministry of Defence did not tell them the 8,000-ton vessels would spend long periods in warm waters so they were not designed to operate in the heat.
Insiders say a shortage of manpower, Christmas leave for sailors and routine maintenance had also been factors that kept the ships at Portsmouth.
Lord West, former head of the Navy, said: 'It is a disgrace that work on these ships has not been done as a matter of urgency.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
No worries, man. Have a second cup of coffee. :-)
The whole “engine cuts out in warm waters/weathers” sounds fishy to me.
My guess is the Royal Navy won’t have the funds to deploy them so long as they’re still working on that supercarrier.
Lucas was known as the “Prince of Darkness.”
If you are a good boy, maybe she’ll leave it ti you
Sad. Britain long ruled the seas.
What a fall.
5.56mm
Its amazing how sophisticated 21st century cons can be.
This one is right up there with Tesla
So they designed warships that can’t operate in all-weather conditions.
The idiots who thought it wasn’t necessary should be shot for treason.
What good is a navy that can’t rule the seas?
With the American military...
I once asked engineers developing an aircraft system how much heat the internal parts could handle.
“95 F”
I told them they would need to redesign it since there was no cooling system.
“Why?”, asked the engineer from northern NY state. “How often does it get hotter than that?”
I pointed out that in much of the US, and in places like Saudi, it gets far hotter than that on a flightline for months at a time.
They told me it wasn’t in the contract. And this is critical - I replied it would fail operational testing and not be bought, so they could fix it or never sell their system to the government.
They went back, figured out which part of the electrical system was failing, and made an upgrade for a couple of dollars that would keep it working past 160 degrees.
However the politicians got their campaigns well financed and the apparatchiks conference/vacations.
They have Lucas refrigerators.
Joseph Lucas - AKA "The Prince of Darkness"
The Lucas Factory Motto - "A Good Day's Work, and Home Before Dark".
Maybe their engineers were involved in GM's brilliant decision to make a diesel engine out of a gasoline engine block. That and a 1981 Pontiac Phoenix were why I have not bought another GM product. :o)
Panthers and Tigers were maintenance nightmares. The American Sherman and Soviet T-34s were much easier to maintain. Plus the Americans and Soviets built these tanks on assembly lines. The Krauts essentially hand built every one of the Tigers and Panthers. The would have probably been better off if they would have upped the production of the improved panzer MK IVs. JMO
And these destroyers are not working properly? The UK is in serious trouble.
Does the face of Sadiq Khan, mayor of London inspire confidence for the future?
You can bet that somewhere in those ships there are chains,sprockets and BITS OF WOOD.
The whole “engine cuts out in warm waters/weathers” sounds fishy to me.
? Seawater worldwide runs between 32 and 95F.
A narrow range for a gas turbine with an operating exhaust temp around 1000F ??? https://www.seatemperature.org/
Yes, fishy.
Somebody was able to capture the magic smoke? That is most impressive.
Two front war. Again
The Short Sterling was eventually removed from combat and used to tow gliders.
Trump is right. This isn’t a technical issue it is a political issue. Our NATO allies have let us down. They are unwilling to spend on defense and are protections against our industries. The state of NATO defense is a joke.
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