Take cover, the Yanks are coming!

This is a truly awesome sight and yesterday our American ‘allies’ (er, they are still allies, aren’t they?) parked it just outside Portsmouth dockyard.  It’s not that we failed to invite them in, I mean, who would argue with that behemoth, but the damn thing is just too big to get in!  It is the USS Theodore Roosevelt which carries a crew of around 6,000 and some 90 very deadly aircraft.  It acts, of course, as a warning to cynical old pessimists like me not to write off American power too quickly.

 

It is, of course, a delicious irony that inside the dockyard lies one of the greatest ships in history, HMS Victory, Nelson’s flagship at Trafalgar.  Memento mori!   How many Victorys could you fit inside the Theodore Roosevelt, I wonder?

 

Even so, packed with military testosterone as it is, I wonder just exactly how powerful the Theodore Roosevelt, and its ilk, is today and, more to the point, how powerful will it be in 10, 20, 40 years from now?  In a comment thread ‘down there’ somewhere, the name of the late and very great Adm. Jackie Fisher came up.  It is worth recalling his great battles – no, not with enemy fleets but with his fellow admirals, his domestic politicians and the popular press of the day.  At the turn of the 19^th into the 20^th century the philosophy of naval warfare was all over the place which is hardly surprising given the revolutionary changes that had taken place since Trafalgar – iron ships, driven by engines so that wind and tides could be ignored, huge breech-loading guns throwing shells miles rather than yards, radio communications beginning to take over from flags and so on and on.

It needed naval officers of huge intellectual ability to cope with all this change and, thank God, we had just the man in Jackie Fisher.  Of course he didn’t get everything right but he was right far more often than he was wrong, and he was certainly far more right than the naval nincompoops who surrounded him.

Now, ex-Cpl. Duff is in no position to provide you with a naval warfare philosophy fit for purpose in the 21^st century and so it may well be that, for a change, ‘our’ (by which I mean American because for all intents and purposes we no longer have a navy) admirals have the sort of intellectual abilities of a Jackie Fisher.  Yeeeeeeeeeeeeeees, quite!  I do not have much confidence either.  These great Neanderthal ships of war are almost designed (and certainly sold!) to tickle the male hormones of any fighting sailor.  Which would you rather command, the USS Theodore Roosevelt, or a fleet of titchy, little speed boats packed with hundreds of tiny drones carrying a variety of ‘nasties’ including bio-chem agents and devices designed to close down enemy e-systems?  How long, I wonder, would the Theodore Roosevelt and its crew last under a sustained assault from thousands of such ‘deadly insects’?  I don’t know, is the answer but is anyone asking the question?

All of that, of course, is but one example from the wide range of possibilities becoming available in 21^st century warfare with miniaturisation, robots, computers and all the rest of it.  And so my question remains, where is the American Jackie Fisher?

 

ADDITIONAL:   For the very best history of Jackie Fisher and his 'battles', and indeed, for one of the very best history books I have ever read, try Dreadnought by Robert K. Massie.

 

Comments

[Whitewall]

The Roosevelt! Why there it is! Maybe it is lost or something? And yes, some of us are still allies goddammit. I'm guessing the TR is consulting with the Admiralty about how to find its way to the eastern seaboard of America and maybe how to manage the Chesapeake en route to Washington. That's where all the trouble is. Since WW2, the single greatest threat to our navy has been and is Washington.

[David Duff]

Well stand-by for incoming, 'Whiters', because it can only be a matter of time before Arkansas' most famous sailor steams in with more informative links than you could shake a stick at!

[Whitewall]

Well David you are right. I heard the "Arkansan" in question might have won a small lottery or something. It's hard to tell as he writes in code so much. If he did, then it will be brand new false teeth all around!

[David Duff]

By the way, 'Whiters', I do urge you to treat yourself to the book I recommended above, written by an American who, as an outsider, perfectly captures the Edwardian era in Britain. Absolutely first-rate history!

[Kevin B]

Ah David, but which would you rather command, "a fleet of titchy, little speed boats packed with hundreds of tiny drones carrying a variety of ‘nasties’ including bio-chem agents and devices designed to close down enemy e-systems?" or:

A Nimitz class aircraft carrier that can travel any where the oceans will let it and then launch a fleet of titchy... etc. along with all the other nasties it can cram on board?

[Richard]

The bronze age L/Cpl Morgan can (just about)restrain himself from sniggering when the stone age Cpl Duff starts pontificating about army issues in the brave hi-tech world of the 21st century... but when Cpl Duff starts issuing pearls of wisdom about naval matters: Oh dearie me!!

Bloody hell, David, boats and ships havea pointy end and a blunt end...erm, people get seasick in them and that is just about all that a couple of ancient grunts like us will ever know about the bloody things!

[David Duff]

Yes, Kevin, but who needs a monstrosity like that when for the same money you have hundreds of remotely-controlled small ships packed with automatically operated drones and 'thingies', and so many of them that even the Roosevelt couldn't sink them all before being overwhelmed by 'mosquito bites'!

Now look here, Morgan, I outrank you so don't you come on here blinding me with techie-speak like "boats and ships have a pointy end and a blunt end"!

[backofanenvelope]

I seem to remember that these American carriers have protection out to some 200 miles. By the time your little remote controlled thingies had gone a few miles, they would be receiving some rather unpleasant attention.

[Richard]

No doubt in 50 years or so, when "England expects every man will do his duty" has been replaced by "Allah u Akbar" David's mass suicide attack concept will have become the accepted Royal Naval S.O.P.

[JK]

Only reason we're there is, to pick up a squad of your "Wheezers and Dodgers." The DC-Think currently being, seventy some odd years has surely produced some refinements.

http://www.wired.com/2015/01/well-didnt-work-rolling-rocket-bomb-designed-kill-nazis-almost-killed-dog-instead/

[David Duff]

There's no "mass suicide" involved, the tiny 'ships', hundreds of them, will be floating platforms carrying hundreds of drones and will be entirely remotely controlled. They will just swarm in from all directions and even the 'USS TR' would not have enough weapon systems to destroy them all. It would be 'the death of a thousand cuts'. Well, it will be in my scenario!

[jimmy glesga]

The Victory is having long term maintenance on it. Maybe our government due to austerity will re commission it.

[David Duff]

Jest not, Jimmy, I wouldn't put anything past our 'glorious leaders'!

[john malpas]

How will minefields or even random mines be sorted out by the escorts?

[AussieD]

No ship is unsinkable. No defence weapons system is infallible.

In a recent exercise with our American cousins one of our locally much maligned Collins Class old fashioned [non-nuclear] submersibles penetrated the defence of said cousin's fleet and hypothetically sunk their flagship.

Not broadcast widely but known in local naval circles.

All in all the TR is an imposing sight and should scare the crap out of anyone cocking a snoot at it. But first you would have to get Barry El Bama off the golf course to agree someone had crossed one of his lines in the sand - and good luck with that.

And the Naval Toast for Wednesday seems appropriate ["Ourselves" (as no one else is likely to be concerned for us!)]

And a tour of HMS Victory was a highlight of a trip to the UK some years ago.

[JK]

"... In a recent exercise [one of our] submersibles penetrated the defence. ... ."

And had your Aussie D *recognized* - the *significance* of spelling the damn word correctly ... known in local naval circles ... ... would not've given WW the impression I'd won some damned lottery.

However .. & I certainly hope I'm not equalling your Australian Navies *just because* ... because, ... Well.

Smooth Move ... Can't say more than that you realize. (But personally ...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXLlQ9OEQ_o

it went, as before, unbragged.)

Can't say more.

[Richard]

David,
The Americans - ahead of the curve as usual when it comes to technology - are now developing lasers which will be used as point defence systems on warships.

The advantages are as follows: 1) No logistics. As long as the platform the laser weapons are installed on has power, you will be able to use them. In short, the new system will give a limitless number of shots and you will NEVER run out of ammunition.

2 Extremely low cost. The cost of firing a single missile is prohibitively high. In contrast, a laser blast costs next to nothing. The new technology will therefore give you an infinite number of bangs for your buck and if I am correct (I hasten to add that I am no expert)laser defence systems will be able to saturate the areas surrounding them in a way that conventional missiles cannot.

3) Pin-point accuracy - a laser beam travels at the speed of light. Need I say more?

I predict that this new technology will soon make the current American Aegis defence system look like a primitive toy. I can only repeat that I am no expert (neither are you by the way)but my gut reaction is that the Yanks have already examined the kind of threat that your idea represents and that they already have it covered.

If they don't, it is a sure bet that they will before too long.

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2014/dec/10/us-navy-test-laser-weapon-persian-gulf

[David Duff]

Now, now, Richard, I began this discussion by admitting that "ex-Cpl. Duff is in no position to provide you with a naval warfare philosophy fit for purpose in the 21st century". I am merely posing a few questions on the not unreasonable basis that our 'Brass' tend to prepare to fight the last war rather than the next one.

I am glad that the Americans have developed laser weaponry (which, of course, could also be installed on my remote-controlled mini-platforms!) but I was amused that their use against humans is banned under the Geneva Convention! So, I might have to have one sailor per platform in my new mini-fleet - any volunteers? Also, I wonder what research there is into laser-protection systems - big mirrors, perhaps, to reflect the beam back to sender! (Jest kiddin'!)

[JK]

Eh Richard I was "attempting" to get back to you afore our host woke up
Damned we're doing our best on DST but this is, Arkansas and six hours one way or another plays absolute Hell with our Legislature

http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2015/mar/20/bill-end-daylight-savings-time-state-fails-house/

And me more'n especially. Barney insists running on GMT as, I'm reckoning, "good reasons" as his Pappy was associated in the olden days when you British fellows was just making acquaintance with the ARABS introduced y'all to the West African Potentates who, ventured into the Interior according to Henry Louis Gates and thereby caused all My Country's Nigger problems ...

Allahu Hachensack Wherever (but I'm glad it's where you are) to wit: Martin Luther King - at least in Arkansas shares a Day with [so far;

http://time.com/3688170/arkansas-martin-luther-king-jr-robert-e-lee-day/

"Hands Up! Don't Shoot!"
________________________

And - Whichever of all these fucking tales we're told is The Truthfulmost I, JK ...

Oops. OT?

Navy Warfare stuff???
________________________

Sorry. Wrong Blog.

[David Duff]

I don't care what time it is 'over there', JK, because whatever it is, it is way past your bedtime!

[JK]

Just a link to get back OT (On-Topic) [Thanks UK]

http://breakingdefense.com/2014/07/boy-do-i-want-to-get-away-from-being-the-trillion-dollar-airplane-bogdan/

(Oooh boy the irony there given how this post's worked so far.)

- I've been David on 'Yemen and Tunisian' time since the 18th, not mad at "y'all" especially - more the Eyetailians but then -

... I'll leave y'all to it. You figure the world's problems out. ... If y'all have any money to stick into NATO'd be nice.

[Whitewall]

JK, sorry if I mistook some rumblings as a bit of good fortune that had come your way. Hope you are well and able to sit up and take nourishment.

[Cuffleyburgers]

Agreed about Deadnought - a glorious book.