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CVF and Carrier Strike thread

Maybe being full of radar, sonar, Electro-optical systems, having a folding tail and a folding rotor....

Compared to an Osprey, its nothing special, but it is a perfect example of what happens when a manufacturer with no track record designing aircraft fancies it can out design someone who's been a market leader for 40 year, and then compounds it by merging two sets of mutually contradictory national requirements.

And its not the electronic and sonars that are the problems with Merlin, it's the mechanics, they were very badly designed and hugely under specified.
Starting with a fixed rotor disc diameter, then increasing the airframe size and weight outside its 'ya canna change the laws of physics' parameters - well, you can, by grafting on an extra engine to a transmission designed for two engines, and running the main rotor way faster than is ideal. Merlin basically lives its life in Maximum overdrive thrashing itself to death.
- and stay out of the porta-loos when its coming in to land - the rather awesome prop wash results in hilarity!
 
FRA MoD has announced that the CdG will support the anti Daesh campaign during the first semester of 2021

Florence Parly (@florence_parly) a tweeté : Devant la commission @AN_Defense, je donne aux députés de premières indications sur la prochaine mission du porte-avions Charles de Gaulle #DirectAN https://t.co/PIFO01hvKV
 
Compared to an Osprey, its nothing special, but it is a perfect example of what happens when a manufacturer with no track record designing aircraft fancies it can out design someone who's been a market leader for 40 year, and then compounds it by merging two sets of mutually contradictory national requirements.

And its not the electronic and sonars that are the problems with Merlin, it's the mechanics, they were very badly designed and hugely under specified.
Starting with a fixed rotor disc diameter, then increasing the airframe size and weight outside its 'ya canna change the laws of physics' parameters - well, you can, by grafting on an extra engine to a transmission designed for two engines, and running the main rotor way faster than is ideal. Merlin basically lives its life in Maximum overdrive thrashing itself to death.
- and stay out of the porta-loos when its coming in to land - the rather awesome prop wash results in hilarity!

Has anyone designed an ASW version of Osprey? I hope you will not mind me waiting for the opinion of someone will operational ASW experience will you?

Although not wishing to get into a slogging match over your post, I do have a counter perspective;

The Atlantic Council (AC) article paints a VERY narrow US-centric and rather patronising view on where the Brits should park their carrier -that is optimised on US Interests.
Their argument is predicated on the assumption we will blithely continue to play their 'Bridge' role now we have left the EU and that UKPLC should obediently fill the gap created by US Naval over-stretch, in the N Atlantic. It also incorrectly conflates PMBJ's intent of a Global UK, with US need for the UK to be at the heart of NATO. This we can do, without fixing a Carrier in the N Atlantic.​
The UK NATO Led 'strike group' can be provided by the JEF (-QE). Although correctly assuming that the UK will remain committed to European NATO defence (as well as bi-lateral stuff; France in Africa), it incorrectly conflates European reluctance to commit to credible defence spending, with that of their the neighbour over the North Sea. The article also makes the mistake of assuming that the UK would obediently offer key national strategic assets as a resource to be 'utili(z)ed most effectively' to meet Washington's strategic interest above that of London's. They also wrongly conflate solidarity (in the face of China) with compliance.​

I make these observations, as the presumptions made by the AC run counter to the evidence presented to them (if they did their research). The first clue is in the 'Global' bit of Global Britain, HMG's intent is to work toward a significant pivot back to East of Suez. The work toward CPTPP membership, where significant UK interests already lay and where UK's reputation has suffered less over recent decades. The UK as a leading player in a emerging 'middle power consensus' - where we work more effectively with like minded nations (call it CANZUK +++). For those of us interested in RUSI, IISS et al, these are themes that have been emerging/been discussed openly.

Now that we are a 'independent sovereign nation' - I really don't believe we will revert to some pos-war, pre-Thatcher version of ourselves; under-confident, declinist, and supplicant. We might get it spectacularly wrong, but I don't think it's in our DNA to do so. If Bojo only lasts one term, then all bets are off. But we are starting from a position where we remain a soft-power leader, where we are (now) once again proving that in a global crisis, our science is top tier and where we have a unique opportunity to leverage our reputation in the wider World, in support of those we see as like-minded partners.

Why would we throw that opportunity away, to comply with the national strategic interest of a nation that played us like a fiddle from 1940 onwards? The ME for the QE & PoW will be East, not back-filling the USN in the N Atlantic.

Y

Thinking about it on a number of occasions the old Invincible class frequently redeployed in a hurry - a carrier can sustain high speeds. Therefore being committed to the NATO Atlantic theatre in the event of conflict with Russia does not [preclude being East of Suez. Think of how fact the task group moved in 1982.

FRA MoD has announced that the CdG will support the anti Daesh campaign during the first semester of 2021

Florence Parly (@florence_parly) a tweeté : Devant la commission @AN_Defense, je donne aux députés de premières indications sur la prochaine mission du porte-avions Charles de Gaulle #DirectAN https://t.co/PIFO01hvKV


CdG has spent a large amount of her life on operations that were part of France's main defence effort. I am sure that the same would apply if she was called on to protect a task group or an amphibious force, or perhaps logistic shipping.
 
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in your own time, how many Navy’s have bought the ASW of the Merlin in even distant history?
One more country than has bought the Osprey, by my reckoning.

Also, given that most of your criticisms seem to revolve around the airframe, that over a dozen countries operate non-ASW variants also needs to be taken into account.
 
Merlins are fine for reliability; we just didn't buy enough spares to suppprt them in 3rd line maintenance. That it turn just extends the timelines to get anything done.

Like most helicopters, they work best when they're flown pretty intensively.
 
I think some people confuse availability and reliability. Also Merlin has a full ninety minutes of extra duration than MH-60R or NH-90 - five hours instead of three and a half.

We have also established that the carrier in the Mediterranean or Middle East can redeploy to the Atlantic in the event of a major crisis, so being part of the four thirties NATO force and deploying globally are not mutually exclusive.
 
I think some people confuse availability and reliability. Also Merlin has a full ninety minutes of extra duration than MH-60R or NH-90 - five hours instead of three and a half.

We have also established that the carrier in the Mediterranean or Middle East can redeploy to the Atlantic in the event of a major crisis, so being part of the four thirties NATO force and deploying globally are not mutually exclusive.

Oh, there's no confusion on my part - it is frequently unavailable and when it is available, it is unreliable. :-D
 
As an ex Merlin maintainer I do have my views on what it is like to work with.

The avionics are very good however as mentioned it is let down by the spares support.
I cannot prove it however I have always suspected that some parts contracts have been neglected and at times we had to wait until we placed an urgent aircraft on ground demand before we could get the parts which then strangely was available but at a much higher unit price.
At one stage we had to cannibalise a main rotor head as none were available. The one we robbed only had just over 100 hours left on it before it needed to be replaced .

Edit. Spelling
 
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