Royal Navy Sending Carrier To Gulf

Just saw this on Teletext, looking for links to news webpages.


A Royal Navy aircraft carrier will go out to the Gulf in Spring 2008, the MoD has confirmed.

HMS Illustrious will head for waters near Iran, accompanied by a destroyer, a frigate, two minesweepers and three Royal Fleet Auxiliary support vessels.

A MoD spokesman said 'Operation Orion 08' was about 'them practising being a battle group' in the Gulf.

 

Wouldn't it be quicker to say the entire Royal Navy ... ?

 

I don't believe it.

Someone stills watches Teletext!

 

Stretching the phrase 'battle group' a bit much aren't they?

 

I do when there's fcuk all on TV

 

I thought Illustrious had been sold to the Aus Navy? Suppose we might as well get a few more miles out of her!

 

Routine op or a prelude to Iran getting a spanking?

 

I didn't hear about anything. Had a quick look round t'internet and can't find anything relating to an Australian sale, sure your not thinking of another ship?

 

Gods I hope not. Whilst the mine sweepers would certainly come in handy, one of Iran's projected reactions to getting bombed is possibly mining the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz for some oil tanker fun, I wouldn't like to be on Illustrious if things kicked off. They'd have to stick extremely close to some American Ticonderoga cruisers just to be safe from all the Iranian anti-ship missiles they'd be likely to fire off on the off chance of hitting something, and honestly I don't think a single destroyer and frigate would cut it. Shades of San Carlos Water anyone?

 

I think its merely trying to intimidate Iran and I don't think that Ahmadinajad (Or whatever his face) will dare provoke anything.

 

Possibly, it was a couple of years back I heard it, googling it comes up with the event about the Falkland times, must have got my dates (and ships) confused!

 

He's as mad as the shaved chimp, neither will back down.

 

I hope that the Americans are sending a couple of carriers groups at the same time then, otherwise it isn't exactly going to be all that intimidating to Iran. Laughable more like. One carrier, one destroyer, a frigate and three support vessels aren't so much a threat as a massive target. Rattle off a salvo of fifty or a hundred anti-ship missles just to pick a random number and it's all so much scrap metal on the bottom.

What's the point anyway? We've got land bases at practically no great distance in region anyway. Hell, do we even have any planes yet that can fly off of the carrier or are we just sending the ship itself and hoping no-one realises? For the twenty or so planes it could carry why not just move them to Bahraini, Omani or Saudi airfields? Would be much simpler to organise I would have thought.

Edit: Here's a newspaper article on the idea from the Telegraph. Only one so far I've been able to find.

 

If they're on an Op it's a little late to be practising.

The sad thing being the MoD spokesman is probably not an idiot or stupid but is out of touch with the military.

 

Hhmm. If it's maritime security they're after, wouldn't using a ship like HMS Ocean be a better idea? Allows for the carrying of booties in case you need to board any shipping plus the helicopters and boats to carry them about places.