Ha and it’s only Monday lunchtime

HMS London (D16) Royal Navy County Class Destroyer 1964 ⚓️

🚨🚨NEW: Ed Miliband has just published the budget for his botched wind auction. When Miliband promised to cut your bills by £300, the market price was £72/MWh. This year he’s said he’s willing to pay £117/MWh for offshore wind AND he’s extended the contracts to 20 years.

Great aerial warship pics from contributors for our new (Nov) edition - Yoshiharu Fukushima in a JS Kaga helicopter captured HMS Prince of Wales in Indo-Pac & Michael Nitz used a drone over the Baltic for a cover image of INS Tamal. For more get the mag https://t.co/PJ4Qr8Z0Cj

Javier Milei’s party wins Argentina’s midterm elections https://t.co/AaJb8gsrGW

Yes, a big BZ to Yoshiharu Fukushima for a great set of images shot while embarked with the JMSDF during joint exercises with UK Carrier Strike Group (superb 4-page photo special inside the mag) & also Michael Nitz for pics of the Indian Navy frigate - ship profile piece inside.

Starmer: "We used to have something a lot like this. We called it Taranis." Turkish chap: "Really? What happened to it?" Starmer: "Nobody knows."

@MtarfaL This is a great thread l!

In the Substack below I explain all of the things that the Sunday Times journalists can't seem to understand about changes in UK Trade and this is not due to Breixt. The return of the Remain Zombies https://t.co/YVNIx2p6hR

Believe it or not, I’m a fan of @NavyLookout. I don’t always agree with the views expressed, but I greatly admire the dedication & passion. This article gets to the heart of a thread I did just last week (see the next post for a link). So what are our Carriers for now?🧵1/21

With so many scandals engulfing the Labour government, I forgot all about the China Spy Scandal. Thanks to @MtarfaL for pulling this thread together. Well worth the time to read through.

Conclusion – Foundational Legacy and Timeless Roles 25/25 Against their 1950s origins, the Wasp and Scout surpassed expectations as enablers of organic ASW and battlefield eyes, delivering the Santa Fe kill and Goose Green rescues where heavies faltered, though single-engine

Merits, Drawbacks, and Design Constraints 24/25 Strengths abounded in these pioneers: unrivalled compactness for small decks (Wasp: 8 m folded) or FOBs (Scout: 50 m² footprint), turbine agility evading MANPADS at 50 feet, and modularity for torpedoes/missiles with 98% dispatch

Comparative Perspectives – Scout Versus Loach and Alouette III 23/25 On land, the Scout mirrored the U.S. Army’s Hughes OH-6 Cayuse (Loach, 1963 debut), both nimble scouts for high-threat recce: the Loach’s T63 engine and teardrop skids enabled 280 km/h dashes in Vietnam “Pink

Comparative Perspectives – Wasp Versus Seasprite: Philosophies in Contrast 22/25 The Wasp closely paralleled the U.S. Navy’s Kaman SH-2 Seasprite (first flight 1958), both compact ASW birds for frigate escorts in the Cold War ASW race. Yet philosophies diverged: the RN’s Wasp

From Wasp and Scout to Lynx – Design Advances and Entry 21/25 The Lynx HAS.1 (naval) and AH.1 (army) entered RN/AAC service in 1977/1978, addressing Wasp/Scout limits with 50% more power (1,670 shp total), optional dipping sonar for independent ASW, and TOW/Hellfire missiles for

From Wasp and Scout to Lynx – Programme Drivers and French Comparison 20/25 By the late 1960s, Nimbus obsolescence, single-engine risks (evident in 10% Falklands ditching rates), and evolving threats like quiet Soviet Alfa subs spurred the Lynx programme, directly evolving the

International Adoption – Bahrain and Jordan Examples 19/25 Bahrain’s two Scouts, acquired in 1977, patrolled Gulf oilfields under police colours, adding IR suppressors and belly-mounted cameras for low-threat surveillance of smuggling dhows, with GPMGs for non-lethal warnings.

International Adoption – South African and New Zealand Service 18/25 South Africa’s six Wasps, delivered from 1963, bolstered Simon’s Town ASW against Soviet Whiskey-class subs during the Border War, upgraded mid-1970s with AS.12s for strikes on Angolan patrol boats and

International Adoption – Limited but Influential 17/25 Exports remained modest—fewer than 30 airframes total—yet influential in niche roles: the Wasp served South Africa (six for ASW on President-class frigates), New Zealand (five jointly RNZN/RNZAF), Netherlands (12 for Van