IMO the delayed schedule for the Nuke Subs and the debacle over cancelling froggy hybrids will simply lead to us completely outsourcing our sub defensive capabilities: like just paying the Yanks & the Poms to protect us for an annual fee : EG: Pay the Yanks & the Poms a $billion each a year for supplying the service.
As such we could have the protection right away and at $2 billion a year, this would be equivalent to 45 years protection rather than spending $90 Billion for subs that have a service life of less than 45 years.
lets face it, if we are attacked by the Chinese, 6 non nuke-armed subs will be of little use to protect us but instead, like the Ukraine, we'll have to rely on others.
IMO our biggest future threat is ICBM attacks and the Nuke propelled Subs will be worth bugger all as a defensive shield.We need anti hypersonic ICBMs defence blanket, not nuke powered subs with conventional weapons.
Like the coal arguement, we are lumping the lot: -one side assuming that the Nuke Powered Subs will be Nuke armed and the other side assuming that the wont.
Has anyone asked the question: -will the Nuke powered Subs be armed with nuke weapons or conventional weapons? IMO as a deterrent, they will have to be Nuke Armed; otherwise the Chinese will thumb their noses at them, IMO.
If the Government is serious about acquiring such Subs in over 20 years time, then it was silly to make that public; this is why , IMO, its a smokescreen and it is a "bravado" signal to China that we will be powerful in 20 years time so dont pull any stunts in the interim.
PS: It reminds me about the poverty breakfast joke: "If we had eggs, we'd have bacon and eggs if we had bacon"!
