News, Articles and Comment

Ed. The author explores the progressive integration of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) into RN fleet operations. The strategic and operational advantages of UAV and autonomous systems in modern naval warfare are undeniable and will only continue to grow. A 10 minute read.

Ed. The author describes the Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) developments in the Royal Norwegian Navy and NATO that will revolutionize mine countermeasure operations in the coming years. A 25 minute read.

Ed. The author argues that the expense of Astute and delays in Dreadnought development threaten success of the AUKUS plan for a next generation SSN. Both the RAN and RN should consider buying future USN Virginia-class submarines to quickly fulfill the SSN-AUKUS mandate. A 10 minute read.

Ed. Originally published in 1963 [51/4, p. 430] as a reprint from Cross & Cockade magazine, the author provided a fascinating retelling of the final flight of Peter Strasser, the iconoclastic chief of Imperial Germany’s Naval Airships, who refused to recognize that by August 1918 British air defences had doomed the Zeppelins to military obsolescence. A 30 minute read.

Ed. The author provides an update on Russia’s United Shipbuilding Corporation (OSK) and the likely outcomes resulting from increased government pressure to improve the company’s throughput and financing. A 5 minute read.

Ed. The author provides an important update on USN and RN nuclear submarine developments, highlighting the major challenges for the Services and the industrial base over the next decade. A 5 minute read.

Ed. Naval practitioners have previously commented on the mission-focused desirability of warship modularity [NR 111/1, p. 34]. In this article, the author argues in favour of adopting the modular NavyPods technology concept aboard the Royal Navy’s Hunt-class Mine Countermeasure Vessels. A 10 minute read.

Ed. Not too unlike the Hellenstic inventor Archimedes and his patron Hiero II of Syracuse, or 20th century technologists such as Bob Noyce and William Shockley, brothers Samuel and Jeremy Bentham were a pair of functionalist Georgian characters. While Jeremy is well known for his contributions to the Reform Movement and utilitarian philosophy, the younger brother Samuel, a prototypical early steam-era inventor and Royal Navy engineer, in the mold of predecessors such as Thomas Slade and Charles Middleton, or successors like Sir Robert Seppings and Sir Nathaniel Barnaby, is less well known. The authors herein examine Samuel Bentham’s life and work. A 30 minute read.