Shipbucket

What about the US Mk63? That might be ok (if the UK can stand the extra dollar expenditure!).

The real-world OR.346 and ER.206 that resulted in designs like the Vickers 581 series and the unusual Type 582 twin-fuselage aircraft, plus 588 and 589, Blackburn B.123 and the DH.127 were in effect naval TSR.2s with the added complication of vectored thrust for V/STOL or STOL. The Vickers 581 even looked remarkably like the TSR.2 and all had much the same avionics as TSR.2.
In this AU I've rejected the costly obession with VTOL that went largely nowhere for the Fleet Air Arm. As a cheaper alternative the MoD has listened to HSA and made the Bucc supersonic. The P.145 Buccaneer S Mk.3 has all the major avionics of the TSR.2 so its just as effective but more durable for sea use.

All of my AU aircraft were either real aircraft or in a couple of cases (like the Sea Hunter) extensions of never-were plans.

_________________
Hood's Worklist
English Electric Canberra FD
Interwar RN Capital Ships
Super-Darings
Never-Were British Aircraft

Thanks again chaps. I was aware of the lack of a FCR and something approximating the GUNNAR set; but it would have to be 'home grown' I'm afraid, or maybe licence built (US Dollars ). And I don't think the RCN used that system on the British 3/70 dual mount. With the actual mount I'm sticking to the AU being one that has new systems introduced. My reasoning behind a 'single tube' 3/70 is that it would fill a niche, where the much heavier twin mount would not fit. There has been much debate on the actual 3/70 twin in RN and RCN service, and as a working practice I take the side that it was an o.k. mount. Looking at the actual below decks loading on that mount it would seem that a simplified single would work; all that would be missing would be the FCR, so that must be included now. I should also mention that both the new gun mounts: the single 3/70 and the dual 40mm enclosed will be further developed into fully automatic systems for the next generation of warships. I'm also waiting for someone to query having an all new 40mm twin as well as Seacat? Seeing as how Seacat was adopted to fill the same niche; but again in this AU both evolved an overlapped in some applications

HMS Hood, with HMS Nelson, the later development of the Admirals, to get another double ended Seaslug system afloat:



In some ways these realised the potential of the Majestic conversion, in a cruiser hull. They were very expensive, and the Seaslug/Blueslug did eventually have to get the same sort of 'get well' program as the USN applied to its own earlier sam systems. And with the Mark.2 Seaslug/Blueslug the system did realise its potential, against attack from Soviet bombers and large surface units. So these big cruisers were attached to aircarft carriers, to add another layer of defence in their screen. Although following the ST Vincent and Collingwood they were decommisoned first, as the reliance on missiles that were becoming obsolete made it more economic to go to the next generation of missile crusiers (and wait to you see what Hood has ready!!). Also, the RN still had a shortage of hulls carrying Seaslug, so a smaller type was next, which Hood will post soon

BTW, please note that this is the first sight of 'Orange Nell' the new secondary sam system, which was much more capable than Seacat.

The County Class Destroyers

As work on the Super Daring got underway the Admiralty decided to look at a missile-armed destroyer. The Super Daring grew and the design merged with a mini-Admiral type escort. It was decided to fit a new gas turbine machinery fit to save weight in this class and they became among the first warships in the world to be powered (partly at least) by gas turbines. The idea of the armament was to fit the ship as a single-end Admiral, one Sea Slug launcher, two Type 901, one Type 984 and CDS plus two twin 4.5in mounts and two twin 40mm mounts. As the design grew it was decided to fit the supersonic close-range Orange Nell SAM for point-defence. The extra weight meant that the Type 984 3-D was given up for a lighter Type 985 AKE array. The forward guns were retained for use against surface targets and eight 'Fancy' guided anti-ship torpedoes were added for extra punch against Soviet units (when the ships operated alone or away from a carrier group) as there was no space for a seperate Blue Slug magazine. The missiles were stowed aft in a stacked box configuration, a long hangar type stowage being rejected. The ship got bigger still and calls for a helicopter were rejected but a MATCH (to become the Wasp) could be landed aft. A Limbo was also fitted for ASW duties.

Eight ships were built between 1961-69, the last four being Batch II ships which had Sea Slug Mk II and the digital ADAWS (the four earlier ships had the earlier digital ADA system aslo fitted to all four fleet carriers and the two later Admirals). They all left service in 1980-86.

Note: This AU County is based on one of the orginal 1957 designs for the Counties before the long Sea Slug hanagar was chosen, so the ship had a flush deck and no helicopter. An interesting never-were which I've previously drawn for SB, but now I've added some later touches to it as well.

_________________
Hood's Worklist
English Electric Canberra FD
Interwar RN Capital Ships
Super-Darings
Never-Were British Aircraft

Alas, not nearly as elegant and lithe and sleek as the built one! Also, the built Counties featured three pairs of stabilisators, with the bilge keel interposed between, effectively making four pairs of bilge keel sections.

_________________
My Avatar:Петр Алексеевич Безобразов (Petr Alekseevich Bezobrazov), Вице-адмирал , царская ВМФ России(1845-1906) - I sign my drawings as Ari Saarinen

By this era, all of the USN surface torpedo efforts were launched towards the rear, presumably so that they landed in the water with as little residual velocity as possible. The physics are the same no matter which side of the ocean, so I might turn those four long TT around and have them 45deg off the stern.

Love it, really good stuff.

I'm doing the RN at the moment, split of the timeline in 1980, just working on the reason for the split at the moment.

An update of the Tenacity class FAC. With the original concept I've added a later version with two Blueslug 'containerised', replacing two of the Fancy; and below a different version for asw use, with Bidder x 8 and sonar. I've also added FCR to the guns; this being a home-grown equivalent of similar sets in USN service; and for the ssm version a masthead radar with capability for missile guidance:

Much better. Although I might only have the GUNAR on the forward mount. It was not a small system; it hung off the back of a Mk 42 quite noticeably. I'd estimate 6-10 cubic feet of equipment in the back of the turret.