Something for anyone wanting a design challenge.

The cover to a 1981 reprint of a 1977 thriller novel, I'm not sufficiently familiar with Soviet era hardware to determine if the ship on the cover is a real design or freelanced.

A Frenzy of Merchantmen

A Frenzy of Merchantmen: Full 1981 Cover

Maybe like this? Skorry Class DD.

[ img ]

Thanks for the ID, I think the artist (Paul Wright) used a different bridge structure, which might have been what threw me off.

It looks also with Kotlin Class destroyer.

I've just added to my own version of the Fictional Warships list an interesting set of fictional Chinese warships from the (very) early 1990s including the authors guess at what the Type 052 would be like and Type 051 'Luda' class destroyers given a SAM Kotlin style conversion with aft mounted missiles, either copies of the French Masurca or Chinese HQ-61s.

The specific post is linked below

https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/ ... #msg317273

From the front cover of 2003 Omnibus release of Hammond Innes 1988 novel Medusa paired with his 1960 novel The Doomed Oasis. Medusa features a Leander Class Frigate (As built with 2 x 4.5 inch guns forward.), however the cover of this release seems to be based on something else.

Medusa/The Doomed Oasis

https://www.dropbox.com/s/n6nv5htjglybu ... r.png?dl=0

The very vague description of the 'battlecruiser' Moltke from Douglas Reeman's 1974 novel, 'The Destroyers'

Quote:

Sheridan had seen her once, just before the war, 1937 when King George had reviewed the fleet at Spithead. It was like a mad dream now. But at the time it seemed only right and proper of the greater nations to send representatives to the greatest review of the greatest navy. Moltke had been brand new, barely months from her builder's yard in Wilhelmshaven.

The pleasure boats had had a heyday, surging with carefree trippers past the towering grey ships. Hood and the French Dunquerque , the American New York, and just astern of the German pocket-battleship Graf Spee, the Moltke. She had lacked much of the lean grace of the Scharnhorst and her sister ship, and not measured up to the later armoured giants like Tirpitz.

Armament details can be found on Hoods fictional warship listing in Part II: Fictional Warships 1900-1945 - Section A-G under Kreigsmarine (Battleships/Fictional classes.)

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=5756&start=40#p164197

My own listing also has an entry covering this ship and the novel it came from

https://www.secretprojects.co.uk/forum/ ... #msg309964

This drawing has been around for a while and matches most of what Sheridan saw.

[ img ]

Thanks for finding that one.

I'm currently reading through Dale Brown's 'Fatal Terrain' to make up the next entry on my version of the 'Fictional Warships' list (See also my posting of the 26th of October 2017 for a link to the last time I tackled one of his books.), despite being an aviation oriented writer, he sometimes throws up some interesting (if vaguely described ships.)

In this case it's a Taiwanese Frigate, where I suspect the authors start point was the Ching Chiang Class Patrol Craft (Kuang Hua III).

Kin Men
Kuang Hua III Class Frigate (Fictional?)
Armament: 1 x 40mm gun (Fwd), 2 x 20mm Phalanx (Fwd & Aft), 36 Round VLS (12 Harpoon, 10 ASROC, 14 Standard AAM), 4 x Torpedo Tube (21 inch?), .5 Mgs, Sea Sparrow.
Has a helipad and hangar space capable of holding 2 x S-70C(M)-1/2 Thunderhawk Helicopters, normally carries one.
Stealth Design

I will note before I go any further that the Kuang Hua I project was the Perry Class Frigate and the Kuang Hua II project was the Kang Ding Class Frigate. The author does not provide dimensions/layout, but the 36 round VLS and the twin Sikorski S-70 hangar plus the landing pad should impose some minimum dimensions on the size of the ship.

Here is the quote from which I got the details above.

Quote:

"The vessel is a French-designed indigenously built Kwang Hua III-class frigate. One of the Nationalists' new toys. Launched just last year."

"Armament?"

"Has a thirty six round vertical launch system with twelve Harpoon anti-ship cruise missiles, ten ASROC rocket-boosted torpedoes, and fourteen Standard antiair missiles - the Standard missiles can be used for surface attack as well. Four side-firing torpedo tubes. Sea Sparrow close-in and anti-missile system, 40mm bow-mounted duel-purpose gun, Phalanx close-in defence cannons fore and aft, and several 12.7mm machine gun mounts."

"Very impressive", Yi mused...

...

"Large helicopter hanger, can carry two small helicopters," the first officer continued. "Typically carries one S-70 helicopter, armed with AS-30L laser guided attack missiles, or Harpoon anti-ship missiles."

(Pg 172 - 173, 'Fatal Terrain')

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