Damn, I’m Plastered on Valentines Day. What’s Smitty doing?

[Martin Hash]

Wife & me are doing a whiskey tour in Portland, Oregon. What do you have going on?

p.s. Lot a fuckin’ lesbians around. Hot.

[Montegriffo]

Battening down the hatches for the second major storm in a week.
I'm getting blown all weekend.

[Martin Hash]

And I thought the PNW was bad.

[Montegriffo]

And I thought the PNW was bad.

The last one went on for 3 days and blew over a trailer full of thatching straw. 3 tons knocked over like it was nothing.

[Smitty-48]

It's -20C here

So I'm just hunkered down by the fireplace reading about the RCN's new patrol ships.

The AOPV 430 Harry DeWolf Class

It's like Canada's version of the Littoral Combat Ship, a multi-role platform to operate in the littorals

Except just for asymmetrical ops, counter piracy, counter narcotics, armed constabulary, etc.

The media is complaining that its not fast nor heavily armed enough, but they miss the point

It's more of a mini troop carrier, a launch pad for a helicopter and swift boats with teams for boarding and landing, it's not a surface combatant

It's ostensibly for the "Arctic" (Op Nanook) but since there's not really much threat up there, these will end up spending more time chasing pirates off Somalia (Op Atalanta) and drug smugglers in the Caribbean (Op Caribbe)



We don't do Valentines Day, fake holiday/cash grab, even Mrs Smitty has no time for it

[Montegriffo]

It's -20C here

So I'm just hunkered down by the fireplace reading about the RCN's new patrol ships.

The AOPV 430 Harry DeWolf Class

It's like Canada's version of the Littoral Combat Ship, a multi-role platform to operate in the littorals

Except just for asymmetrical ops, counter piracy, counter narcotics, armed constabulary, etc.

The media is complaining that its not fast nor heavily armed enough, but they miss the point

It's more of a mini troop carrier, a launch pad for a helicopter and swift boats with teams for boarding and landing, it's not a surface combatant

It's ostensibly for the "Arctic" (Op Nanook) but since there's not really much threat up there, these will end up spending more time chasing pirates off Somalia (Op Atalanta) and drug smugglers in the Caribbean (Op Caribbe)



We don't do Valentines Day, fake holiday/cash grab, even Mrs Smitty has no time for it

The American version is a sexy looking ship.

[Smitty-48]

The American version is a sexy looking ship.

I like the Canadian version because it's more troop oriented, I like it from the standpoint of having a sea base to conduct special operations and commando missions, whereas the LCS is more of a frigate, which Canada already has.

The Harry DeWolf class is a sea base for RCN Maritime Tactical Operators, which is Canada's version of the US Coast Guard's Maritime Security Response Teams.

The sexiness of the AOPS is about the shooters on board, which can be MTO, JTF2, RCMP, etcetera

[Smitty-48]

See, with the LCS, the American media also complained that it was too lightly armed.

Also missing the point, that it was supposed to be more of a multimission patrol ship, not a frigate.

The Pentagon however reacted to the incessant media carping, and has now armed the LCS to the point of being a frigate

But that defeats the original purpose of having a patrol ship for asymmetrical warfare, and LCS is now being employed as frigates instead.

It's not that LCS can't do the asymmetrical mission, it's just that once you start loading it up with the firepower of a frigate, that's what the Admirals will start using it for

They don't want to do the Littoral mission, the Admirals want surface combatants to fight Wars of Hegemonic Succession.

[Smitty-48]

Loves me some MIC pork barreling, even at the micro level

AOPS Rossborough Boats Rough Water Combatant™ RHIB spin off contract ftw



Ooh, also comes in a 9.11 extended configuration for diver teams, sweet.

[Smitty-48]

Ah, AOPS comes with the Terma Scanter 6000 series radars.

An excellent choice. Danish made, market leader in class for detection of small vessels in clutter

Economical, the right radar for the job, highly effective, at an affordable price.