UK Defence, foreign policy & its combined application. With the aim to articulate British strengths and promote discussion around our weaknesses.
Derby, United Kingdom 🇬🇧
Joined March 2018
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A short, concise, informative video from @HJS_Org and @james_rogers.
Intelligently detailing Britain’s historic geographical advantages, and as a result, our contemporary global reach.
What is the geography of British power? youtu.be/nQcT9wYmXZk
CommonSense Defence retweeted
RAF Completes 20th Aerial Refuelling Mission in Support of Defending Saudi Arabia's skies
The UK Royal Air Force's Airbus A330-MRTT "Voyager" tanker aircraft have completed their 20th mission a short while ago, supporting air defence operations in Saudi Arabia which has come under repeated attack from the pro-Iran Houthi group's UAVs and missiles launched from Yemen.
At present, the 20 sorties flown account for around 187 flying hours, with airframes ZZ334 currently the most flown from RAF Akrotiri for this purpose.
@MATA_osint @UKDefJournal @UKForcesTracker @flightradar24
xitter.cf/DefenceGeek/status/210…
UK RAF Voyager to support Saudis with "defensive" operations
The UK Defence Secretary @wesstreeting has confirmed that a single RAF A330-MRTT "Voyager" KC.2 tanker @DefenceHQ will support defensive operations for Saudi Arabia currently fighting the Iran-backed Houthi group in Yemen.
I've detailed below the Royal Saudi Air Force's fast-jets and force-multipliers (AWACS, Tankers, UAVs, etc)
It is important to note, the RAF "Voyager" KC.2 does not have a boom for aerial refuelling, using underwing pods, meaning the only jets the Saudis operate that it can refuel are the Eurofighter "Typhoon" and Panavia "Tornado" jets - however given the explicitly-stated "defensive" nature of this support, that rules out the "Tornado" jets as they are the "IDS" (strike) variant, not the air defence variant.
It seems therefore that the current plan will be for the single "Voyager" KC.2 to fly from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus, down via the Red Sea to support Saudi's Typhoons stationed at King Fahd Airbase (OETF), likely protecting the skies over Jeddah, Riyadh and any others in range of Houthi weapons.
@MATA_osint @UKDefJournal
Dire situation, as highlighted by @TBrit90 ⬇️
Though, perhaps even in this forlorn state, its still 'just' about possible to cover...demonstate convening influence?
Firecrest - PoW, Dauntless, Tide? 🇺🇸🇨🇦 support, as understand heading that way?
TAPS - St Albans
SSN - Audacious hopefully returns? GIUK
QE/NATO - depending on exercises, T23, Bay? - SNMG1 support?
FOST - Tide
🇮🇷/Red Sea - T45, Daring? A wait and see if required 2027?
APTN/APTS/Far East - B2 Rivers
CommonSense Defence retweeted
1/2
Belize City, Belize
I'd long wanted to visit, and it was much as I'd expected. Poor, but charming former colony; lingering British feel, and an enduring cultural and language link with the very friendly locals
🔸low-lying with dense jungle and the longest barrier reef of the western hemisphere
🔸Belize City lies by the coast on reclaimed swampy land and was devastated by a 1961 hurricane, when the capital was moved inland to Belmopan
🔸origins lie with English and Scottish buccaneers and log-cutters, settling from the 1600s
🔸Spain never effectively gained control and the colony slowly formalised to British Honduras in 1862
🔸independence from Britain in 1981, and, as seems common in this situation, it looks like most development stopped from this date...
Long tender ride in from the anchorage offshore. Brown pelicans busy dive-bomb feeding!
🏠 coming for @HMSDragon‼️
After a diverse 7️⃣ month deployment, across the Mediterranean, Red Sea & Indian Ocean.
She was deployed at haste with 6 weeks of work completed in 6 days and @FOST conducted on route 📷4️⃣
She provided:
- AAW capability in defence of 🇬🇧 SBA’s in 🇨🇾, with support of her embarked Wildcat 📷3️⃣
- Subsequently deployed through Suez and the Red Sea with @RFALymeBay, to preposition subject to action to reopen the Strait of Hormuz 🇮🇷 📷1️⃣&2️⃣
- Worked with allies from 🇺🇸🇫🇷🇩🇪
- Visiting 🇨🇾🇬🇷🇴🇲🇸🇦🇰🇪🇸🇨🇲🇹🇬🇮
CommonSense Defence retweeted
How can Britain use the Commonwealth to reinvigorate the G20? 🌐
@Francis_W_Shin proposes a new ‘C7’ of Commonwealth countries to coordinate policy positions across the G20, Commonwealth, ASEAN, and African Union.
🔗 britainsworld.org.uk/p/the-m…
CSD Correspondent @UlsterFrank 😂
Has caught @HMSQNLZ visiting Northern Ireland this morning, with a backdrop of the Mournes, due in Belfast later.
Potential T26 Tension
With the T23 cliff edge, securing the first x3 T26 is pretty vital for the RN/🇬🇧 to maintain *at least 5 T23/26.
If ⬇️ is an indication of that, its a bonus as I had reconciled that Belfast was going to be a 🇳🇴 hull.
In fairness, I appreciate 🇳🇴 want their T26 pre 2030...but NSM deliveries have hardly been rapid 🤷♂️
Guesstimate:
2028 - T26 Glasgow, T31 Venturer
2029 - T26 Cardiff, T31 Active
2030 - T26 Belfast, T31 Formidable, likely lost Somerset/Sutherland
2030/31 - T26 🇳🇴, T31 Bulldog
2032 - T26 Sheffield, T31 Campbeltown, likely lost Kent/Portland
2033 - T26 🇳🇴, likely lost St Albans
2034 - T26 London
RN has appointed a ship's sponsor (the Countess of Antrim) to Type 26 frigate (ship 3), HMS Belfast, which suggests the vessel had not been earmarked to be handed to 🇳🇴Norway as their first ship.
Possibly ship 4, HMS Birmingham will become the first Norwegian Type 26? which they (optimistically) want to be in service by 2029.
CommonSense Defence retweeted
HMS Agamemnon arrived at her new home in Faslane for the first time today after a week of contractors sea trials following her departure from Barrow last week.
Via @MichaelGDeveney
CommonSense Defence retweeted
HMS Agamemnon (S124) has arrived on the Clyde today for the first time, while currently on sea trials. She was laid down in 2013 and commissioned in 2025.
Anyone can point at 🔥 and say 'look there's a 🔥'.
It is a grand undertaking, there will be huge hurdles, that's the decision 🇦🇺 has taken to take a short route to the club.
What are their alternatives?
- 🇺🇸 can't really spare boats, have similar industrial bottle necks, its effectively the reason 🇬🇧 is involved.
- 🇫🇷 figures seem off? 4 from 6 Suffren at sea? At best I can see 3 in service? Might mean 1-2 at sea...lose operational benefit of tying in particularly with 🇺🇸.
And that's the list complete...how about we all get stuck in?
New guest article:
Mounting concern in 🇦🇺Australia over UK ability to deliver SSN-AUKUS
navylookout.com/mounting-con…
CommonSense Defence retweeted
The potency of two of the Royal Navy’s newest ship-busting missiles was confirmed in landmark firings with United States allies against a specially prepared ex-US Navy warship in the North Atlantic.
Read more: royalnavy.mod.uk/news/2026/s…
2/3s of 🇬🇧 SIGNIT force
Committed ⬇️ to operations to monitor 🇷🇺 movements, usually based @RAFWaddington.
raf.mod.uk/aircraft/airseeke…
