France/UK to share/pool their aircraft carriers ?

[Stratofreighter]

http://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKTRE67 ... 6947262:z3" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Government cool on mooted carrier sharing scheme

Credit: Reuters/Kevin Coombs

By Tim Castle and John Irish

LONDON/PARIS | Tue Aug 31, 2010 2:11pm BST

LONDON/PARIS (Reuters) - Britain said on Tuesday it would discuss closer military cooperation with France in talks this week, but played down a report that the two countries would share aircraft carriers to save costs.

Britain is building two new carriers at a cost of 5.2 billion pounds but, like France, is under pressure to find military savings to rebalance public finances.

The Times newspaper said the two nations were considering plans to save money by coordinating their carrier missions so that at least one vessel was on patrol at any time.

It quoted an unidentified British naval source as saying Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicholas Sarkozy would announce the carrier sharing plan at a November summit.

Defence Secretary Liam Fox travels to Paris on Friday for talks with his French counterpart Herve Morin, but a British Ministry of Defence (MoD) source told Reuters they would not be making any announcements on carrier sharing.

"We will be looking at areas of closer cooperation between the two countries. But there are no plans to share carriers," the source said.

Fox and Morin would discuss Afghanistan, the NATO military alliance and broader cooperation but there was no specific agenda for the one-hour meeting, an MoD spokeswoman added.

However in Paris, a French Defence Ministry source said sharing aircraft carriers had been "touched upon a few months ago and is now back" on the agenda.

"You have to see that there is an opportunity for both sides, especially for us. Instead of us paying for a second one, we have to work with our partners," the French source added.

France, which has only one aircraft carrier, has itself pushed back for several years the construction of a second, with a decision whether to go ahead delayed till 2011.

The carrier sharing proposal would ensure one of three ships -- one French and two British -- would always patrol the seas, The Times said.

It would also make it easier for Britain to scrap or downgrade one of the planned carriers, which are due to enter service in 2016 and 2018.

Earlier this month, a defence ministry source told Reuters that Britain might cancel one or both of the planned aircraft carriers to cut costs, though there were no plans to scale back the country's nuclear deterrent.

The British carriers are being built by a consortium including BAE Systems and Babcock International of Britain, and French company Thales.

(Additional reporting by Karolina Tagaris in London and Elisabeth Pineau in Paris; Editing by Jon Boyle)

And earlier:

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Britain, France to share aircraft carriers - paper

Credit: Reuters/Kevin Coombs

LONDON | Tue Aug 31, 2010 12:49am BST

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain and France are getting ready to unveil plans to share aircraft carriers amid pressure on the British military to cut costs, the Times reported on Tuesday.

Prime Minister David Cameron and French President Nicholas Sarkozy were expected to announce the proposal at a November summit, the Times said, quoting an unidentified British naval source for its information.

No immediate comment was available from British officials on the report.

Earlier this month, a Defence Ministry source told Reuters that Britain might cancel one or both of its planned new aircraft carriers to cut costs, though there were no plans to scale back the country's nuclear deterrent.

The proposal involving France would make it easier for Britain to scrap or downgrade one of the two replacement carriers under construction, the Times said.

The newspaper said the proposal would ensure that one of three ships -- one French and two British -- would always patrol the seas.

"Using each other's carriers would require decisions to be made at the strategic level so that national aims on any given operation would be the same," the naval source was quoted as saying.

The Defence Ministry is conducting a sweeping review of Britain's future military needs and ways to provide capability more cheaply.

(Reporting by Karolina Tagaris; editing by Ralph Gowling)

We'll see. Lot of "wild plans" flying about these months. The problem is: some of these could actually become reality...

[Richard from Rotterdam]

from the BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-11176489" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

3 September 2010 Last updated at 11:32 GMT
Liam Fox rejects sharing aircraft carriers with France

Defence Secretary Liam Fox: "Sharing an aircraft carrier is utterly unrealistic"
Defence Secretary Liam Fox has ruled out the UK sharing aircraft carriers with France as part of closer defence co-operation and efforts to save money.

Dr Fox, who is in Paris for talks with his French counterpart, said such a move would be "utterly unrealistic".

The Ministry of Defence, like nearly all government departments, is facing a significant cut in its future budget.

Dr Fox wants to save money in procurement and administration while prioritising front-line operations.

He has emphasised the need for much closer working with key European allies, such as France.

But at a press conference with French Defence Minister Herve Morin, Dr Fox dismissed suggestions the two could share aircraft carriers as a cost-saving measure.

Continue reading the main story
“
Start Quote

The UK and France are facing the realities of the tough financial climate and it is in our best interests to work together to deliver the capabilities that both our nations need”

Liam Fox
Defence Secretary
"In terms of actually being able to share an aircraft carrier, I would have thought that was utterly unrealistic," he said.

However, the two men said they would look at ways of sharing their respective fleets of A400M, a plane designed to transport soldiers and heavy equipment to combat zones.

'Tough climate'
All British government departments, except international aid and health, are facing budget cuts of between 25% and 40%. Defence, although unlikely to be among the hardest hit, will not be immune.

This has led to speculation that plans for two new aircraft carriers by 2018 - costing £5bn - could be scaled back.

Dr Fox said the future shape of the aircraft carrier fleet would be decided as part of a strategic defence review - due to be concluded later this year.

"You have to wait to see what assets you have before you can consider the pulling them," he said.

Closer co-operation with France on defence was in the UK's interest, Dr Fox added.

"The UK and France are facing the realities of the tough financial climate and it is in our best interests to work together to deliver the capabilities that both our nations need."

Trident costs
As the UK's future military capability is assessed, ministers have said the mission in Afghanistan will remain a priority but Dr Fox has declined to rule out cuts in overall troop numbers across the armed forces.

The Treasury has also insisted that the MoD must foot the bill for renewal of the Trident nuclear weapon system, subject of a separate value-for-money review. This would put further pressure on the MoD's budget.

While welcoming the dialogue with the French government, former security minister Lord West told BBC Radio 5 live that there was a limit to what military resources countries can share.

"Do we really want the French using a British carrier if it's to do with one of their dependencies abroad and some incident comes up and there's fighting there?" he said.

"Do you want to find British pilots bombing people for a French reason?"