Article

2008-11-11 Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia

A Thales built aircraft carrier for Russia?

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Posted by 3dc 2008-11-11 00:10|| || Front Page|| [11129 views ] Top

#1 France has always had a penchant for dealing with nefarious characters. And even though it was for Israel, they are a nuclear proliferator. They were also squalling pretty loud when we invaded Iraq, I wouldn't doubt that they had a hand in helping Hussein (Iraq's, not ours) with his arsenals.

Posted by bigjim-ky 2008-11-11 06:37|| 2008-11-11 06:37|| Front Page Top

#2 They will do almost anything and as secretly as they can so long as they make a profit

Posted by blackbeard 2008-11-11 10:07|| 2008-11-11 10:07|| Front Page Top

#3 Isn't going to much of a carrier w/o catapults and arresting gear.

Posted by ed 2008-11-11 10:09|| 2008-11-11 10:09|| Front Page Top

#4 The U.S. should encourage this. Russia can ill afford the cost of buying and maintaining an aircraft carrier fleet and the battle groups required to make them effective. Let Putin's ambitions bleed his country.

And they make such beautiful targets.

Posted by DoDo 2008-11-11 11:12|| 2008-11-11 11:12|| Front Page Top

#5 #3: Isn't going to much of a carrier w/o catapults and arresting gear.

Helicopters need neither.

Posted by Redneck Jim 2008-11-11 11:25|| 2008-11-11 11:25|| Front Page Top

#6 Bigjim:
France did supply Iraq with nuclear technology way back in the 80's. Chirac helped build the reactor the Israelis took out. And wasn't it French and German intelligence that helped supply the diagrams for Powell's presentation to the UN? You know, those reinforced underground enclaves, mobile WMD factories, and even Saddam's submarine.Thales was involved in the Oil-for-Food scandal, willing to supply anything to the highest bidder. No wonder Europe is celebrating an Obama victory--Bush rained on their party.

Posted by Thealing Borgia 122 2008-11-11 11:40|| 2008-11-11 11:40|| Front Page Top

#7 A very basic question:
If Russia is busy selling its existing carriers, why would it buy carriers from a foreigner? Wouldn't it be easier to modernize one of its unused carriers?

Al

Posted by Frozen Al 2008-11-11 14:00|| 2008-11-11 14:00|| Front Page Top

#8 Let 'em buy from the French; they'll spend a fortune on replacement propellors....

Posted by USN, Ret. 2008-11-11 15:18|| 2008-11-11 15:18|| Front Page Top

#9 Wouldn't it be easier to modernize one of its unused carriers?

1. The institutional shipbuilding knowledge is gone.

2. Unlike US moth-balled vessels, 'unused' here means tied up at a dock or anchored and left there.

Posted by Pappy 2008-11-11 15:20|| 2008-11-11 15:20|| Front Page Top

#10 If Russia is busy selling its existing carriers, why would it buy carriers from a foreigner? Wouldn't it be easier to modernize one of its unused carriers?

First of all, you have to have a ship worth modernizing. The Russian aircraft carriers are more than 2/3 cruisers, with huge stockpiles of offensive and defensive missiles and launchers. The electronics are mid-70's to early 80's technology - huge, bulky, and cumbersome to upgrade. They don't have a tradition of carrier-launched aircraft, and have to start from scratch building one. The primary Russian shipyard for building aircraft carriers, in Sevastopol, is now nominally on Ukranian territory. The Russians have a major problem, and getting the French to help them out would be a Godsend for them.

Posted by Old Patriot">Old Patriot 2008-11-11 15:43|| http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/]">[http://oldpatriot.blogspot.com/] 2008-11-11 15:43|| Front Page Top

#11 If it is not better than the Charles de Gaulle then no need to worry.

Posted by JFM">JFM 2008-11-11 16:43|| 2008-11-11 16:43|| Front Page Top

#12 Besides #9 + #10,+ wid the USN becom more focused on dev the OWG-NWO "1000-Flags/Nations" GLOBAL TASK FORCE for international humanitarian, peacekeeping, rapid reax, + police actions; + 3-4D BATTLESPACE MANAGEMENT = VIRUAL REALITY already becom steadily archaic, THE RUSSIAN, etc CARRIER [read, CHINA PLAN] COULD BE OBSOLETE BEFORE ITS EVEN DEPLOYED. ALL USN WARSHIPS, as for the other US Services, ARE OSTENSIBLY OCEAN-BASED, PROTO-"MOTHER SHIPS" TO UVS,GMD-TMD + SPAWAR TECHS.

Posted by JosephMendiola 2008-11-11 18:53|| 2008-11-11 18:53|| Front Page Top

#13 Didn't _we_ do all the carrier qualifications for the Rafale and its pilots in New Jersey?

Posted by Thing From Snowy Mountain 2008-11-11 18:59|| 2008-11-11 18:59|| Front Page Top

#14 ION RUSSIAN NAVY > WORLD MIL FORUM = OVERCREWING, LARGE NUMBER OF UNTRAINED NAVAL PERSONNEL, AND POOR SHIPBOARD SMOKING DISCIPLINE MAY HAD CONTRIBUTED TO RUSSIAN "NERPA" DEATHS.

SONg - Truly BLINDED [themselves] WID [Naval] SCIENCE!?

Posted by JosephMendiola 2008-11-11 22:16|| 2008-11-11 22:16|| Front Page Top

23:55 rjschwarz
23:33 Pappy
23:24 Pappy
23:21 Pappy
23:17 ex-lib
23:16 USN, Ret.
23:13 ex-lib
23:09 USN, Ret.
23:09 SR-71
23:05 mojo
23:04 ex-
23:03 mojo
23:02 ex-
22:59 Glenmore
22:58 ex-
22:55 mojo
22:55 USN, Ret.
22:53 logi_cal
22:50 fhgd
22:50 logi_cal
22:48 Free Radical
22:45 USN, Ret.
22:43 cingold
22:40 JosephMendiola