Article

2006-07-01 Britain

UK MPs question need for nuclear weapons

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Posted by Steve White 2006-07-01 00:00|| || Front Page|| [11132 views since 2007-05-07] Top

#1 How 'bout if the Brits re-engineer their bombs to match the soon-to-be re-done American ones? Then they'll save pots of money on annual maintenance, too!

Posted by trailing wife 2006-07-01 00:40|| 2006-07-01 00:40|| Front Page Top

#2 Hi, trailing wife:

Just an aside, I wasn't directing my comment yesterday at you in any way! Sorry if you got upset. Hope this helps. OK everybody, continue on.

- grb

Posted by grb 2006-07-01 01:10|| 2006-07-01 01:10|| Front Page Top

#3 In other words We are comunists and have sold out to the EUros and don't need the US or to defend ourselves. France and Germany will do it.

What a bunch of morons.

Posted by Sock Puppet of Doom 2006-07-01 05:39|| 2006-07-01 05:39|| Front Page Top

#4 Cause the council of British Muslems insists on inheriting the country with Nukes?

Posted by gromgoru 2006-07-01 06:04|| 2006-07-01 06:04|| Front Page Top

#5 *happy smile* grb. These things happen when it's only pixels on a screen instead of real, live people. (Hope you didn't notice how often I've had to apologise recently!)

Posted by trailing wife 2006-07-01 08:18|| 2006-07-01 08:18|| Front Page Top

#6 How 'bout if the Brits re-engineer their bombs to match the soon-to-be re-done American ones? Then they'll save pots of money on annual maintenance, too!

Actually the UK uses a variant of the US W76 warhead.
From a Greenpeace document submitted to a UK parliament committee...

The arming, fusing and firing system are procured of the shelf from US manufacturers and Sandia.
The high explosive is different but US weapons labs tests the performance.
The Neutron generator used is the MC438, bought from the USA.
The Mark 4 re-entry body is purchased from the USA.

The UK does not own its Trident missiles - they are leased from the USA. UK Trident submarines must regularly visit the US base at King's Bay, Georgia to return their missiles to the US stockpile for maintenance and replace them with others.

The Mark 6 guidance system used on the UK's Trident D5 missiles is designed and made in the USA by Charles Stark Draper Laboratories.

UK Vanguard-class Trident submarines are UK-made, but many aspects of the design are copied from US submarines and many components are bought from the USA.

British nuclear warheads are designed and made at Aldermaston near Reading. Aldermaston is part managed by the US corporation Lockheed Martin. Repairs to Britian's Trident submarine are carried out at Devonport, which is part managed by another US corporation, Halliburton.

The W76 warhead was tested at the US nuclear test site in Nevada in the early 1990s. The UK has no test site of its own. The missiles are test launched from British submarines under US supervision at Cape Canaveral off the Florida coast. These tests are analysed by the Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) at Johns Hopkins University and by the Charles Stark Draper Laboratories.

Posted by john 2006-07-01 08:48|| 2006-07-01 08:48|| Front Page Top

#7 The British weapons designers at the AWE (Atomic Weapons Establishment) are collaborating with US designers at Los Alamos on the RRW (reliable replament warhead).
They have already conducted several joint sub-critical nuclear tests.

Posted by john 2006-07-01 08:51|| 2006-07-01 08:51|| Front Page Top

#8 Britain's parliamentary Defence Select Committee Friday called on Prime Minister Tony Blair's government to explain the purpose of the country's retaining nuclear weapons.

France.

Posted by Uninter Whereting4376 2006-07-01 09:16|| 2006-07-01 09:16|| Front Page Top

#9 Actually if Britain wanted a nuclear deterrent without US assistance, it would need the help of France now.
The French have reportedly made the offer in the past.

Posted by john 2006-07-01 16:57|| 2006-07-01 16:57|| Front Page Top

#10 The RAF will need to requip with the best.

Posted by 6 2006-07-01 19:48|| 2006-07-01 19:48|| Front Page Top

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