Royal Navy under fire from Libya

[Graham Kennedy]

Source

A missile launcher is said to have sent a number of rockets towards Liverpool that has been stationed off Libya for several weeks. The Type 42 destroyer returned heavy naval gunfire answering Col Gaddafi's forces with its 4.5in main gun sending several shells arching into the night during the early hours of Wednesday. The attack came after Liverpool fired a barrage of illumination rounds in support of an air attack on the regime stronghold of Zlitan.

No casualties were suffered by the ship's crew during the exchange and the MoD were unable to confirm if the battery was destroyed during the duel. The attack came after the helicopter carrier Ocean launched her Apache attack helicopters against a hotel in Zlitan that was being used as a military base.

Interesting... I wonder what they were firing at them...

[Captain Seafort]

A missile launcher is said to have sent a number of rockets

Someone get those idiots a dictionary. A missile is a guided weapon. A rocket is unguided. The terms are not interchangeable.

Interesting... I wonder what they were firing at them...

Probably unguided rockets, from the description - Katyushas or Grads.

[McAvoy]

The media always does that. They call destroyers or cruisers battleships all the time. Or mislabel an aircraft. I remember when I was on deployment that we were watching a little piece on our carrier the Eisenhower saying something about F-15s flying off the deck. Only if that was true though...

I guess thosr rockets or missiles or rocks or whatever didn't hit the ship. All I got to say about that is i hope the Brits fuck them up real nice.

[Graham Kennedy]

Best one I ever saw was in the first Gulf war; a piece was being filmed from a helicopter and an F15 flew past to have a look. The reporter called it "An F-111 from the carrier Enterprise..."



So many errors in so few words...

[Tyyr]

If only it had been, "...from the carrier Ticonderoga."

[Deepcrush]

[Deepcrush]

Whats the RNs planned response, if any?

[Captain Seafort]

Whats the RNs planned response, if any?

The response they gave, according to the article - a few rounds of 4.5 back down their throats.

[Deepcrush]

Well, I wouldn't say down their throats. The same country at least which puts them above the Italians... Though it was pretty clear the RN missed their target.

But I was speaking on a larger response. Does the RN, now knowing they are targets, have a new stance on the matter.

[Captain Seafort]

Though it was pretty clear the RN missed their target.

We don't know. I expect they either spotted the launches and ranged on them, or calculated the point of origin based on data collected in-flight. Either way, we don't know enough to tell if they knocked them out, missed, or hit the right spot after the launchers had scarpered.

But I was speaking on a larger response. Does the RN, now knowing they are targets, have a new stance on the matter.

No idea, but I'd've thought they'd've considered themselves likely targets from the moment we started bombing Gadaffi.

[Deepcrush]

If you can't confirm the enemy is dead, never believe they are. Very important battlefield lesson. That and change your socks often.

I would expect they considered themselves targets but up till now the RN itself hasnt been under attack. That changes things up a good bit IMO.