The
Wet Side
- Ships, Boats, Weapons and other models
Higgins Boat LCVP Landing Craft. US Navy/Coastguard,
Omaha Beach, "Easy Red sector" Normandy, 6 June 1944.
Airfix - 1/72 Out the Box, with minor additions.
'Andrew Higgins.is the man who won the war for us. If Higgins had not designed and built those LCVPs, we never could have landed over an open beach. The whole strategy of the war would have been different.' - General Eisenhower - Supreme Allied Commander, Operation Overlord
The Higgins Boat LCVP (Landing Craft Vehicle & Personnel) was a superb yet simple design, that revolutionised amphibious warfare. Over 20,000 were built, and saw service in all theatres during WW2, from the landings in North Africa, through Sicily, Normandy and on to the Pacific. Later on, it would see further service in Korea and even Vietnam.
Vosper Perkasa Patrol Boat (Tamiya)
The 1/72 Tamiya Vosper Perkasa Patrol Boat.
The RN still operated several of these (albeit slightly smaller) in 1981 as FPB Training Boats (they used to attack you during the weekly Thursday War at Portland, usually by creeping up hidden behind a tanker). A "Luxury Yacht" version of this gas turbine powered boat sits in Haslar Marina at Portsmouth. Only one was ever built and it is finished in a beautiful gloss midnight blue; I pass it each time I go yachting and it has fascinated me for years. These days, I am not sure anyone can afford th efuel to tak eit out to sea!
HMS TIGER (post ASW Helicopter Cruiser Conversion) (Matchbox)
HMS TIGER was the first RN ship I ever went onboard (at Leith Docks in the 1970s). From an early stage in my youth I watched her sister ship LION sitting in Inverkeithing/St Davids harbour being broken up. When I joined the RN I found her other sister ship, BLAKE, sitting in Chatham, in reserve. Then, throughout the 1980s, I regularly sailed my dinghy around TIGER herself as she sat forlorn on the Portsmouth trots awaiting disposal. Long gone now; but these were real warships. Sad.
HMS TIRELESS, Trafalgar Class SSN, AUTEC, 1987.
Airfix 1/350
The Royal Navy's Trafalgar Class nuclear hunter/killer submarines remain one of the most advanced, quiet and effective submarines ever built. Designed to hunt down enemy submarines and shipping, their principle armament is the Spearfish torpedo, although in the past they have also carried Harpoon anti-ship missiles and now carry the TLAM Tomahawk Land Attack cruise missile, capable of reaching most points on the planet from a secure and stealthy underwater launching position.
HMS TIRELESS was the third of the class. Capable of deploying anywhere around the world within a week, without the need for any external support, and with minimal risk of detection, the SSN is still the capital ship of modern naval warfare and the T-boats are expected to remain in service until 2022.
HMS ILLUSTRIOUS, Operation Palliser, Sierra Leone 2001.
Dragon, 1/700
The INVINCIBLE Class carriers have been the backbone of the Royal Navy's carrier force since the early 1980s, seeing active service in the Falklands, Adriatic, Gulf and West Africa in addition to their intended Cold War duties. Designed in the 1970s as a "Through Deck Cruiser", in order to overcome political objections to aircraft carriers, they were originally intended as Anti-Submarine helicopter ships. However, the performance of the remarkable Sea Harrier during the 1982 Falklands War was to transform the perception of the INVINCIBLEs, re-invigorating the proud tradition of Fleet Air Arm fixed wing aviation as well as advancing the use of helicopters in a wide range of maritime roles.
During the building of this kit, the UK Government announced its Strategic Defence & Security Review, which included the removal of the Harrier Fleet and early disposal of HMS ARK ROYAL (INVINCIBLE decommissioned in 2008). The future of ILLUSTRIOUS is uncertain; a decision on whether ILLUSTRIOUS or OCEAN will remain as a Commando Helicopter Carrier will be taken shortly. However, with real decisions on the future of the (aircraft-less) Queen Elizabeth Class Carriers postponed until the next Defence Review (2015), it is now entirely possible that HMS ILLUSTRIOUS will be the last ever Royal Navy Aircraft Carrier.
Edinburgh Coporation Bus, AEC Regent III, 1950.
Tower Models 1/76 RTL London Bus, repainted to become an Edinburgh AEC Regent
AEC Regent buses, carrying a Metro Cammel Coach Works body, were used in comparatively small numbers by Edinburgh Corporation during the 1950s and 1960s (most Edinburgh buses at that time were either Guy Arabs, Daimlers or the Leyland PD2/PD3 Titan, which is also very similar to an RTL, but has a large "tin front" grillle).
LCVP Mk 5,
1/72 Airfix LCM3 with substantial modifications
The LCVP Mk5 is the Current Royal Navy/Royal Marines assault landing craft. It can travel at up to 25 Knots, with a range of over 200 miles. It has the capacity to carry 35 fully equipped Royal Marines or light vehicles such as Land Rovers or the Bv206.
This is a piece of pure indulgence and silliness on my part, using scrap items that would otherwise have ended up as land-fill.
The WW2 LCM3 and present day LCVP5 are similar in size. This is a generic likeness of an LCVP5; I make no claims whatsoever of accuracy.
British Aerospace Sea Dart Area Air Defence Missile. Royal Navy (Type 42 Destroyers) 1988
Based on a spare Phoenix missile (which is a similar shape), with scratch wings, booster and nose radome:
BAe Seawolf Point Defence missile. Royal Navy (Type 22 & Leander BII Frigates) 1996
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Have you ever noticed that paper clips look like bomb trollies? No; well neither had I until I built this diddy little Seawolf on its loading trolley, whilst waiting for something to set. Missile & Wheels are Sprue. (took me ages to build the giant hand & pen).
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Naval Nuclear Depth Bomb (WE177) OK its not quite the right shape or even colour. Trolley looks good though! Mind you it might be better suited to a Torpedo. |
