GC wrote:
Get rid of trident and problem solved!?!?!?
And he's closer than he may realise. Trident replacement requires SSBN build capability at Barrow - but we could buy SSNs from somewhere else (in Connecticut, possibly). So the cost of Trident should logically include a significant portion of the cost overruns on Astute that were all about buying the capability to build nuclear submarines rather than Astute herself. If SSBN is binned, then the need to have Barrow is binned too - making further savings possible.
The good news if this were to happen is that we'll be looking for a large number of certified nuclear engineers shortly for the next gen civil nuclear powerplants. Birds, stones.
S41