Speed presents the rearmament programme as a connected anti-submarine system rather than a list of unrelated purchases. A fourth improved Trafalgar-class boat would raise the hunter-killer submarine fleet to sixteen. HMS Invincible had been accepted, while HMS Illustrious and HMS Ark Royal were under construction to command anti-submarine forces. HMS Broadsword and HMS Battleaxe introduced Type 22 frigates with Lynx helicopters, extending detection and prosecution capacity. A competition between a new British heavyweight torpedo and a further-developed American Mark 48 aimed to replace Mark 24 Tigerfish by 1990. Sting Ray would equip ships, helicopters, and maritime patrol aircraft with a common lightweight weapon. Its planned production was expected to support about 4,500 jobs. Speed's central procurement test is whether expensive sensors and platforms possess a mature weapon capable of completing the kill chain. Useful naval investment therefore depends on force integration, including the weapon at the end of that chain.
Chapter · 37:23-40:02
Trafalgar, Invincible, Type 22, and Sting Ray as one ASW system
The 1980 rearmament programme combined submarines, carriers, frigates, helicopters, sensors, and torpedoes to counter a growing Soviet undersea threat.