Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 27:49-28:46

A British counterpart to the Long Beach guided-missile cruiser

The suggested British Long Beach analogue resembles an enlarged nuclear-powered Bristol, with Blake and Tiger supplying alternative comparisons for its appearance.

Alternate HistoryCold WarGuided Missile CruisersLive Q&ANuclear PropulsionRoyal Navy
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Question

What would a British Long Beach-class guided-missile cruiser look like?

Short answer

Probably like an enlarged nuclear-powered HMS Bristol, with the bulky superstructure characteristic of early guided-missile cruisers.

Notes

A scaled-up, nuclear-powered HMS Bristol is the suggested British counterpart to USS Long Beach. The comparison is mainly about appearance: Long Beach is boxlike, while Bristol has a more varied outline. The helicopter conversions of Blake and Tiger are offered as another possible visual combination. The panel finds few attractive designs in this group of 1960s-1980s warships and compares their appearance with brutalist architecture.