NationStates Jolt Archive

OOC: This pertains to the 'Samaran Military reform' thread found here (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=468212)
and yes, it has been discussed with Samaran

IC:

James Rutan, A senior member of Samaran's newly created Military Aquisition Commission who was overseeing the current aquisition of new Naval ships, was on his way home from the office, after having slaved at his computer checking all the facts on the various submissions. He wanted a nice relaxing afternoon, not having to do with the various distinctions of ways his country-men could use to kill people who weren't his country-men, It was all insanity but it had to be done, to defend his nation from those that would try to take advantage of it.
Stopped at a red light, after several secodns his eyes started to wander, on his right was a beautiful autmobile, a new Lexus with all the accessories he could see, he could hear what had to be a modified engine rumbling beneath the hood. It was then that heheard something much less pleasant, the screech of brakes applied to harshly, too late. He was jolted heavily as some idiot rear ended him. Hauling open the car door, Rutan was fully prepared to start an invigorating yelling match with the obviously foreign driver of the unforunate car that had rear-ended him, when he was pulled up short. The man from the modded Lexus was also getting out of his car, another foreigner, swarthy skin, dark hair, not at all Samaranian. They were dressed alike, the rear-ender and the Lexus driver, in stylish Italian suits, Gold watches on their left wrists, dark sunglasses, like FBI agents from some B-list American movie.

Taken aback he stamered "What's the deal? You could have killed me!"

the stranger from the lexus spoke softly. "Emannuel is too good of a driver for that, We have an offer for you."
The 'Emannuel' spoke "Yes, Infoclypse Industires stands to gain substantially from your nations military reforms."
The Lexus Driver spoke "You could also profit."

Rutan stammered again "And if I don't?"
'Emanuel': "Then you will lose much, Think about it." and the lexus dirver tossed Rutan the keys to his car, just then a black van drove up, a side door opened and the two men disapeared inside. The van's tires squeeld from acceleration and soon the van was out of sight."

James was speechless, he held the Lexus key's in his hand as if they were a fragile birds egg or something, afraid to clutch them too tightly for fear they would evaporate.

He looked slowly about. Standing in the middle of a mostly deserted suburban street he could see the two cars next to him, locked in some viceral struggle, and the Lexus on the other side, sleek and deadly looking, like some sort of viper ready to strike. His experiences hadn't prpared for this sort of thing, none of his countless briefings or training meetings he had been to during his many years working as a an analyst, or more recently before he was promoted to one of the heads of the new modernization initiative, had prepared him for this kind of thing. It wasn't civilized behaviour for a nation to under take, not the sort of thing people expected, not even the security people who had told him to expect anything could have prepared him for this. Collecting his senses he grasped the key's with more purpose and got into the dirvers seat of the black car. He reasoned that the car must have been an investement, they couldn't have expected him to turn so quickly and that taking the car wouldn't commit him. He didn't want to be committed. Slowly he turned the powerful vehicle on and drove off, continuing to his house.

<Space held for later post>

Infoclypse Corporate Headquarters
In the basment of the Infoclypse Corporate Headquarters building is a door leading to a small office, the only sign on the door is 'Authorized Access only' with a handwriten note stuck below it that states matter of factly 'this door does not exist' behind it is a small complex of small offices that don't exist, in those offices worked twenty people that don't exist, doing jobs that never happened. This is Infoclypse's 'Immoral Marketing department' and it doesn't exist.

In one of the Offices that don't exist a phone that doesn't exist began to ring. Quickly it was picked up by one of twenty employee's that don't officially exist.

"Hello?"

"He took the car." and then there was a click and whoever had called hung up.
the word quickly spread among the non existent employees who quickly got to work planning the next corruption of some foreign governments purchasing agents.

Maybe he was just paranoid, but for the rest of the week, James constantly thought he saw strange things, people following him on the road and on foot, it didn't help tat at the office, the windows were being cleaned. He could have sworn he caught several window-cleaners staring at him intently when they thought he wasn't watching. Acroos the streat from his home, James' neigbors were getting some work done, and he could have sworn he saw weapons among the tools. The pressure was getting to him and if he didn't find a way to get rid of it, soon he thought he might crack.

OOC: I suppose unless any of the other offers try to corrupt me, I'm gonna go with Info's...

In truth the design was rather simple, a white envelope with a flowing script imprinted in gold leaf addressed to Mr. James Rutan. It sat delicately with the rest of his mail that had been delivered earlier in the day. And like most items, its meat lay inside the heavyweight white envelope.

Indeed, the envelope contained a tri-fold brochure that folded around a pair of tickets. The brochure presented itself in the sleekest of fashions with glossy images of white sand beaches, clear ocean waters and rich blue skies speckled with puffy clouds. Smaller insets showcased a seemingly massive city orientated upwards with its innumerable glass towers of blues and greens interlaced with the blacks, greys, and white of steel and concrete.

At the top, in a simple sans-serif font was typed Philadelphia, Where the World Comes Alive. When Rutan would open it, if he cared to read the smattering of text he would find descriptions of various recreational activities from museums, zoos, and parks, to historical sites and points of interest as well as guides to the vibrant nightlife of the United Kingdom’s second largest city and its financial capital.

But the brochure would not have been complete without the two free tickets that were a combination package of free airfare and hotel accommodations for a weekend trip sponsored by the shipbuilding firm Carson and Wolff, which a small note signaled wanted to have a discussion with Mr. Rutan at his leisure and convenience.

James looked at the tickets carefully, knowing that at the same time they represented an escape and a new danger. He would have to balance the two offers carefully, like walking in a minefield, one wrong step would be his undoing.
But after days of self-induced paranoia, he needed a break. So, using his Government encrypted cell phone, he called the number on the borchure to set up a meeting over the weekend.

bump

uhm... bump anyone?

"Davis, you understand why we're here, correct?" Jacob Bies, ex-lobbyist and recent Baltimore Shipyards hireling, asked. Bies was a tall, thin man who looked perpetually happy. He was sitting at a table in a fancy restaurant in Samaran's capital, across from Davis Ellwood, chair of the Samaran Acquisitions Committee.

"You want to discuss the bid by Baltimore Shipyards," Ellwood replied. The waiter came to ask them for drinks.

"Get us a bottle of the finest wine you have, please," Bies said. He intended to expense the entire dinner; after all, it was standard procedure for lobbyists to go out to a fancy restaurant with those who they were lobbying. After the waiter nodded and left, Bies said, "Of course. We'll start with the carrier. We've put up the CV-98 and the CVN-80; both are fine designs, especially for their cost."

"Yes, but we have money to spend; why should we not go for Isselmere's designs?" Ellwood asked. The waiter came, opened a bottle of Chardonnay, and poured it into the two wine glasses on the table. He then asked for their orders. Ellwood replied, "I'll start with the onion soup, then the house salad, and for my main course, I'll have the lamb chops, medium rare."

Bies said, "I'll also have the onion soup and house salad; why don't we start with an order of escargot?" He ignored Ellwood's whispered concern about the price of the escargot, then finished, "For my main course, I'll have the steak tartare." When the waiter left, Bies said, "I'm paying for this meal. Don't worry. Now, about the carriers: for the cost of Isselmere's cheapest carrier, you could buy two CVN-80s or five CV-98s, which would provide more than enough striking power."

"Thanks," Ellwood replied, then sipped his wine. "Good!" he proclaimed, then said, "Now, on to cruisers. Comparing your CGN-1 to Isselmere's Duchy-class CAG, I've found that Isselmere's is cheaper, and more heavily armored to boot."

"Fair enough. However, not only does the Rickover have nuclear power, and thus better station-keeping ability, than the Duchy, it's faster to build, with a construction time of thirty months; further, we offer unlimited sales of the Rickover. Here comes the bread," Bies answered. The bread basket that the waiter put on the table contained two onion rolls and two plain rolls. Bies took a plain roll; Ellwood, an onion roll. Bies then said, after the waiter left, "Comparing the Rickover to the Castle, meanwhile, we find that the Castle is the same price - but only without nuclear power, meaning it has to be refueled much more often - yet has fewer VLS cells than the Rickover, giving us the edge in anti-shipping capability. Eight-inch guns have a shorter range than cruise missiles and are poor at best against aircraft and missiles, so the bigger guns of the Castle are a liability, not an advantage, for Isselmere."

"Yum. Now, comparing the Province-class CG to the Antietam-class CG, Isselmere's design is more heavily armored, more heavily armed, and carries more aviation," Ellwood said after tasting his roll.

"True, but it's more expensive and has a limited production run. Further, it has a deeper draft, meaning that it can't get into as shallow water as the Antietam. Finally, it's a larger ship and is better compared to the Rickover, which beats the Province hands down," Bies replied after eating a piece of his roll.

"I suppose so. You want the other onion roll, or should I have it?" Ellwood said. He took a long sip from his wineglass.

"You can have it; I prefer plain rolls myself. I never really cared for onion rolls, for some reason," Jacob Bies replied, finished his roll, took the other plain roll, and then said, "Moving on to destroyers, ours have the best value. They may be a bit light on aviation, but they make up for it with their small draft, heavy armament, and low price, with the Mark Warner and John Warner both containing 96 cells of VLS, drafts under 6.1 meters, and prices under $620 million. Infoclypse's design is tremendously overpriced, and Isselmere's designs are too focused on one role, for the most part. Their sole multi-role destroyer is almost twice the price of the John Warner!"

Ellwood, finishing his roll, nodded, then said, "True. We have concerns about the ASW capabilities of your ships, however..." Bies finished his roll and began to speak, but the waiter's arrival with the soups cut him off.

"Thanks," Bies said as the soup was placed in front of him. The waiter then left. Bies sipped his soup - still too hot - then said, "Our designs can use the VL ASROC, and, with 324mm torpedo tubes, can fit Isselmere's DSR.1 ASW AUV. Further, we already carry powerful sonars and multiple ASW torpedos aboard our destroyers." He then sipped his soup again, and, finding it suitable, began to eat.

"Thank you for your information. Now, about your corvettes..." Ellwood said, then began to eat his own soup, dipping the remains of his roll into the soup.

"Our corvettes are simply the best of the bunch. Infoclypse's corvette is extremely cheap for its capability - thus, it's probably poorly made. Besides, it has a woefully high draft, making it rather unsuitable for coastal operations," Bies said, then took another bite of his soup. It was about half-done; Bies ate fast, as a rule, so that he'd have more time to talk. He resumed speaking, saying, "Isselmere's designs, meanwhile, also have a high draft, are more expensive than our own, and have little in the way of machine guns or light cannon - weapons that are incredibly useful for coastal patrol missions."

Samaran - if you want, you can finish this dinner. If not, then not.
Isselmere, II - please note that the criticisms that Bies mentions are those of Bies, an employee of Baltimore Shipyards, and not necessarily my own.

"You make a good case Mr. Bies. but Infoclypse and Isselmere are both offering ASW frigates, and while your prices are good, My people are worrying over logistics, we have to have a frigate. And it doesn't help maters that your ships don't have the sort of helicopter support we're looking for. Don't be fooled by the state of our military, Samaran has quite a it of money and we're looking for the best."

Bies replied, "We can provide ASW frigates; however, the original requirement was for AEGIS frigates, which we don't have. Here is the FFG-29 Kent Island." He then handed Ellwood a spec sheet.


FFG-29 Kent Island
Abstract: Named for the largest island in the Chesapeake Bay, this ship is meant for navies on a budget. It is a small but effective frigate, and, with 16 VLS cells, it can fit the ASW, anti-ship, and AD roles. We can fit it with one UAV in place of the stern torpedo tubes if desired; we will provide the RQ-1E Predator UCAV.

Length: 328.08 feet (100 meters)
Beam: 32.81 feet (10 meters)
Draft: 32.81 feet (10 meters)
Displacement: 4,200 tons
Propulsion: 2 LM2500 gas turbines; two shafts, 50,000 shp
Speed:
Max - 32 knots
Cruising - 28 knots
Range: 2000 nm
Crew: 243
Armament: 7 533mm (21") torpedo tubes (three forward, four stern), two Mk. 32 324mm triple torpedo tube mounts with six Mk. 46 ASW torpedoes, four twin 0.5" (12.7mm) machine gun mounts (two port, two starboard), two Mk. 75 3"/62 caliber (76.2mm) guns, one octuple launcher for Standard SM-1MR SAMs, one 16-cell VL system, one 20mm Vulcan Phalanx CIWS
Electronics: 1 AN/SPS-49 Air Search Radar, 1 AN/SPS-55 Surface Search Radar, 1 Mk92 Fire Control System, 1 AN/SLY-2 Electronics Warfare System, 1 AN/SQS-56 Sonar, 1 Mk36 SRBOC Decoy System, 1 AN/SQR-19 Towed Array Sonar System, 1 AN/SQQ-89 ASW Integration System
Aircraft: (none) [one UAV in place of stern torpedo tubes]
Armor: 0.5" (12.7mm) Steel-Titanium compound (equivalent to 1" (25.4mm) RHA steel)
Price: $200 million (add $24 million for RQ-1E in place of stern torpedo tubes)

"Ah yes, thank you for reminding me of the Aegis frigate. Thats a major part of the contract, we aren't keen on spending potentially trillions of dollars on building a new navy only to have the first arsenal ship we run across destroy an entire task force becasue it didn't have adequate AAW capabilities."

Bies replied, "Well, frigates aren't really the best ships to use for AD purposes. We suggest using our destroyers and cruisers." The waiter came, bringing the salads.

"but if we use the destroyers as defense ships, where does that leave them as escorts and stand alone ships? certainly the added defenses would benefit btoh classes of ships in stand alone situations, but at the expense of missiles and guns and ammunition that might be necesary to complete their missions and would only add to supply requirements of the ships while subtracting from their supply capacity. A dedicated AAW frigate is the only solution I cans ee to the problem."

Bies tasted his salad; the dressing was slightly off. Hmm... He then said, in reply to Ellwood, "The thing with VLS is that it can be used for air defence, but also for anti-shipping warfare. However, we'll see what we can do in terms of putting together an AEGIS Frigate; I'll get back to you tomorrow."

The waiter came by and asked, "Is everything all right, sirs?"

Bies replied, "It's quite good, but the dressing seems slightly...off, somehow. It has a slightly bitter taste."

"Hmm...you're right. This has happened before; I think it's something in the last shipment we got," the waiter replied, taking back both their salads. "I'll get you both new salads."

"Very well, but the naval aviation capacity of your ships is another sticking point. Every other bidder has quite substantial helicopter landing and hangar capacities compared to the majority of your designs. It might be a little anachronistic of us but my people tell me that a navay without sufficient helicopters is sunk. the ASW capabilities alone are worth it and inter-fleet transport as well as a quickly deployable patrol or armed reaction unit are not laughing matters either."

"True, our ships have few helicopters; however, on ships with UAVs and helicopters, each UAV can easily be replaced with a helicopter. We don't advertise that fact, but it will reduce the price of our ships by $8 million per UAV replaced. Further, we have helicopter cruisers, such as the CGH-23 Montgomery and the CGH-1 Sussex," Bies replied.

"The Sussex?" Ellwood asked. Bies then handed him a brochure, entitled "The CGH-1 Sussex: A Helicopter Cruiser for the Twenty-First Century."
CGH-1 Sussex:
Abstract: Based on the Asgarnia-class battleship hull, this is an armored helicopter cruiser, carrying three helicopters and two UAVs - we provide the SH-60G helicopter and the RQ-1E UCAV. Further, it can launch the BGM-355 Winchester, Gage Munitions's first cruise missile.

Length: 750 feet (228.6 meters)
Beam: 108.4 feet (33.04 meters)
Draft: 20.27 feet (9 meters)
Displacement: 35,000 tons
Propulsion: 5 GE LM2000 Gas Turbines; 4 shafts, 125,000 shp
Speed: Rated at 32 knots
Armament: Two triple 90mm (3.54") gun turrets, one Mk. 49 21-cell launcher for RIM-116C Point Defence SAMs, two 20mm Vulcan CIWS (or one 30mm Goalkeeper CIWS), two quadruple Harpoon SSM launchers (or quadruple MM. 40 Exocet launchers), one 24-cell Mk. 41 VLS system, one Mk. 32 324mm triple torpedo tube mount for Mk. 46 ASW torpedo, one 24-cell Mk. 42 VLS system (for BGM-355 Winchester)
Aircraft: Three SH-60G ASW helicopters, Two RQ-1E Predator UCAVs
Armor: 3" (76.2mm) of RHA steel
Electronics: One AN/SWY-2 Fire Control System (for RIM-116C), 1 AN/SPS-49(V)8 Air Search Radar, 1 AN/SPS-55 Surface Search Radar, 1 AN/SPS-64(V)9 Navigation Radar, 1 AN/SPQ-9 Gun Fire Control Radar
1 AN/SQS-53C Hull Mounted sonar, SLQ-25 Nixie, 1 AN/SLY-2 Electronic Warfare Suite, 2 AN/SWG- I A (V) Missile Fire Control Systems
Price: $880 million (add $100,000 for Goalkeeper in place of Phalanx, subtract $1 million for RQ-1D UAVs in place of RQ-1E UCAVs, add $750,000 for EH-101 Merlin ASW helicopter, subtract $420,000 for Exocet SSMs in place of Harpoon SSMs)

"There you go," Bies replied. The waiter returned, bringing new salads with new dressings. Bies tasted his, then replied, "Much better. Thank you."

OOC: Sry bout the long wait, been busy in RL. Is anybody even still interested?

Ellwood took a long look at the design, as well as going over the numbers of the other designs, substituting helicopters for UAVs in his mind, weighing them against the other proposals. finally he spoke,
"That certainly helps matters on your end, However, the design is quite large to my eyes, I'll have to run it by my technical staff to be sure though."

I am; perhaps you should bump the other thread...

"Thank you. On another note, Baltimore Shipyards is interested in investing in Samaran to support its economy. Could you give us the important information about how we would go about putting into action such a proposal?" Jacob Bies said, then dug into his salad.

OOC: I'm still here, waiting Ellwood t become available for some sweet talkin.

ELwood considered for a little while...
"Actually, I'm not sure there's any set protocol on that, I suppose you would have to contact Samaran Motor Company and Sangraal Computers Inc. about investment opportunities and the like. We haven't really been much for companies until this unpleasantness with the military acquisitions."

"Ah, I see. Thank you. I'm staying in town for a few days; anything that you would suggest that I should go visit?" Bies said, nodding. He then finished off his salad and set the fork aside.

I suppose this is it for round one. If you want, you can finish their dinner, or we can move along...

OOC: Lets go ahead and move along, Info's been itching for a chance at Ellwood.

IC:

Certainly, Die Fleidermouse is at the Samaranian Opera Hall for another week or so, I've heard its been getting excellent reviews if your into that sort of thing. ANd now that we're coming on to spring, a good walk around the eastern shore of Lake Tonopomoco at sunset is one of the more beutiful sights in the country.
This has been a wonderful talk, I sincerely hope that we can do business with your company, but of course, I've got to look at everybody fairly. Your proposals are very promising though.

OOC - And Bies finished his meal, paid, and returned to his hotel room. II, your move.

OOCL Sry, I've been quite busy recently, I'll have a post ready by tomorrow

"Mr. Elwood, I realize that this is highly unorthodox but I only want to see your navy get the best equipment available, now, I realize that the designs we sent were a little pricey and some were maybe not the best, but our pople have been looking at it and think they have some solutions, we've decided, that given the size of your potential contract, that some special offers should be put on the board. We're prepared to offer substantial discounts and favored nation trading status which would also put you on our 'safe list' of nations that are cannot be attacked by our 'nuclear bank' clients" Emmannuel knew the Samaranian laws, but following the rules wasn't the skill he had been hired by Infoclypse Ind. for, he was a man who got things doen, specifically things that made him a nice commission, and so, ignoring the rules, he leaned in. "And we might also be willing to offer yourself a small amount of compensation for your troubles, you ould buy some land up north, buy your little girl a pony or something what do you think?"

OOC - A pony? Why not a dog named Checkers?

OOC: Sry bout the wait, but I now have a new job! yay me!

should be able to post more regularly again
post coming tomorrow

OOC: Sry again about flaking out like that, but now, for really reals, I'm back and will have a post on tomorrow.

Now all I need to know is if anybody is left who even remembers this, and if there's anyone else who doesn't remember but wants to join in anyway?

OOC - Still in. I still even have the TG you sent me about lobbying...

well, since I Ind is my current concern, We'll give him a day to post before (I suppose) finalizing sales and what not...

wow, fortuitous timing it would seem. My return to NS and your have coincided nicely!

Ellwood was taken aback at the obviousness of the bribery.
"This is indeed very unorthodox sir, perhaps you are not aware, but there are laws governing such things in this nation! And besides that, you're asking me to undermine this nations defenses for personal profit, I just can't accept that."

OOC: yay!

IC:

Emmanuel was very skilled at his job and knew exactly how to respond to his 'mark's sudden burst of veracity.

"You don't have to worry about being over heard here, I've got a white-noise generator, the most advanced bug in the world couldn't eavedrop this conversation. Our equipment is certainly good enough to meet your needs, its not really inferior to any other proposals. Now, what's your price? we normally do this like a sort of reverse commission, say a twentieth of a percent, that doesn't sound like much, but for one 4 billion dollar carrier thats two hundred thousand dollars, and when you're buying say, 12 carriers, the numbers add up very quickly."

Ellwood was shocked, and yet intrigued. the money on the table was a very powerful motivator.

"But how? this amount of money is not easy to hide, it would not do to have you pay me off only for my assets to be frozen and for me to be thrown in prison."

ooc: My computer just got back from ye olde shoppe.

"Elementary sir! Offshore and untraceable bank accounts are of course classic, but modern electronic intelligence techniques can trace even the most secure transactions. We have developed a much more secure method for covert payment, Through stocks, all you have to do is buy certain stocks that we inform you about, and then sell them at market price, simple and effective."