Weird Harold wrote:Relax wrote:No one wants to admit they are 2nd class and deserve 2nd class equipment. Or in this case, 3rd class.
I think you're being insulting to 3rd-class equipment.
Those who think the captured SLN SDs have any military value to anyone are under-estimating just how obsolete they are. It is much like advocating that HMS Victory and USS Constitution be given to Ethiopia as the core of their navy.
Most of the arguments for gifting the captured ships are good arguments for giving away the smaller ships, but the SDs should be reserved for any emerging nation Manticore wants to drive into bankruptcy.
They would only go bankrupt if they bought their systems etc from outside their own nations. Those bolt on systems etc, will boot strap their own manufacturing sectors to produce numerous side benefits as well as defense. And those so called obsolete "death traps" can still take 100++ capital grade missile hits unlike anything else around.
Those yammering about manning requirements of a mere 6000 is absurd. Lets look at a small Honorverse population 600,000,000. Doesn't make much sense for a single SD, but here goes:you need one in 100,000 out of your population to be supported. Now lets say you have a squadron of them along with supporting ships. This balloons into roughly 6000*8*2(support personnel) + same number for small fry = 250,000(round to 300,000) from a population of 600,000,000 = 1:2000! or Look at militaries today. Even po-dunk militaries of small nations. It is roughly 1 in 100 to 1 in 1000 as the ratio!
Zambia: Pop 16M+, Military 19,000 Roughly 1:800 for a po-dunk back water 25% HIV infected populace, economy collapsing, corruption rampant, cesspool of humanity.
More corrupt backwaters:
Ghana: ~28M, Military 15,000, ~1:1800
Uganda: ~40M, Military 55,000, ~1:800
Khazakstan: Pop ~18M, Military 70,000 ~1:250
More prosperous:
Chile: Pop ~18M, Military 100,000 ~1:180
Brazil: Pop ~200M, Military 700,000 ~1:285
USA: Pop ~320M, Military ~1.5M ~1:200
And yet people on this forum, including the author
are arguing there is a manning problem in the Honorverse? 
And no, don't bring up "education". Average people are... yes that is right, average. Doesn't take long to learn. Military equipment is made for average brutes, not sophisticated ballerinas.
The biggest limitation is $$$/manhour. Why I laugh at those comparing how small the Chinese military is compared to the USA's. Their stuff costs vastly less, maintenance is less, manning requirements are less, because of $$$/manhour, making their military much larger than pure $$$ analysis says it is. Same goes for India.
