BFBS Sitrep

BFBS Radio

Award winning Defence podcast from BFBS.

Subscribe Listen in podnod RSS feed Show website

946 episodes
Updated Thursday

Episodes946

Newest first

Feb 1, 2024 · 35 min
Could National Service fix the forces recruitment crisis?
Boris Johnson has called for the UK to bring back National Service. Sweden did just that seven years ago to solve its military recruitment crisis, and Germany’s looking at the idea.Sitrep talks to Swedish defence expert Elisabeth Braw and former Welsh Guards officer Nicholas Drummond about whether it’s the answer for the UK’s depleted Armed Forces.Iran’s ‘axis of resistance’ has carried out regular strikes against US forces in the middle east for months now. Sitrep explains who
Jan 29, 2024 · 26 min
What is Strategic Command?
Strategic command, like the three single services, is deemed important enough to our defence to merit its own Chief of Staff.General Sir James Hockenhull tells Sitrep about the organisation that he leads and its mission to help the Army, Royal Navy and Royal Air Force be the best they can be.From medical services to digital networks, cyber to intelligence, Strategic Command provides joint capabilities for all of the services, and is also tasked with developing new ones.Ge
Jan 25, 2024 · 37 min
The £25m minehunter mishap
Tens of thousands of people around the world have seen the moment one Royal Navy minehunter reversed into another in Bahrain, doing millions of pounds worth of damage.Former Royal Navy Commodore Alistair Halliday talks us through the range of technical and human factors which could explain why HMS Chiddingfold went backwards instead of ahead.The Chief of General Staff wants the UK to train up a “citizen army” to be ready for war. Mike explains why this doesn’t have to mean consc
Jan 25, 2024 · 27 min
EXTRA – Sir Iain Duncan Smith on China, conscription and his own time in the Army.
Sir Iain Duncan Smith has been a Conservative MP for more than 30 years, and led his party from 2001 to 2003.In parliament he’s a vocal contributor on defence, security, and international issues. His criticism of China’s government is so vocal the country has placed sanctions against him and his family.He tells Sitrep why he believes China is a threat to the UK, not just a ‘challenge’ as it is officially deemed, how his military service shaped his political ambitions
Jan 18, 2024 · 37 min
A new world order
The Defence Secretary warns of tough times ahead...we look at those warnings but also hear from another of Britain’s most senior military chiefs who has a more hopeful message. The Head of Stratcom rarely speaks to the media, but we hear his take on the state of the world.Also on Sitrep Is diplomacy still a thing? Does it achieve anything? We speak to a former Army Officer who’s worked as a defence attaché representing the UK in 25 countries.And what do the Houthis actuall
Jan 11, 2024 · 36 min
New questions about the future of the Royal Marines.
The First Sea Lord has been asked for a plan to “take forward” the work of the Royal Marines, as ministers effectively confirm they’re again reconsidering the future of the corps’ two amphibious assault ships.Professor Michael Clarke explains what’s going on, and former Royal Marines Commandant General, Major General Buster Howes, tells Sitrep the Defence Secretary needs to think “very very carefully”.The Defence Secretary tells the world “watch this space” for possible reprisal
Jan 11, 2024 · 19 min
EXTRA - Life lessons from ‘The Perisher’ submarine command course.
Under the sea, in charge of a multi-million pound boat, and the safety of your crew, there is a lot that can go very wrong.Ryan Ramsay has lived it all, then trained his successors both in how to avoid those disasters, and to cope if they do strike.In his new book ‘A View From Below’ he shares the inside story how submarine captains are trained, the impossible scenarios they’re faced with in a real sub, and stories of simulated emergency suddenly becoming the real thing.</p
Dec 21, 2023 · 42 min
The Sitrep Crystal Ball 2024
Could more British troops be sent to Eastern Europe, or as peacekeepers in the Middle East? Will Donald Trump return to the White House, and would it guarantee defeat for Ukraine? And where in the world might the next war break out?Kate Gerbeau and Professor Michael Clarke take on the big questions about what’s in store for our defence and security in 2024.They hear from the UK’s top military officers, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, General Sir Patrick Sanders, Admiral Sir Ben Key an
Dec 14, 2023 · 33 min
To beard or not to beard? The Army’s big question.
The Defence Secretary has called the Army’s ban on beards for most soldiers “ridiculous and outdated”, as the Chief of General Staff reviews the rules.Kate and Mike are joined by former Chief of Defence People, Lieutenant General James Swift, to discuss whether facial hair really matters to recruitment, discipline and operational effectiveness.The next head of the Army has been named as General Sir Roly Walker, so Sitrep takes a look through his CV to see what experience he brin
Dec 7, 2023 · 40 min
The UK increases its Middle East military presence – what can it do?
HMS Diamond has been sent to the Red Sea after missile and drone attacks against British owned cargo vessels, and RAF spy-planes have been deployed to search for hostages held in Gaza.Professor Michael Clarke and former Royal Navy commander Tom Sharpe explain what these assets and personnel can achieve, the limitations & risks of their missions, and the possibility of more UK military capability joining them.Sitrep also looks at another big deployment much closer to home, a
Nov 30, 2023 · 29 min
What does Ukraine need to win the war?
Sitrep’s Simon Newton has just returned from Ukraine - he reports for Sitrep from a drone testing centre where new models are trialled before being used in combat.Sitrep also hears from the former Champion Boxer, and now Mayor of Kiev, Vitali Klitschko, on his country’s will to resist.Also on Sitrep, as&n
Nov 23, 2023 · 34 min
Can Ukraine avoid being trapped in a frozen war?
As winter sweeps across Ukraine the ideal window for its counter-offensive is now closed, with seemingly minimal gains from five months of hard fighting. So what happens next? Sitrep assesses whether Ukraine has another chance for a significant fightback next year, and if so how it could do that.Professor Michael Clarke, Ukrainian researcher Mariia Zolkina, and former infantry officer Ed Arnold discuss the military options, and we hear from Kyiv about the mood there.
Nov 23, 2023 · 18 min
EXTRA – The National Cyber Force explained
Cyber-warfare was is no longer simply science-fiction, it is now a military fact that hits hard. Military communications, power systems and nuclear processing plants have all been taken offline in recent years by purely digital attacks. The UK’s capability for this domain sits in the National Cyber Force, created three years ago as part of Strategic Command, bringing together military and intelligence teams for both defensive and offensive cyber operations.&nbsp
Nov 16, 2023 · 34 min
Up close with Ajax
The Army’s future is built around the new Ajax armoured fighting vehicle. After years of delays, faults, and even injuries to troops, ministers say the Ajax programme is now ‘in recovery’.We take a look for ourselves, from the production line to training on Salisbury plain and hear from soldiers using the first of the vehicles.Another cold-war treaty has collapsed. It aimed to prevent surprise attacks by limiting Russia and NATO’s options for massing their military mig
Nov 16, 2023 · 20 min
EXTRA – The laws of war explained
Every single country in the UN is signed up to the same laws of war, but Israel’s military campaign in Gaza is reminding us interpretations of those laws often differ.In this extra Sitrep podcast Kate Gerbeau talks to Rev. Nicholas Mercer, who was the British Army’s top legal adviser in Iraq 20 years ago.He explains the key principles that govern the legality of military action, how he applied them in the midst of battle, and how the Israel Gaza war mirrors many of the difficult
Nov 9, 2023 · 35 min
How Napoleon changed warfare forever
He’s been called a strategic and tactical genius – but he also abandoned tens of thousands of his soldiers to their deaths.Sitrep goes behind the Hollywood gloss of the new Napoleon film to assess his true military legacy, and Professor Michael Clarke explains how Napoleonic innovations are still used in wars today.Japan is on a massive military spending spree aiming to become the worlds 3rd largest military budget. We assess what military capability it has, and
Nov 9, 2023 · 18 min
EXTRA – Japan’s big military ambitions
Japan is one of the world’s third biggest economic power, but until now its military power has come nowhere close to matching that.That’s changing though, with a 5-year defence-spending spree to include new counter-strike capabilities which will enable Japan to fire on enemy land for the first time since World War Two.Kate Gerbeau talks to the author of ‘Japan as a Global Military Power’, Dr Chris Hughes, about how capable Japan’s forces already are, what the extra spending will
Nov 2, 2023 · 32 min
Could Georgia be dragged into the Ukraine war?
Russia is planning a new naval base in territory it occupies on Georgia’s Black Sea coast, because of Ukraine’s strikes against Russian ships near Crimea.Sitrep hears from the Georgian capital about worries it could make their country a target for Ukraine.Professor Michael Clarke and Simon Newton share their assessments, and examine how we can improve ammunition supplies to Ukrainian forces who are having to weigh individual artillery shells at the front line, because ‘standard’
Oct 26, 2023 · 35 min
Mosul’s urban warfare lessons for Gaza
Israel’s mission to destroy Hamas has some parallels with the battle to liberate Mosul from the Islamic State terror group – tens of thousands of fighters among a densely packed population of around two-million citizens.Major General Rupert Jones, who was deputy commander of the anti-IS coalition, shares the lessons from Mosul, and Professor Michael Clarke assesses how they do, or don’t, apply in Gaza.The RAF’s next generation of drone, Protector, has arrived in Britain for the
Oct 19, 2023 · 36 min
British forces moved for ‘dangerous moment’
British ships, planes, and personnel have been sent to Mediterranean, tasked with waiting and watching as war rages between Israel and Gaza. Professor Michael Clarke explains how they could be used, to stop weapons smuggling and gather intelligence, with the aim of preventing a wildfire spread of the conflict.Sitrep hears first-hand about the challenges facing Ukraine’s troops as they continue to fight back against Russia, including how some artillery commanders are now limited