Project Habakkuk - WI it wasn't used for a carrier?

[Atomo]

What if the unspeakable happened.
Jackboots on the streets of London in 1941.

We know there are enough US shipyards to make enough Essex/Bogue class carriers to make aircover pretty simple.

What about the amphibious forces though?
LSTs aren't great for the North Atlantic, but Project Habakkuk might have been.

Could it have been loaded full of tanks and men and been simply run ashore? Stocks of fuel, fresh water, ammunition and food all at the ready?

Might this make taking a harbour right off the bat unneccessary?

Just a thought for my first post here.

[Just Leo]

A pykrete or pykecrete ship was actually constructed on a small scale. Original estimates of cost, logistical difficulties, and operational shortcomings were proven naive. It was very hard to construct, hard to move, hard to live or operate on, and it had an extremely deep draft, deeper than an iceberg when loaded with materials which would all become frozen. Deep draft ships do not run up to a beach. Special loading/ unloading facilities would be required.

But most of all, the project was promoted by Mountbatten.

[Dathi THorfinnsson]

Originally Posted by Just Leo

A pykrete or pykecrete ship was actually constructed on a small scale.

true

Originally Posted by Just Leo

Original estimates of cost, logistical difficulties, and operational shortcomings were proven naive. It was very hard to construct, hard to move, hard to live or operate on, and

?? any more than the usual military over-runs? I never heard that cost overruns killed it, but rather that there wasn't going to be any need as the Battle of the Atlantic was being won. Any references?
I have certainly read stuff that said it was a total waste of resources, but those were the resources estimated ahead of time, AFAIK....

Originally Posted by Just Leo

it had an extremely deep draft, deeper than an iceberg when loaded with materials which would all become frozen. Deep draft ships do not run up to a beach. Special loading/ unloading facilities would be required.

Hoo boy, would it ever!

[Cook]

I’ve just found a history reference that says Mountbatten regarded Geoffrey Pyke as a genius.
Considering Mountbatten I’d be very reluctant to use anything recommended by him.

[Atomo]

I agree, the cost overruns would have been about standard for such a large military project with such unusual technology. If things got to the point that the British Isles or mainland Europe required invasion I doubt cost would have been as much of a factor.

As for the deep draft issue, from information I have sourced a couple of the lochs in Scotland (such as Gare Loch or Loch Long) would have been deep enough, maybe not to run ashore but to then use traditional smaller landing craft or flexible motorways.

I fully grant that options like building elongated Liberty ships and then welding them together to form platforms is much more likely (if I remember right Project Tentacle covered this).

I just wondered if there was another use for the ice ship concept.

[Atomo]

Originally Posted by Cook

I’ve just found a history reference that says Mountbatten regarded Geoffrey Pyke as a genius.
Considering Mountbatten I’d be very reluctant to use anything recommended by him.

Pyke was a genius and a great benefit to the Allied war effort.

His was the kind of genius that should have been placed in a nice office with all the information, paper and pencils he required and told to detail every idea he came up with. Then you have a group of open minded engineers and military folks go over them and discard the truly unfeasable ones.

In wartime every brilliant mind should be used, no matter who supports them.

[Grimm Reaper]

My idea would have been to build a truly gigantic pykrete ship and just ram it ashore complete with fifty divisions and months worth of supplies, plus more than a thousand fighters based on the ship.

Darn shame about the western third of France, now known as the new Bay of Biscay, getting in the way when we arrived...

[Just Leo]

The Royal Navy National Museum said the original pilot model was given 5,000 pounds and costs spiralled. Churchill cancelled the project when told that the carrier sized model would cost 6 million pounds. The original proposal specified that it was cheap. 6 MILLION pounds stirling.