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Warships Pod

Warships Pod

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WARSHIPS POD aims to put a spotlight on the world’s navies and features warships past, present, and future. We’ll cover current defense issues alongside interviews and commentary on the Royal Navy, US Navy, and all other navies across the globe, as well as looking back at historical events.

This is the podcast for WARSHIPS International Fleet Review, a monthly magazine.

Warships IFR
Ciencia Política Mundial Política y Gobierno
Episodios
  • 46: Churchill’s Peril: U-boat Wolfpacks
    Dec 9 2025
    Guest Roger Moorhouse and host Iain Ballantyne discuss the German submarine threat in WW2 in a lively and engrossing chat. Roger is the author of several acclaimed books, including ‘Killing Hitler’ and ‘First to Fight’ and now ‘Wolfpack’, an excellent single volume deep dive into the submarine arm of the Kriegsmarine - Hitler’s navy - and which was reviewed in the November 2025 edition of Warships IFR.

    Topics touched on in this episode include pondering why the Germans placed their bets on the U-boat again, for the second time in a quarter of a century, despite having seen a similar strategy fail in WW1.

    Also discussed is the quality and character of the U-boat captains – cool, leather jacket, lumber jack shirt-wearing heroes or villains? Nazis to a man and fanatical supporters of the regime, of just Good Germans doing their best for their country?

    Iain asks Roger if ‘the U-boat peril’ truly was the only thing that ever really frightened Winston Churchill in WW2 - or was the wartime British Prime Minister deploying his usual emotive characterisation to frame his own later record more valiantly?

    The term Wolfpack reeks of lethality, provoking a shiver of fear, but how effective were the U-boats really once the Allies improved tactics, weaponry and training? Roger provides his perspective on that topic in addition to considering the strategies of Karl Dönitz, the U-boat force boss.

    Looking at the moral dimension of the conflict, Roger and Iain ponder whether of not it is possible to set aside the horror of the Nazis and what they did and feel empathy for the tens of thousands of young men in German submarines who died under a hail of Allied depth charges, bombs and gunfire.

    Both host and guest offer a dose of common sense about the fantasy in some quarters of Hitler escaping in a U-boat to live out the rest of his days in South America. Finally, Iain asks Roger what he feels might be lessons for today in dealing with the Russian threat, which includes submarines.

    Visit the magazine web site http://bit.ly/wifrmag Also, follow it on X @WarshipsIFR Facebook @WarshipsIFR and Warships IFR TV on YouTube @warshipsifrtv3668

    For more on the mag https://warshipsifr.com/

    The new (January 2026) edition of Warships IFR magazine hits the streets on 19.12.25 and is available hard copy in shops and supermarkets, plus direct in hard and digital variants from publisher Sundial Magazines https://sundialmedia.escosubs.co.uk/subscribe/warships.htm

    • Roger Moorhouse is a historian and author specialising in modern German and Central European history, with particular interest in Nazi Germany, the Holocaust and World War Two in Europe. Follow Roger on X @Roger_Moorhouse Visit his web site https://www.rogermoorhouse.com For more information on his ‘Wolfpack: Inside Hitler’s U-Boat War’ (William Collins ) https://www.rogermoorhouse.com/wolfpack

    • Iain Ballantyne is the founding and current Editor of ‘Warships IFR’ magazine (first published in 1998) along with its ‘Guide to the Royal Navy’ (since 2003) and ‘Guide to the US Navy’ (since 2018). Iain is also author of the books ‘Hunter Killers’ (Orion) and ‘The Deadly Trade’ (Weidenfeld & Nicolson), both about submarine warfare, plus ‘Arnhem: Ten Days in The Cauldron’ and ‘Bismarck: 24 Hours to Doom’ (both published by Canelo). In 2017 Iain was awarded a Fellowship by the British Maritime Foundation, which promotes awareness of the United Kingdom’s dependence on the sea and seafarers. Visit his web site Bismarckbattle.com and follow him on X @IBallantyn

    Más Menos
    52 m
  • 45: Battleships Reborn!?
    Nov 21 2025
    During the second part of a fascinating chat with host Iain Ballantyne, guest Dr James Bosbotinis things kick off by addressing how a future battleship might shape up following President Donald Trump’s call for a new generation of the fighting steel behemoths.

    James suggests that, rather than following a WW2 pattern, such a 21st Century capital ship could be armed with a huge number of missiles and an electromagnetic railgun – and be more along Russian nuclear-powered cruiser lines than inspired by the US Navy’s Iowa Class battlewagon of WW2 and the Cold War.

    Also discussed in this episode is the global reach of China’s navy, which may soon make its presence felt in European waters, including sending an aircraft carrier group to seas off the UK.

    Finally, how can the world avoid the ‘Axis of bother’ versus the democratic West becoming a hot conflict? Iain proposes an ‘Axis of Amity’ is better than a massive war, though James worries the presence of nuclear weapons means the world is on a knife-edge. And so he recommends Western deterrence must remain strong and also credible.

    By the way…

    The December edition of Warships IFR is out now in the UK and also being deployed globally. It includes an article by James Bosbotinis on the North Korean threat and how it might be defanged without provoking a nuclear exchange.

    There is a five-page special on what a future battleship might look like in the same edition. The main article by Lee Pilgrim gives his take on the shape of such vessels. An accompanying piece by Dr Robert Farley explains why the majority of the battlewagons of WW2 were soon discarded when the fighting stopped.

    James Bosbotinis is to offer his opinion on how 21st Century battleships might shape up in a future edition of Warships IFR magazine, while Iain Ballantyne will also contribute to the series.

    Visit the magazine web site http://bit.ly/wifrmag Also, follow it on X @WarshipsIFR Facebook @WarshipsIFR and Warships IFR TV on YouTube @warshipsifrtv3668

    For more on the magazine https://warshipsifr.com/

    • Dr James Bosbotinis is a freelance specialist in defence and international affairs and the Book Reviews Editor of ‘The Naval Review’. He has written widely on issues including: development of maritime strategy, long-range strike technologies (including hypersonic weapons) and their impact on strategy; Russian naval and wider military modernisation; China’s evolving strategy and naval force development. Dr Bosbotinis contributes to various international media outlets. He is also an Associate Member of the Corbett Centre for Maritime Policy Studies, King’s College London.

    For more information about Dr Bosbotinis visit

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesbosbotinis

    He is on X @JamesBosbotinis


    •Iain Ballantyne is the founding and current Editor of ‘Warships IFR’ magazine (first published in 1998) along with its ‘Guide to the Royal Navy’ (since 2003) and ‘Guide to the US Navy’ (since 2018). Iain is also author of the books ‘Hunter Killers’ (Orion) and ‘The Deadly Trade’ (Weidenfeld & Nicolson), both about submarine warfare, plus ‘Arnhem: Ten Days in The Cauldron’ and ‘Bismarck: 24 Hours to Doom’ (both published by Canelo). In 2017 Iain was awarded a Fellowship by the British Maritime Foundation, which promotes awareness of the United Kingdom’s dependence on the sea and seafarers. Visit his web site Bismarckbattle.com and follow him on X @IBallantyn


    Más Menos
    37 m
  • 44: Bear and Dragon Rising
    Nov 15 2025
    During the first part of a fascinating discussion with host Iain Ballantyne, returning guest Dr James Bosbotinis provides insights into the naval significance of a big military parade in China. Also considered is the current status of the Russian threat and the scale of danger being faced by NATO.

    More specifically, Iain asks if a recent incident involving the allegedly broken down diesel-electric Kilo Class submarine RFS Novorossiysk indicates - as the head of NATO has contended - that the Russian Navy of today is less ‘Hunt for the Red October’ and more like ‘the Hunt for a mechanic.’

    James explains the strengths and weaknesses of the Russian Navy, not least as embodied by its powerful Northern Fleet based in and around the Kola Peninsula in the Arctic.

    Moving on, Iain and James discuss the current defence posture of the USA, whose apparently hesitant commitment to NATO possibly creates an element of uncertainty that could prompt miscalculations…leading to the long-feared ‘Third World War’.

    Also on the topics list is the ‘Axis of bother’ – Russia’s global disruptor mission in concert with like-minded rogue states such as North Korea and Iran.

    When it comes to China, James offers an assessment on what was shown off during the recent military parade in Beijing and how it relates to naval forces and growing Chinese military power, a subject he also tackled in an article for the November edition of Warships IFR magazine.

    The December edition of Warships IFR is published on 21.11.25 in the UK and also deployed globally. It includes an article by James Bosbotinis on the North Korean threat and how it might be defanged without provoking a nuclear exchange.

    Visit the magazine web site http://bit.ly/wifrmag Also, follow it on X @WarshipsIFR Facebook @WarshipsIFR and Warships IFR TV on YouTube @warshipsifrtv3668

    For more on the magazine https://warshipsifr.com/

    • Dr James Bosbotinis is a freelance specialist in defence and international affairs and the Book Reviews Editor of ‘The Naval Review’. He has written widely on issues including: development of maritime strategy, long-range strike technologies (including hypersonic weapons) and their impact on strategy; Russian naval and wider military modernisation; China’s evolving strategy and naval force development. Dr Bosbotinis contributes to various international media outlets. He is also an Associate Member of the Corbett Centre for Maritime Policy Studies, King’s College London.

    For more information about Dr Bosbotinis visit

    https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamesbosbotinis

    He is on X @JamesBosbotinis

    •Iain Ballantyne is the founding and current Editor of ‘Warships IFR’ magazine (first published in 1998) along with its ‘Guide to the Royal Navy’ (since 2003) and ‘Guide to the US Navy’ (since 2018). Iain is also author of the books ‘Hunter Killers’ (Orion) and ‘The Deadly Trade’ (Weidenfeld & Nicolson), both about submarine warfare, plus ‘Arnhem: Ten Days in The Cauldron’ and ‘Bismarck: 24 Hours to Doom’ (both published by Canelo). In 2017 Iain was awarded a Fellowship by the British Maritime Foundation, which promotes awareness of the United Kingdom’s dependence on the sea and seafarers. Visit his web site Bismarckbattle.com and follow him on X @IBallantyn

    Más Menos
    43 m
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