I'd like to se a "two fleet" navy: the ability to maintain the full range of capabities on both coasts. That implies bringing the Durban base up to standard/capacity similar to Simon's Town (minus the "heavy" maintenance facilities that do not need to be duplicated).
* 5 frigates - allows for one at sea and one in port on each coast and the fifth in maintenance (with Lynx choppers and space for an occasional extra Oryx).
* 6 OPVs - two on each coast, one on deep ocean patrol (Prince Edward Islands, down to the sub-Antarctic, SADC or AU co-operation missions) and one in maintenance. (Light utility helicopters - Airbus H145M or similar.)
* 7 to 9 IPVs - base them all around the coast, not only Simon's Town and Durban, also Saldhana, Mossel Bay, PE, EL, Richards Bay
* 4 submarines - the three we have now often leaves us short. One-in-three rotation is too high a work rate for subs, one-in-four is sustainable.
* 1 logistics ship (new Drakies)
Thus the naval helicopter unit needs to expand to have one flight of 8 Lynx, one flight of 8 light helis (H145M or similar) and a flight of Oryx.
In an ideal world (defence budget pegged at 2% of GDP) we should have two LPD/LPHs each capable of delivering a battalion across the beach, with sufficient heavy helicopters and landing craft, as well as a few light choppers.
https://web.archive.org/web/20160110215 ... 40-africa/ (In this same "ideal world" the Army has an amphibious brigade of three battalions) This would entail another helicopter squadron for Naval operations.
In case this looks familiar, it is basically my interpretation of "Milestone 5" of the 2012 Defence Review.