Posted on 10/16/2010 9:27:42 PM PDT by ErnstStavroBlofeld
bureaucratic dogfight between supporters of different combat jets as the UK draws up defence cuts could lead to changes in the way aircraft carriers are designed and how British forces operate, defence sources said.
Options being studied by military planners include delaying the deployment of new carriers to convert them to use conventional traps and catapults instead of the unmechanised decks envisaged for Lockheed Martin F-35 jets to be ordered by Britain.
The move, which sources briefed on the matter said is one of several options as the UK prepares defence cutbacks, would involve other changes to Britain's role in the potential $382 billion multinational Joint Strike Fighter project.
Despite U.S. concerns, Britain is already reported to be considering cuts of over 50 percent in its planned order for some 138 Lockheed radar-avoiding F-35B jets for the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force.
The plane, expected in the UK from about 2017, could be built in three models depending on take-off and landing systems.
Britain initially rejected a conventional carrier version designed for the U.S. Navy and chose instead a short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) type designed for the U.S. Marines and fitted with lift fans made by Rolls-Royce.
But the question of how the carriers will be configured -- assuming, as many expect, that plans for two new carriers will be kept -- has been thrown back into the debate as military chiefs fight over the future of two older planes: the Harrier and Tornado.
(Excerpt) Read more at in.reuters.com ...
In the current UK political/social climate it’s a miracle Britain can even maintain a token military much less contemplate buying so many F-35s.
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