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Originally Posted by Osem
* notwithstanding those state of the art aircraft carriers with no aircraft...
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They did take a great big gamble with our maritime power but the timetable for the QE-class carriers and F35Bs isn't it. Despite ill-informed commentary, mostly by Fleet Street hacks with little real understanding of the issues, the truth is that the aircraft will be available to the carriers according to a schedule which steps up the ships' capability in manageable stages. The Royal Navy hasn't operated a full-size fleet carrier since 1979 and has never operated one this large. Even if the F35B was available in numbers come HMS QE's expected operational date in 2020, the Navy would still lack the competence to operate them effectively.
The gamble, taken purely for money saving purposes, was to sell off all our harriers and relegate HMS Illustrious to the status of an amphibious helipad. It wouldn't have taken much more of a deterioration in our relationship with Kirchner's Argentina, for example, for them to speculate that it might be worth another crack at the Falkland Islands. Retiring the tools of power projection also looks like retirement from the business of power projection in certain world capitals.
---------- Post added at 12:52 ---------- Previous post was at 12:46 ----------
Quote:
Originally Posted by Osem
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-37528951
How very unlike comrade Corbyn whose idea of protecting the UK is telling our potential enemies that he'd never use the nuclear deterrent... 
I wonder how hard the SNP will object to all the jobs which will be created or secured in Scotland...
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Haven't you heard? In the independent nirvana of Scotland, Faslane will be the base for the entire Scottish navy. There will be plenty of room for our population share of approximately half a destroyer, one out of date frigate and the captain's yacht off one of the new aircraft carriers.
Just don't ask awkward questions, like why you'd base your navy on the west coast when all your strategic maritime interests are off the east cost, drilling away in the North Sea ...