Brits to sink Navy aviation

Sunday Times:

THE RAF is trying to use a major cash crisis within the Ministry of Defence to get rid of the Fleet Air Arm, defence sources said last week.

Its campaign, which is being fought under the slogan “one nation, one air force”, has led to the head of the Royal Navy, First Sea Lord Admiral Sir Jonathon Band threatening to resign.

Air Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy, chief of air staff, is attempting to push through proposals to scrap the 75 Harrier jump jets currently shared between the navy and the air force.

Torpy believes that the lack of a carrier-borne attack aircraft until the first of the new aircraft carriers comes into service, now 2015 at the earliest, will not be a problem.

He argues that with the main focus of UK military operations for the next decade likely to be land-locked Afghanistan, there is no current need for carrier-borne aircraft.

When the new carriers come into service the RAF can fly the Joint Strike Fighters that are currently due to fly off them.

Scrapping the Harriers five years early in 2013 is seen as a relatively painless way of saving £1bn, the cost of keeping the aircraft flying.

The £1bn is what the National Audit Office says will be the cost of two Harrier support contracts, one with BAE Systems and the other with engine supplier Rolls Royce.

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While I am not a big fan of the Harrier, it is better than nothing and this decision will mean the British fleet will be without air cover on many of its operations. I think that could lead to endangering the ships and their crew.