Overseas aid is not just giveaway money.
It is used as a foreign affairs tool of influence, and often comes back in some shape or another.
On the topic, of course Britain could develop it’s own aircraft, but they would be silly to do so.
There are big players out there who would have a domestic order for an indigineous programme that would be far larger than the UK’s. This gives economy of scale to export orders, and in that regard, you are playing with the US, Russia, and up and coming China.
And it’s not just Britain. European countries collaborate because it makes economic sense to do so, as each nation will have a relatively small requirement numberswise, but often the same sort of requirment capability wise.
Pelambangs clumsy way of putting it does contain a kernel of truth.
The UK slips down the GDP rankings. This is not abnormal, but rather a function of being a relatively small country and not having all the resources of the Empire anymore to enrich oneself with, or captive markets, as well as the requirements that go with that with regards to airframe numbers
My point was if the UK wanted to it could and it could afford to do so as over seas aid @ 9.1 billion pounds = 0.57 of national income
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