Both ‘Serve’ and ‘RN Phantom’ are correct about costs but twice UK governments have cancelled aircraft for a short term gain (sadly the UK thinks only in the short term).
The damage to the overall UK economy and in the long run finally ‘killing off’ an expanded UK aircraft industry was never considered and that has cost the UK more than the investment in aircraft – especially as the aircraft promised as replacements never lived up to their promise within the time span allotted..
The first cancellation was in the 1950’s by the Conservatives even though the cancelled aircraft DID have LARGE order books and were in advance of the USA and the USSR (as it was) and – of course the second was the Labour cancellation of TSR2, the supersonic VTOL aircraft and STOL 4 engined logistics aircraft. At the time, with no hindsight, it was clearly stated F-111 would not fill our requirements in the time span promised, which was true and then in panic, because of the destruction in the industry caused by the cancelletions, the government wasted more millions/billions to convert Phantoms, which were not as good as the originals and for good measure we then had to buy F-4J’s anyway!!!
The Bucanner was an excellent world beating aircraft and both services should have used it, but it was never intended to fill the TSR2 – as an American Airforce general said NATO, INCLUDING the USA, should have bought TSR2, this would have reduced cost and rapidly developed the aircraft’s mission role but as usual politics got in the way.
Anyway – what other weapons do you all think it could carry/could have carried!!!
Regards,
Weinace:)
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