Why go for Exocets if you’re buying eastern bloc? Think as-17 Krypton.

Besides which, the majority of Soviet aircraft shot down in Afghanistan fell to the DShk 12.62mm machine gun and other types of anti-aircraft gun.

DShk is 12.7mm machine gun and I believe it comes in a 76-caliber. Maybe you got the 12.7mm confused with the 7.62mm?

Early adoption of F-35A.

193 F-110-GE-129 Improved Performance Engines

I am surprised by this line, they went for the F110-GE-129. P&W is probably pretty hot about not getting F100-PW-229 orders. I think F-15SK and F-15SG are the only others flying with this F110 engine in their F-15’s. UAE was probably hoping they’d go for GE F110-GE-132 to help their Block 60 engine parts price.

Chox, you’ve been less than convincing. I admire these fellows for sticking it out against you when its pretty obvious the group thought around here seems to be with them and not your own point of view. Essentially you seem to be condoning the ostrich and its head in the sand approach to danger. That just is not sane in today’s dangerous world. No, you want to play defense in layers and keep the fight off your soil. The carriers, royal marines, and amphibs do exactly that with the added caveat of being highly flexible. The army and RAF, in their current funding crisis, do not because they play rigid roles.

I wonder just how much it’s going to cost to get out of the multi-year maintainance contract we just signed a few months ago for the harrier?

No doubt the same perps that decided to stick it to the UK tax payers on the carriers knew how to stick them on the Harrier, too. Get them in the ass coming and going.

You really should follow the money trail on how those contracts got so written. We have the same cancer in our administration. The contractor writes his own self-interest agreement and the government signs off on it by using Congress as the rubber stamp of approval.