Originally Posted by
Engines
... were most definitely not designed to go upthreat and 'hack the shad'. (That task appeared in the mid 70s as the reality of the RAF's inability to provide meaningful air cover over the Fleet became apparent,
One would hope the RN would have noticed the absence of an RAF air defence aircraft that could cover the Atlantic, or that no such aircraft has ever existed in any air arm.
I would be surprised if anyone in the RN was daft enough to walk over to any NATO airforce with a requirement for persistent, land-based, long-range fleet air defence. I would be astonished if the RN got as far as penning a requirement, let alone expecting the RAF to arrive.
The absolute reluctance to fully acknowledge, equip and train for realistic air threats explains the poor capability; it has nothing to do with expecting the RAF to arrive with a bag of miracles.