Originally Posted by
Not_a_boffin
I'm pretty sure the Essex class never operated the F4 either. Part of the rationale for not reactivating Bon Homme Richard and Oriskany as part of the Lehman 600 ship navy plan in 1980 was that they would have needed the F8 as their fighter asset.
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There was an article in the Telegraph in the mid-80s stating that both of those had been offered to the RN around that time, or possibly in the Falklands -era, but I've never found any confirmation of that.