RE #6774
On current plans - two squadrons of 12 aircraft (809 stand up at the end of 2023). Full operational capability by 2025 with 24 aircraft (or 36 with USMC support) "tailored" to meet requirements. The procurement figure still hovers around 48 "by 2025" which sounds optimistic. The eventual figure is 74 (from an original 138) "across the lifetime of the project". It is a moveable feast when an F-35B (it's weapons bay bulging with Spear3/Spear-EW/Meteor) will be recovered back onboard from a rolling vertical landing. CSG21 was a credit to the senior service after the chaos and confusion of SDSR 2010, but at what cost. The best way to protect your investment is to Remove Before Flight before launching an £88 million kite off the ramp and into the sea.
