When I joined the Navy, we had two front line Harrier Sqns.
We now have, erm, two front line Harrier Sqns.
We had numerous Front line Rotary Sqns.
We now have ever so slightly more, flying vastly superior aircraft across all sqns.
We had 3 "through deck cruisers"
We now have 2 truly shagged "through deck cruisers" one effective but horrible cheapy built helicopter carrier, a couple of other big decks plus, and it is a big plus, 2 650000 ton carriers under contract that I will bet it will be impossible for even Labour to wriggle out of.
We had 3 Royal Naval Air Stations.
We now have 2 Royal Naval Air Stations, plus a place that used to be a Royal Naval Air Station, that used to have a Sqn on it that now has a Flight on it n the same building that used to hold the Sqn. And the Flight has the same people as the Sqn used to. Hmmmm.
The RAF, on the other hand seems to be in terminal decline.
How many Sqns did the RAF have even 10 yrs ago compared with now?
More importantly, how many of those sqns actually still fly on a regular basis?
E3? ........not really
Nimrod?.....Hanging in there god bless em, and soon to be replaced by something inferior (another nimrod)in all respects except endurance.
F3........who knows, or cares.
Jaguar?.......computer says no.
Canberra??.......computer says no.
Harrier? ........2 became dark blue.
Sentinel?.......very pretty on the pan.
C17?...........Hurrah!!! you got something new and decent!
Merlin Mk3?...Not a bad bit of kit, but lets face it, it's not what you would have picked.
Ok and you got the airshow jet.
C130? .......Not many left.
I know which I would bet my money on flying off the carriers.
Incidentally PN, many of the Harrier boys have always come from rotary.