FOG,
Many thanks for the reply - interesting. The UK position is in the eyes of many who know about such things, absurd. The new UK carriers (CV(Future)- hence CV(F), a conventional design) are at 65k tons more than big enough to take the Dave-C, and indeed are designed to be convertible between STOVL and CTOL operations (ie, requiring a major refit, but in principle able to do it). So the UK could - and in my view should - take the -C, and in the process acquire E-2D to provide meaningful AWACS and strike coordination.
I completely accept the point of -Cs being 10 mins further away and not principally tasked with your CAS mission is always going to be less attractive than fellow grunts flying -Bs. However, the question is one of cost: is the US prepared in these difficult economic times, to continue to pay for the flex of the -B in order to continue to provide the USMC with organic CAS? I'd have thought that this is a really difficult call to make given some of the things that are being cut, especially as there appear to be a tiny number of combat - rather than NEO - interventions that require an MEU to operate alone.
Time - and politicking in DC - will doubtless tell!
Cheers,
S41