OK- so we disband the junionr service and give all helos to the brown jobs and shirtlifter wafu's. We contract out AT to Dickie B and cadge all other options off the septics.
When (and believe me it is when, not if) the next war comes and we all get bombed to sh*t and lose the war as we have no Air Force what do we do then?
A salutory lesson would be GW1 where an intense bombing campaign = much less opposition ( Note I do not, and will not ever lessen or question the bravery and sacrifice of those involved. I merely said there was less of the enemy numerically than before)
You can jump up and down, stamp your feet and shout louder than me that the current war is more important - more important than what. A home? A nation where we can recoup, rearm and attack from again?
Do not be led down this blind folly that a COIN op ( against an enemy who may not even be there (Al Q) and we have been suckered into fighting the Afghan who will fight anyone who is there ) is the be all and end all for this nations forces.
As to those of you who doubt why we are in FI - Oil. FI gives us claim to Antarctica and the mineral wealth therein.
The bottom line is we should not be arguing about diverting all our defence budget to AFG but standing shoulder to shoulder and saying we MUST HAVE a bigger piece of pie.
This country is not broke. It has been mismanged to hell and all the money goes the wrong way.
If we do nothing and chop services we will eventually reap the whirlwind.
Most money spent in the defence does not get wasted - everything you buy and use has to be made. you all eat and drink. If we start buying more british produce we will help dig our nation out of the pooh.