Isn't it time to go back to the
Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Air Force???
JFH is nearly there already!
B Word
In a word, NO!
Those who forget the lessons of the past are doomed to repeat them. The Fleet Air Arm was transferred to Admiralty control because the Air Ministry had little or no understanding of the needs of the Navy or it's environment, was obsessed with 'Bombers' and thus starved the FAA of funds for new or adequate numbers of aircraft. Deja vu? Thus the interwar years left the RN ill equipped to meet the coming war and many ships and men were lost as a result. The FAA only thrived when it had a chance to build itself up again during the war years. During the time of RAF conrol, they insisted that the flight deck of a carrier be treated like any other airfield, so that during landing on no other aircraft were allowed on deck for safety reasons. Once a plan had landed it had to be folded and struck down to the hangar before the next could land on. The USN and IJN weren't restricted in this way and developed procedures that allowed far more efficient (and safe) ways of operating aircraft at sea, lessons that the RN had to learn in a hurry during WW2.
Now we are hearing that the RAF wants not only to operate all the Carrier FJs, they see the decks of the CVFs as 'alternate operating airfields' (or whatever buzz term is in vogue), just another option for basing aircraft overseas. It's the 1930s all over again!
We've already seen that if the Carrier aircraft are under RAF control, they won't see a carrier deck for years. When the RN let the light blue take over the Naval Harrier sqns, I think they did this sure in the knowledge the RAF would show thei hand early (long before JSF arrived), strengthenoing the RN's case for control of it's own Fast Air and weakening the RAF case. The best model for operating the carrier aircraft would be that of the 60s and 70s onwards, RN controlled and operated 800 series FJ sqns with volunteer RAF aircrew serving alonside the dark blue. That way those crabs who don't want to get their feet wet can stay ashore and those with an adventurous spirit can serve a tour or two attached to the FAA and broaden their horizons. After all, wasn't it the RAF of the 1930s that came up with the idea of the 700 and 800 series sqns for Naval operations? Lower numberplates were reserved for land based operations.
Apparently it worked very well before and those involved got on very well without resentment of who was in charge.
