Wokafans
Mr Harding's article was a bit longer. Here it is, typed in long hand:
Navy Chiefs' plan to save jump jets
A last-ditch attempt has been made by the Royal Navy to save Harriers from the axe, with a proposal to allow reservist pilots to fly them.
As the last flight of the jump jets takes place at RAF Cottesmore today a plan, said to be backed by the First Sea Lord, has been put forward to preserve a rump of 20 Harriers.
Navy chiefs have warned of an "unbridgeable skills gap" for pilots needed to fly the Joint Strike Fighter off the new aircraft carriers that will come into service in 2020 if carrier training is stopped. Without the ability to fly off carriers for the next 10 years, Navy pilots will lose the skill of landing on rolling decks in bad weather and deck crews will not get the practice they needed to safely launch and recover aircraft.
The decision to scrap the Harrier in favour of the RAF's Tornados in the strategic defence review infuriated the Navy.
But hopes of saving the Harrier, of which there are 65 serviceable aircraft in total, will be raised at a meeting of the defence board in January.
A proposal will be made to allow Royal Navy Reserve pilots to continue flying the planes at weekends from Yeovilton, Somerset.
Senior naval officers say the RAF is rushing to retire the Harriers to make the defence review decision a "fait accompli" before alternatives are put in place.
S41
Fun and games? Or preserving the skills needed for running a fixed wing carrier (deck crews, bridge and navigating personnel, various watchkeepers in places like the Operations Room and Ship Control Centre, and so on)? Maybe even maintaining an ability to do something if the politicians' crystal ball is wrong?
RNR pilots did fly the Harrier, and the Sea Harrier before that. Other aircraft types as well, and at sea. As for the cost - long term (to 2018) support contracts were signed last year. The contracts included cancellation clauses so is not a case of zero aircraft equals zero cost. Reducing the number of aircraft to be supported back might be no (or not much) more expensive than ripping up the contracts. What if we worked more closely with Italy or Spain? If the GR9 is similar to the AV8B+ then perhaps they can help with support? We might be shoring up their economies very soon....
althenick
... Since Lusty has been chosen over Ocean for the axe then there would be little point as it wouldn't get to sea
Yes there would be! Lusty will be kept until 2014, so the RN will still have a platform that can take fixed wing aircraft. Not sure when Queen Elizabeth enters service, but hopefully it won't be too long after that. When Ark Royal entered Pompey for the last time the Captain commented (on TV) on the new carriers arriving "in four years time.....". As for Ocean, she is due a refit. I think that I read that she's getting an extensive (£100 million?) refit. If the Phalanx was removed from the front of the flight deck, surely she could operate Harriers (ignoring speed and reliability issues for now)?
When I read the above article yesterday it brightened up a dull day. Back in March I heard a senior RN Officer commenting that a possible SDSR outcome was to hand "not needed right now" capabilities to Reservists. He wasn't thinking of Harrier, I suspect.
Last edited by WE Branch Fanatic; 10th Jul 2011 at 11:51.