5F6B,
If, and it's a big "if" considering that the coalitions plans for getting the UK annual deficit down to ZERO by 2015 have moved to the right by at least a couple of years (which still doesn't allow for any fallout from the Greek disaster unfolding right now), P-8s were ordered in 2015, we wouldn't see them in the UK before 2018.....
My reading of the "balancing the budget" article is that it means between now and 2020, so I can't see any MPA being purchased before then. Of course the next government might think differently, but I can't see it being the highest issue on their defence agenda!
I expect that by the time we got back into the manned MPA game, if we ever do, most of the MPA seedcorn will have already retired!
Last edited by Biggus; 15th May 2012 at 18:06.