Not_a_Boffin,
Valid points. What has changed is: -
1/ Cost per unit. In the old days each unit was cheap in comparison to unit costs now.
2/ Less dosh floating around these days. Makes high unit costs more unaffordable
3/ Those revolutionary days of the 40's, 50's & 60's were during times of conflict and cold wars
4/ Those revolutionary days were when big changes could be made relatively cheaply. Now a days a 1% improvement in ability costs millions, if not billions. A bit like six sigma. Trying to get that last 0.00044% of improvement when all the easy issues have been resolved
Until the next totally revolutionary item comes along (like the jet engine, or wings, or computers) development is going to be costly.
Being able to afford one two missile carrying aircraft, a pilot who is allowed to fly five hours a decade is no use when it is so technologically advanced it only works five percent of the time, and the pilot can't fly it due to a lack of training and the pilot is outnumbered 1,000 to 1.
Bit like having carriers we can't properly fit out and an inability to afford the correct aviation fit plus a lack of finances to even run the whole thing.
Last edited by hval; 3rd Oct 2012 at 21:51.
Reason: Missing S