I am sure 'the forces'
might have wanted STOVL but would any First Sea Lord want to put his fleet into an area where there is no shore based AEW support? I think the answer to that is obvious and are we saying the
First Sea Lord opted for this type of carrier, especially as we have such a small surface fleet. The type 45 is an excellent ship, but I would respectfully suggest the detection of sea skimming missiles is not its forte? (question)