As you have been told ad nauseum, sustainable fleets are a numbers game and NRCs for support of an aircraft fleet are big numbers. NRCs for 2 aircraft fleets are 2 really big numbers which would have required cutting todays wargoing numbers to achieve your target of maintaining a seedcorn capability for the future.
How do Italy and Spain run their smaller Harrier fleets? I know that have a support MOU with the US, but there must be more to it? To resolve the issue would have required real out of the box thinking, and looking at lessons from our allies?
The fact that you keep using the word "seedcorn" illustrates the point about rationalising. It was intended that the GR9 would provide a fully deployable force (CVS or land based) post
Herrick.
Justanopinion
Apart from the sterling job on HERRICK , can't agree. During HERRICK the FEAR was 18 with 8 required in Afghanistan. The force continued to maintain carrier ops as well as dets to Red Flag / Green Flag. It is a complete myth that Carrier ops were so seriously affected during Afghanistan for the Harriers, I must have imagined my time at sea during that time. Post Afghanistan I remember being briefed many times that the force was going to concentrate on all round regeneration, not a Carrier seed corn capability.
Not long before the SDSR, Ark Royal deployed with Harriers for a number of months, practising using Harriers for a variety of roles, including ground attack and air defence *beyond the range of shipborne missile systems. A Google search found the following on the RAF website:
No 1(F) Squadron on Exercise Auriga
After a long period of distinguished service on operations in Afghanistan, Joint Force Harrier has, for the last twelve months, been working hard to regenerate all the important skills which necessarily took a back seat to the primary task of Op Herrick. One such skill, much practiced by 800 Naval Air Squadron(NAS), is the demanding realm of embarked operations. The summer of 2010 sees 1(F) Squadron take their turn by embarking in HMS Ark Royal for Exercise Auriga: two months of carrier flying and simulated fighting off the eastern seaboard of the United States.
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After the initial qualification period, the squadron was involved in the dropping of freefall bombs and live 1000lb bombs mixed with air-to-air fighting with Canadian Hornet fighters. For many aircrew this was the first drop of a live bomb, and as such it is a great testament to the ship’s weapon suppliers, the squadron armourers and the deck crew that all the bombs were dropped successfully.
But how is it on board ship? For the vast majority of 1(F) this is the first experience of life at sea. The biggest challenge has been changing the normal daily routine to fit in with the ship’s equally busy activities including live firing of the ship’s defences, practice man-overboard drills and damage control exercises. Equally though, it is very satisfying for the members of the Squadron who would ordinarily not see flying directly to be involved with deck operations. They work in close proximity to aircraft launching and recovering, an area fraught with danger demanding high standards of professionalism. This professionalism is reflected in the rest of the ship’s company who are very keen to make sure that everyone from the air group feels a true part of the ship. SAC Howe was heard to say, “The whole CVS environment has turned out to be much better than I had anticipated. Once you get used to the way the Navy do things you can just get along with enjoying such a novel experience.”
As Ark Royal prepares for the month of July, 1(F) look forward to further exercises alongside the Americans, and will include the dropping of 1000lb laser guided and freefall bombs, training in urban close air support of troops, and the additional possibility of being involved in beach head assaults with 3 Commando brigade. This will be a chance to exercise one of the Harrier’s key skill sets: to be involved in amphibious landings from the sea in direct support of troops on the ground.
Seedcorn?
The picture you paint can only be seen on the Harrier thread because you keep repeating it.
What about the comments of Bismark, Not_a_boffin, and many others?
Read your points and take a good look at yourself
Can an outsider be prone to Groupthink?