I didn't say I thought it was perfect - I just think it's better than nothing at all - which is where we are now
the easiest way to ensure we never get any patrol aircraft ever again is to ask for a load of hi-spec aircraft right now.
The important thing is to keep the capacity in being - you never know there might be more money in the future but once it's gone for a decade I suspect you'll never convince the Treasury or the politicains that we really need to re-instate it again
PS just how many Typhoon sorties ARE there on an average day???? 120 aircraft, average pilot gets 18-19 hours a month with luck ... not a lot I suspect