[quote][b][url=/v3/forum/europe-14/topic/royal-air-force-royaume-uni-343/?post=42055#post-42055]ex-trident[/url] a dit le 10/12/2008 à 08:47 :[/b]

[quote]
RAF's Harrier fleet may face early retirement

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) is discussing plans to withdraw the entire Royal Navy (RN) and Royal Air Force (RAF) Harrier GR.9 fleet from service in less than five years, in an attempt to save more than GBP1 billion (USD1.5 billion), Jane's has learned.

The discussions come as budget planners finalise their efforts to reconcile the MoD's equipment programme and force structure with limited available funding.

Jane's understands that the ministry's defence board reviewed the proposals at its meeting in the last week of November, after senior RN officers had objected. They had stressed that the withdrawal of the Harrier aircraft five years ahead of their scheduled out-of-service date of 2018 would create a major capability gap ahead of the introduction of the first Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters (JSFs).

RN officers have been lobbying hard for at least a squadron of up to 20 BAE Systems Harriers to remain in service until the arrival of the JSFs towards the end of the next decade. [/quote][/quote]