We Probably Don't Need Shiny Jetfighters

A third of submitters to the Defence Review want us to acquire multi-role fighter jets that can launch air strikes, and provide air support to the army and navy.

I am not a defence analyst, but I see some obvious difficulties with this proposal.

I understand why people think it would be quite nice to have some of these toy planes, because they are shiny and go really fast. They would also liven up local airshows.

I suppose they might even have a use in an operational sense, though I am struggling to think of an environment where they could be realistically used in a genuine combat capacity without much difficulty.

And then there is the extraordinary expense of re-establishing a combat arm. When the Skyhawks were retired so were many of the facilities needed to operate a combat wing. I doubt many of the top pilots we used to have are still around in this country, so where would the people to fly these planes come from?

Given the expense and difficulties, maybe we are better off finding other ways to contribute. Our Defence spend is pretty low, and are probably not pulling our weight, so more should be done. But reinstating a combat wing doesn't seem like a smart use of already limited Defence funds.

 You want a combat air arm? What about a squadron of these?