Post Falklands, a Batch 4 Type 42 Destroyer replacing Sheffield and Coventry could have been interesting.
I'm not sure that's a logical move at the time.
By this point Sea Dart II was dead, and the RN was being lured into the mess of NF-90, NAAWS, and the long slide to Horizon.
So much so that any hope for Sea Wolf GWS.27 was doomed let alone Sea Dart.
But had SAM.72 moved forward, all this would be different.
No need for Sea Dart
UK would be in the process of fielding the new MSAM for Army and Navy.
No slide to Horizon, just enlarged Type 23's.
And the money saved being ploughed into PESA or AESA.
Next Generation AAW Destroyer would thus repeat the Type 23 power plant, no messing around with recuperative systems (US design) bolted to a Marine RB.211 that became a Trent yet produces a third less power than the MT30.
No need for inadequate diesel engines that left Type 45's struggling with power management issues.
And no being locked into PAAMS or having to fund US companies to provide a ARH seeker on Standard.