Buccaneer Question

The A6 was replaced by the F14 and F/A 18 E-F after the A12 died it deserved death.

I think the RN Phantom and Buccaneer fleet would be replaced by the Sea Typhoon.
 
The A6 was replaced by the F14 and F/A 18 E-F after the A12 died it deserved death.

I think the RN Phantom and Buccaneer fleet would be replaced by the Sea Typhoon.

I wasn't clear enough, sorry. What i meant by the -6F being put in to production/surviving was that instead of the A-12 program the -6F went ahead meaning the USN kept a dedicated strike platform in service even as it lost the F-14's, A-7's, and S-3's. It would have lessened the wear and tear on the F/A-18 fleet as well as being generally useful during the conflicts when it was in service so by the time that the F-35 program was implemented the idea of keeping a strike craft in service would have been acceptable. Instead of there being a uni-platform paradigm for carriers there would have been an acceptance of a duel platform model. The USN would have gone from having 6 fixed wing platforms (light strike, strike, fighter bomber, anti sub, AEW, and interceptor) during the cold war to 3 fixed wing platforms in the post cold war era as a result of the peace dividend. While this looks like a loss of savings in maintenance it might have paid for itself with the F/A-18's not needing to fly so many refueling runs as well as keeping the Growler program from being needed. The point of divergence here would be the S3 Buccaneer being put into production proving that refining the electronics on an older air frame means that air frame is viable for a new generation. Therefor you don't have the cock up that was the A-12 program, as the way forward in terms of strike craft and economizing had been shown by the British.
 
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