An amphibious ship can carry enough fighters to provide local air defence without possessing the surveillance capabilities of a fleet carrier. The comparison raises helicopter or future drone airborne early warning as a way to close that gap. In the Falklands counterfactual, beginning the Sea King airborne-early-warning programme in 1980 or 1981 could have made it available before the war. Sea Harriers would then have had better warning and direction against approaching aircraft. Earlier detection of sea-skimming threats would also support a more integrated defensive network. The proposed result is substantially fewer Royal Navy ship losses, even without an exceptionally capable early-warning aircraft.
Notable Point · 8:42-11:19
Airborne early warning and Falklands fighter direction
The Falklands War illustrates why fighters alone cannot provide a complete maritime air-defence system without early warning.