Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 50:07-50:30

The industrial case for retaining British aircraft projects

Continuing British designs in place of buying the F-4 Phantom II could preserve domestic industrial capacity and make later cancellations politically harder.

British Aviation IndustryDefence Industrial BaseDefence ProcurementF-4 Phantom IIBAC TSR-2
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Question

Would continuing British projects such as TSR-2 have been a better choice than buying the F-4 Phantom II?

Short answer

It would at least have benefited British industry and made further programme cuts harder.

Notes

The question compares continuing British aircraft projects, including TSR-2, with buying the American F-4 Phantom II. The answer focuses on industry rather than claiming that the domestic aircraft were automatically better in service. Keeping the programmes would support British design and manufacturing capacity. That surviving industrial base could make subsequent cancellations more difficult, although the short passage does not compare cost, schedule, or combat performance.