The Army has repeatedly adapted to the last mission, especially after the end of its major German deployment, and must now rebuild for peer conflict. Strike brigades made sense for interventions against smaller opponents when Britain could count on a technological advantage, but they do not by themselves answer the demands of a peer war. The RAF retains its homeland air-defence role, while the Royal Navy has a global carrier-strike role. Carrier aviation also gives the RAF a way to deploy without first relying on the Army to secure an overseas air base. A service with a stable strategic function can defend its force structure and procurement more easily than one repeatedly redesigned around the latest operation.
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Rebuilding British forces for peer conflict
A discussion of British force design contrasts adaptable intervention forces with the requirements of a costly return to peer warfare.