Was Merlin expected to serve for about thirty-five years before replacement?
Short answerIt had already served for twenty-one years in 2020, so replacement planning needed to begin soon.
NotesMerlin first flew in 1987 and entered service in 1999. By this 2020 exchange, that amounted to twenty-one years in service. Even with a longer expected service life, replacement planning needed to begin soon. Those dates explain why an aircraft still in active use already demanded attention from procurement planners.