Calls to divert a British carrier toward the Afghanistan evacuation collided with the ship's existing Indo-Pacific task. Because United States Marine Corps aircraft made up part of the embarked force, changing course could require an allied squadron to disembark and disrupt several partners' plans in the South China Sea. A single British F-35 squadron still offered useful air power, but it was far below the carrier's design capacity of three twelve-aircraft squadrons. The example ties platform procurement to the less visible cost of buying enough aircraft to use the ship as intended.
Notable Point · 32:52-34:35
Carrier capacity without a full British air wing
The modern carrier example shows that buying the hull without enough aircraft can leave Britain dependent on allied squadrons and unable to meet competing tasks.