British procurement has repeatedly forced a choice between surface-to-air missiles and interceptor aircraft. The two perform different roles within air defence, so a layered system needs both. Funding them as alternatives encourages a competition in which one programme must displace the other. The resulting force can lose a complementary capability even when both systems are needed.
Notable Point · 4:31-5:23
Fighters and missiles in layered air defence
Treating interceptor aircraft and surface-to-air missiles as rival budget choices removes capabilities that a layered defence needs together.