American experience with Enterprise and the Nimitz class shows that a large carrier can serve for roughly half a century. British replacements begun in the 1980s and commissioned around 1990 would therefore be only thirty to thirty-five years old in the scenario's present day. Their successors might not enter service until the mid-to-late 2030s, so planning could begin while the existing ships still had a decade or more of useful life. F-35Cs would suit the large catapult-equipped decks, while a mixed F-35B/F-35C air group would depend on whether earlier V/STOL fighters had proved useful for surging air defence during strike launches.
Notable Point · 1:53:21-1:56:15
A 1980s carrier fleet still serving with F-35s
In the video's present-day scenario, carriers commissioned around 1990 still have useful service ahead, with replacement planning and the F-35B/F-35C choice remaining open.