What was the rationale for retiring the Sea Harrier?
Short answerThe official logic stressed strike missions and upgrade costs, while an FAA upgrade wish list was recast as a list of supposed faults.
NotesThe stated rationale assumed future operations would be bomber-style strike missions. The Fleet Air Arm proposed a Sea Harrier Mk.3 upgrade and identified the improvements needed to sustain the aircraft. The same request then reappeared as a list of costly deficiencies used to justify retirement. On this account, a document intended to preserve capability became an argument that preservation was unaffordable. The episode damaged Fleet Air Arm trust in the Ministry of Defence and shows how procurement framing can determine a force's fate.