I've been lately sensing some kind of change in the thinking regarding both military aircraft and ships: more and more commentators seem to think that maybe having only "jacks of all trades but master of none" in the fleet is not so good idea after all.

So the tendency may be to turn back towards having specialized platforms for different tasks, since it seems in the end give more actual tactical clarity and flexibility than having lots of "multi-role" under-performers.

They look good on presentations, but eventually do not really deliver. And they always, always cost more than their single-role brethren, so you always get less of them.

US military has been buying pig's ears for decades.  The Abrams main battle tank spends most of its time in the motor pool being fixed.  When it does run it's useless in the field since, at 70+ tons, it is road bound.  That's why the Marine Corps dumped the things.


She believed in nothing; only her skepticism kept her from being an atheist. -- Jean-Paul Sartre