07:07 GMT, May 29, 2012 The Daily Mirror has reported that there is a risk that the new Joint Strike Fighter jets set to fly from the Royal Navy's new aircraft carriers may melt the ships' decks when they land.

It claims the Ministry of Defence (MOD) is seeking help from the Americans to develop a new 'super-tough, heat-resistant deck-coating'. The paper also suggests that this issue is a further setback for the programme following the decision not to go ahead with fitting the carriers with catapults and arrestor gear ('cats and traps') technology.

The MOD will save 2 billion by not fitting 'cats and traps' and this will greatly offset the relatively small cost of deck paint. Deck-coating was always part of the short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) variant ship specification.

Work to identify a suitable deck-coating is ongoing with our American partners in this project, so exact costs are not yet available.

---- Official Blog of the UK MOD

Read more here:
UK MOD Reacts to Media Report About "Melting" Aircraft Carrier Decks

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May 29, 2012 at 10:14 am by Mr HomeBuilder
Category: Decks