US Navy/Marines set to buy British GR9's!

via Defense News.

WASHINGTON and LONDON - Britain has agreed to sell all of its 74 decommissioned Harrier jump jets, along with engines and spare parts, to the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps - a move expected to help the Marines operate Harriers into the mid-2020s and provide extra planes to replace aging two-seat F-18D Hornet strike fighters....


"I don't think it will be costly to rip out the Brit systems" and replace them with Marine gear, said Lon Nordeen, author of several books on the Harrier.
Nordeen noted that the British GR 9 and 9As are similar in configuration to the Marines' AV-8B night attack version, which make up about a third of U.S. Harriers. The British planes also are night planes dedicated to air-ground attack, he said, and while both types carry Forward Looking Infrared (FLIR) sensors, neither is fitted with a multimode radar such as the APG-65 carried by U.S. AV-8B+ models.
The absence of the big radar, Nordeen said, makes the GR 9A and AV-8Bs "a better-performing plane. Weighing less, it's more of a hot rod."

This is beyond good news but is it signalling something?

What I mean is this...these airplanes are going to replace F/A-18D's.  Those planes are part of the rotation to the carriers...does this mean that advance planning is going on to lower the number of big deck aircraft carriers?  Just a thought.   Correction.  F/A-18D's don't deploy on carriers (thanks for the correction LouG).  So what's the deal?  LouG points out that Fast FAC is about to take a serious hit because these are the planes that perform that role.  My next thought is that with the exception of the F/A-18A/C, the USMC will be an almost all STOVL force.  What's going to take the place of the F/A-18D in the Fast FAC role?  I have no idea but its going to be mean a serious change in the Ground Combat Elements tactics.  In the assault the Marine Corps usually keeps its artillery on the march relying on its jets to provide the airborne artillery...if you remember the Marine General in charge of the assault into Kuwait implored his pilots to go after Iraqi artillery...he said the grunts could handle the tanks...he just wanted them to take out the artillery...will the Harrier be able to perform Fast FAC????

Sidenote:

You just have to know the Brits are beyond pissed at this news...we're getting their jets for fire sale prices...Thanks Think Defence and the British people!

UPDATE:

LouG brought an observation on the purchase of these aircraft to take the place of the F/A-18D's and I misunderstood his statement.  Consider this a public apology.  In the seat experience...been there done that experience...operational experience is always appreciated.