I think the point was that for every Magnificent Steed of Yesteryear, there were a dozen lemons that never made it out of flight test. And even the rides that proved great often were hustled out to the Fleet with lots of problems. Take the Corsair, which was being CQ'ed before anyone noticed you couldn't see the Boat worth a damn over that long cowling, and thus only served ashore with the Marines for the first few years.
These planes also weren't expected to be in service for more than 10 years or so before being succeeded by a new type. And there were dozens of aircraft firms, maybe ten or so major manufacturers, before the age of conglomeration and mega-corporations. So the mfgr's didn't sweat missing a contract - there'll always be others. And the gov't didn't sweat getting a substandard plane - oh well, try again. Look at the rapid succession of fighters in the early years of jets-on-Boats: F4D, F7U, F3D, etc., most of which weren't worth a damn even as they were headed out to the Fleet. The F6U took so long to develop that it was already obsolete by the time it first flew.
The Mighty Tink and other great planes stand out not only because they were great, but because so many others sucked.
Still, back on topic, there is definitely a lack of wartime exigency around here. Gates commented on it when he took over DoD, esp with regard to fielding the MRAP. There's wars going on, vehicles are urgently needed, but the Pentagon is still running things on a peacetime/Cold War procurement model. There's no reason at all it should take longer than a couple of years to get a COIN plane fielded - small numbers needed, uncomplicated and relatively cheap technology, and many suitable, proven airframes already exist. We don't have to make a plane that can also stand up to 5th-gen Chinese fighters or has stealth characteristics.
Just wish we'd get back to a wartime model of "We can do it, and it's needed now, so give us the money and let's fucking get it done," rather than, "Meh, too hard, let's make do."
