Few remember it but the West Germans were the most aggressive of all the allies when it came to efforts to field STOVL aircraft back in the 60s.
They were faced with the same threats that US forces are presented with in the Pacific vs. the Chinese military. Just as we fear bases being rendered unusable due to attack, the West Germans faced that possibility from the Soviet Union.
Two examples of promising planes that were left on the drawing board.
Note the FOB (Friend of Bill) at the beginning of this second video..I wonder if he knows this guy;))
