I know right? The concept was a form of centralization: To make a one-size-fits-all plane that could be used by army, navy and marines alike. Of course they had to have variants, and that is the problem, really. There are dramatic differences, for example, between planes taking off from a ship, or from a carefully groomed air-field. That is not to mention improving the flight-time/repair cycles.

This happened during a rapid digital transformation towards integrated computer assistance for pilots. (Note that Russians now have computer screens that appear in the actual windscreen of the plane, for example).