We really need to cut down on the paperwork.I suspect a great deal has to do with the respective services budgets apart from the usual bureaucratic inertia .
I remember having this conversation with @Hellfire some time back .
IIRC it was centred on the LCH & the same procedural rigmarole involved . He detailed those steps & it took some 3-4 yrs , if I'm not mistaken , between issuance of AoN & a firm order for the initial lot .