Posted on 02/16/2010 12:14:58 AM PST by ErnstStavroBlofeld
A controversial order of Israeli-made Heron unmanned aerial vehicles passed critical performance tests in Israel and will soon be delivered, Turkey's top procurement official says. "Six of the aircraft have successfully passed the tests inspected by a delegation of Turkish officials," Murad Bayar, head of the government's defense procurement agency, the Under Secretariat for Defense Industries was quoted telling local media. "We are expecting their deliveries in the weeks ahead. And this closes the deal from our point of view."
Similar performance tests will take place in the next few months for the remaining four UAVs included in the program.
Turkey awarded the lucrative contract five years ago, placing the order with Israel Aerospace Industries and Elbit. Both companies beat out major U.S. competitors but the contract was bogged from a start with delays stemming from technical problems.
The contract deadline was initially set at 24-30 months. But both contracts missed the first deadline, breaching, also, a follow-up delivery date for the dispatch of four Herons last August.
With the deal dogged by problems, the Turkish government threatened to pull the plug on the order, saying it would seek financial damages from the Israeli contractors.
Last December, however, Ankara announced its intention to speed up the deal.
The order is estimated at $183 million, of which $50 million is set to go to Turkish Aerospace Industries and Aselsan. While the bulk of the project rests with IAI and Elbit, TAI is the Heron program's prime contractor.
(Excerpt) Read more at spacedaily.com ...
Turkey is turning evil against Israel. This is foolish.
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
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The Turkish military is not controlled by the Islamist AKP-led civilian government. It’s still secularist and is largely seen as likely to keep the AKP from going too far. Don’t be too quick to write off Turkey.
OTOH, I probably wouldn’t go ahead with the sale if it were up to me.
Jews betraying the Christian Greeks by supporting the Muslim Turks is old news.
It has been going on for nigh on 400 years..
That is why many Jews were ordered to leave Greece (with exceptions for those who did not collaborate with the Turks) after the Christian Greeks finally drove the Muslim Turks and their Muslim Egyptian allies from Mainland Greece after a 300 year fight.
No Holocaust in Greece.. No sytematic persecution of Jews for their betrayal. Just a deep and disheartened disappointment that fellow Peoples of the Book welcomed to Greece because they were oppresed in Arab Muslim Countries would turn around and collaborate with the Turkish Muslim Invaders. Enjoy full bellies and enriched themselves while Christian Greeks their crops deliberately burned were systematically starved to death by the 10s of thousands for refusing to Convert to Islam. Three of the Greek Patriarchs exicuted for urging Greeks to keep faith.. The last Beheaded, Drawn and Quartered in the finest Muslim Tradition.. Still the Greeks remained faithful to the Christ.
Old news.. not the kind that one will not find in Public Schools.
W
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