Brazil "very likely" to choose French fighter

Brazil is "very likely" to choose France's Rafale fighter jet to refurbish its air force, government sources say, a decision that would award one of the emerging-market world's most coveted defense contracts to a jet whose future was in doubt only two weeks ago.

President Dilma Rousseff and her top advisers believe that Dassault Aviation's (AVMD.PA) bid to sell at least 36 Rafales offers the best terms among the three finalists, the sources told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

The other two bidders in the competition are U.S.-based Boeing (BA.N) with its F-18 Super Hornet and Sweden's Saab (SAABb.ST) with its Gripen.

....Rousseff previously had concerns about the Rafale because the jet had not found any buyers outside France. That raised doubts about whether Dassault would have the scale necessary to build the jets at a reasonable cost and maintain them over time.

The sources said Rousseff's concerns were assuaged when India announced on January 31 that it had entered exclusive talks to buy 126 Rafales. Brazilian Defense Minister Celso Amorim traveled to New Delhi last week to discuss the deal with Indian officials and examine documents related to Dassault's bid.

"The India deal changed everything," one of the Brazilian sources said. "With India's decision, it's now very likely the Rafale will be the winner here."

.....Brazil is not the only country that appears to be suddenly following India's lead. French newspaper La Tribune reported on February 2 that Dassault could soon seal a sale of at least 60 Rafale fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates, turning around a deal that also appeared to be a lost cause.

Advantage Rafale in Brazil and UAE after India’s selection

Brazil almost declared Rafale has the winner and UAE almost signed the contract for the Rafale , but for some strange reasons both talks and negotiations fell flat on ground , experts believe that both UAE and Brazil were waiting for Indian result , to ride on the huge order which India will place .

Brazil has requirement of 36 aircraft’s but follow up orders may go up to 80 aircraft’s and UAE has requirements of 60 aircraft’s and Indian contract almost on verge of been sealed 126 aircraft’s which India may order and later follow up orders of more 80 aircraft’s may take place end of this decade ,will make the Rafale export success too .

Brazil was in touch with Indian air force and Ministry of defense of India through out the selection process of MMRCA and have asked India to provide documents related to Rafale bids to Brazil , after India selected them , UAE is also considering sending a team of defense personnel to study the Indian deal and have already restarted negotiations with the french firm .

With Indian order in the bag almost and if French can pull Brazilian and UAE order too then Rafale not only be a success story but also out sale Eurofigther, since both Indian (up to 200), Brazilian (up to 80) and UAE (60) along with 200 ordered by French military will make it a export success too .

The Rafale’s selection by India, which came at the end of a vigorous and transparent selection process has boosted the French Jet’s prospects in Brazil. In 2009, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had expressed his interest in the French Rafale and was quoted as saying he wanted to award the multi-billion dollar contract to France. However, subsequent political pressures by lobbies close rival aircraft manufacturers in the U.S. and Europe led the deal to be put on hold.

http://idrw.org/?p=8280

oops, should have known Su30mki would almore:additional st

Will Brazil follow India’s Rafale bet?

In a country where defense policy has traditionally not been a key aspect of overall foreign policy, seeing a former powerful foreign minister assume the Ministry of Defense is certain to raise some eyebrows. And so it happened when, in August 2011, President Dilma Rousseff chose Celso Amorim, the architect of Brazil’s foreign policy under the Lula administration, to replace Nelson Jobim after the latter had openly questioned the capacity of several of his fellow cabinet members.

While Jobim was generally respected by the generals and considered to be a competent manager, several leading members of the armed forces voiced their concern about Amorim, who conservatives often accuse of being an anti-American ideologue. Yet no matter how one thinks about Amorim, there is a good possibility that the appointment of such a visible personality (and today’s foreign minister’s former boss) will boost the role of defense in Brazil’s foreign policy.

This may partly explain why Amorim’s recent trip to India 6 weeks prior to the BRICS Summit in New Delhi has gained considerable more media attention in both Brazil and India than Jobim’s India trip a year earlier. Military ties between India and Brazil are growing, and India uses Brazilian Embraer aircraft for indigenous airborne early warning and control systems. Yet for several other reasons the timing made the trip special: Only days before, India had annonunced that it would buy 126 French-made Rafale combat aircraft in a $11 billion deal - a deal that, as one would expect, caused considerably controversy among security analysts in India.

In a somewhat unusual move, India agreed during Amorim’s trip to share with Brazil some of its experiences of carrying out the open tender evaluation to select the best aircraft. This matters greatly to Brazil, as it is currently involved in a similar selection process. Brazil would like to buy 36 fighter jets, and Rafale, F-18 and Gripen-NG are still in the race. Just as in India, the process was mired in controversy given its large size and the significant political implications. After President Lula seemed to favor the Rafale in 2009, the Dilma administration put the deal on hold in an effort to reduce public spending.

The big question now is how the decision to have Brazil study documents about India’s selection process will affect the tender process in Brazil. India’s purchase certainly makes the Rafale seem less risky. A decision to follow India’s would not only boost ties between Brazil and France, but it would make India and Brazil the only two countries other than France to boast the Rafale jet, thus creating further potential for stronger ties in the area of military technology.

http://www.postwesternworld.com/2012/02/09/will-brazil-follow-indias-rafale-bet/

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.