Posted on 12/25/2011 7:25:18 PM PST by sukhoi-30mki
IAF may buy jets used by US in Iraq
By YAAKOV KATZ
26/12/2011
Advantage in purchasing military equipment, senior IDF officer explains, is in the price, which would likely be dramatically lower than buying same equipment new.
Due to the ongoing upheaval in the Middle East and potential delays to existing procurement plans, the IDF is looking at the possibility of purchasing fighter jets and other platforms used by the United States military in Iraq.
The advantage in purchasing military equipment used by the US in Iraq, a senior IDF officer explained, was in the price, which would likely be dramatically lower than buying the same equipment new.
RELATED: Battalion will keep IAF bases operational in attack
According to the officer, one possibility under consideration is asking the Americans to purchase fighter jets – possibly F- 15s – that were used in Iraq.
“The Americans are cutting their defense budget and are expected to decommission certain aircraft,” the officer said. “If there is a decision here to increase the defense budget or to purchase additional fighter jets until the F- 35 arrives later this decade, then buying the used American planes could become a real possibility,” he added.
Israel’s concern is that the delivery date for its first batch of 20 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters will be pushed back farther than the 2017 date. A number of reports recently came out of the Pentagon regarding potential problems with the development of the aircraft and the possibility that production plans will be slowed down.
If that happens, Israel could also be asked to pay more for the aircraft, meaning that it might be asked to add to the $2.75 billion it committed to paying for the 20 F-35s under the 2010 deal, or suffice with less aircraft.
The IDF has been holding marathon talks with the Treasury in recent weeks in an effort to reach an agreement regarding the size of the defense budget for the coming year. While the talks have yet to result in an agreement, defense sources said they were confident that a resolution would be reached by the end of the month.
The IDF is claiming that due to the changes in the region – particularly in Egypt – now is not the time to cut the defense budget, but rather to increase it in order to enable the military to build up new formations and capabilities needed to counter future threats.
It seems like fighter aircraft are getting so expensive that each country will only have one squadron, if that!
I think this would make a lot of sensed for Israel. Those F-15s, along with their pilots, technicians, etc. will still be dominant over their likely adversaries for many years.
An equal, possibly greater, incentive is the widespread availability of spare parts, many available from boneyards.
Thats what geniuses in Israel get for canceling Lavi in the 80’s. The way things are going with F35, the US Airforce might think twice of selling those birds to anybody. Because of constant delays with F35,the IAF needs a stop gap aircraft.
You can’t go too far with a project that requires foreign funding and technology. The only hope for the Lavi was if they stopped relying on US assistance.
Plus these planes are past the infant mortality stage of new equipment. I imagine we maintain this stuff pretty well. Lots more bang for their buck.
There is a ton of IDF projects which get money from US, one is Arrow, another is Iron Dome which come to mind. But yeah they should have provided their own funding, because Air Superiority is a strategic goal for Israel,and you cant get it long term if you dependent on foreign supplies for your aircraft. Just like Frenchies decided to cut the supplies of Mirage to Israel after 6-day war. US can do the same thing, considered we had such a nice guys like Obama and Clinton in power.
Arrow and Iron Dome are niche products for specific Israeli requirements and don’t really have a US analogue. Unlike the Lavi which was in the same capability bracket as the F-16 or F-18. Why fund a rival system when you can sell your own.
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
..................
I was directly involved in the Lavi.
We were pretty much told to shut down or would not be getting support for our US jets -— certain US companies did not want a cheaper and better aircraft than the F-16* on the market.
* In fairness, we were sitting on the backs of giants — notably decades had passed since the F-16 had been first sketched, so manufacturing, comptuers, and aeronautics had progressed rather remarkably.
It would have been fascinating if Israel was able to the Lavi independently with it’s own engine and subsystems. It would probably have dominated light-medium fighter market being more cheaper than the two big European fighters now on offer while outperforming the F-16 and Hornet.
able to the Lavi=able to develop the Lavi!!!
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.