One question answered

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UK signs up for JSF EMD Phase

18 January 2001

The UK has pledged £1.3 billion ($2 billion) to the JSF Engineering and Manufacturing Development (EMD) phase, which will begin once a decision on which of the two contending aircraft, Boeing’s X-32 and Lockheed Martin’s X-35, is selected later this year.

The decision to commit to the EMD phase means that the UK believes JSF offers the best potential to meet the MOD’s requirement to replace its Harrier and Sea Harrier aircraft early in the next decade and equip the two aircraft carriers the UK plans to procure to enter service in 2012.

Defence Secretary Geoff Hoon said “JSF will not simply replace the Harrier, it will give the UK an aircraft that can take-off from an aircraft carrier and provide the agility of a light fighter with the punch of a bomber. Put simply, it will be the best aircraft of its type in the world.”

Earlier Baroness Symons, the Minister for Defence Procurement, had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the US in Washington for the next stage of the JSF programme. The signing confirmed the UK as a collaborative partner and ensured it would have a say in the down select of the two contenders.

In addition to the £1.3 billion directly attributable to the JSF programme in the US another £600 million will be spent in UK specific modifications for the introduction of JSF into service. The total cost of the 150 plus JSFs the UK intends to buy is likely to be of the order of £9 billion.

Observers have been surprised that the UK decided to commit so emphatically to the JSF programme so close the handover of power to the Bush administration which has pledged a root and branch review of US airpower requirements that might lead to cancellation of the project.

Addressing the question at a Pentagon news conference Baroness Symons said that pointed out that under the terms of the original agreement the UK had to sign up to the deal by early February or risk being excluded from the decision making.

It is likely that the public commitment of the UK will make it more difficult for the incoming administration to cancel the largest defence project ever, which sees production of nearly 3,000 fighters for the US Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and the RN and RAF, with delivery scheduled to begin in 2008 in a programme valued at more than $200 billion.

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Interestingly however Baroness Symons has categorically denied that this automatically means JSF is the FCBA and hasnt indicated any preference for STOVL or CV variant.

I’m imagining that despite the enthusiaam alluded to above this is a speculative move on the part of the MoD who would appear to have significant doubts about JSF’s future but want to make damn sure they have a slice of the cake if Pres. Bush allows it to live.