Japan and the F-22

A story in the new Aviation Week discusses Japan’s desire for the F-22.
To summarize: They want and advanced fighter with a radar capabile of tracking cruise missiles. As with the history of F-4J and F-15J buys in the past, they want the current top model and are willing to pay to get it.

The magazine describes the issue of one of “national pride” and they see China’s expaning air force as a potential threat.

The article said they are willing to fund a device that would prevent avionics software from being “leaked”, somthing that is expected to cost $600 million to $1 billion dollars (yikes!:eek: ).

It said the USAF doesn’t oppose the move (since it would make their F-22s cheaper) but at the current tiome no one in state department (or the Bush administration) is actively pushing the idea.
Personally, I would expect that to change after the 2008 presidential election…as pro-union democrats would want the work, and a republican would be willing to build up Japan as a hedge against Chinese expansion.

China would be upset…but since the F-22 is almost an entirely defensive weapon, I’m not sure if their complaints would hold up.