A lease is completely different. It is like a rental with various services included. You would have to see every line item on the lease in order to give a full eval if it was a good or bad lease.

Well first you would have to put heavier landing gear on it. Then drop test it good. ( jets like the F-18 with all the digital stuff have to be pulled down below a lot and spend about half and hour and make sure all the electronics are seated correctly after being bashed into the deck. )

Then theres “bring back”. How much can it bring back and still be bashed on the deck?

Then there is the airframe/wings as they currently are. Are there any major redesigns needed for the design to be bashed with all the happiness of an A-4 ? Including the hook and hook stress on the air frame and T bar pull of the nose gear on the airframe for cat launches?

The Gripen is a good jet, just have to see if it would tollerate a carrier environment.

What a loser. Guardian. Go figure. I hope he gets in a bad car wreck, needs an air ambulance, and one isn’t available… too bad… so sad. Die you P.O.S.

Good jet.

I am sure you will see the EF2000 in UK service pumped up to full ability. Even as T3 is cancelled, I think some relize: Just get the jets, ownership is 90% of the law. Once they get them then a completely new “upgrade” will be planned and funded as a separate program to make up for any shortfalls in the original purchase.

Best HUMINT I have seen on this topic.

Udderly ridiculous.

Definately a bit of denial by the generals. Some of the money spent on JSF would be better spent on X-45, X-47. I don’t see how these UCAVs have to have air refueling abilty to be declared useful. Oh well, keep wasting money.