Anybody who goes for Gripen now, will in 10 or 15 years find himself in a situation like Portugal with their F-86 in the late 80’s. No updates, no upgrades, no new weapons integrated, excessive spares/rotables costs.
That has to be the most ill-informed and ridiculous comparison I have ever read.
Saab/BAE´s Gripens in pole position for jet purchase
Minister of Defense Jaroslav Kostelka last week reportedly backed an expert commission recommendation that the Czech government lease Swedish Gripen jets as a temporary measure to protect its skies.
The daily Pravo reported last Friday that Kostelka had lined up in favor of the Gripen offer, but the Ministry of Defense refused to comment.
The offer that the Czech army lease 14 new jets Jas-39 Gripens made by the Swedish-British consortium Saab/BAE Systems was already well-placed after it was recommended to the government last Monday by an expert committee convened to weigh up the five jet offers.
Used U.S.-made F-16s have been offered by Belgium, the Netherlands and the U.S. Canada offered Boeing’s F/A-18s.
The committee rated the Belgian offer of Lockheed Martin’s F-16s with a mid-life update (MLU) second, followed by the F/A-18s offered by Canada and F-16 MLUs offered by the Netherlands. The F-16 Block 15s offered by the U.S. were placed at the bottom of the list.
The government is due to decide which offer to select by the end of December. Although Cabinet ministers have already been given details of the jet bids and evaluations of them, Ministry of Defense spokesman Ladislav Sticha said it was unlikely that the Cabinet would decide on the issue this week. “Ministers obviously need some time to read through the material,” he said. “I don’t expect there to be [a jet vote] on the next Cabinet meeting agenda.”
The recommendation of the expert committee is not binding on the Czech government. All those involved in the offers have kept details and evaluations secret because the process is still continuing.
Sources close to the deal said the price for a 10-year rental of new Gripens is about 10 percent below the Ministry of Defense’s allocated budget. This included the optional financing of a government-to-government loan with an interest rate of 5 percent. “If the loan is not taken the final price would be even less,” a source said.
The Czech Ministry of Defense has scheduled gradually rising payments for the jets following expected delivery in mid-2005. Altogether, it plans to spend Kc 25 billion (e695 million) over 10 years on the fighters themselves and their operation. The jets will replace the aged Russian-made MiG-21s.
Pravo reported last Friday that the cost of the Gripen lease would be Kc 21.675 billion for a 10-year lease. It said it calculated the figure from the material Kostelka submitted to cabinet members last Thursday.
Chief of the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces Pavel Stefka drew a distinction between the committee recommendation and final government decision. “A recommendation is one thing, but there is also investment in the future,” Stefka said. “It’s a political question. We are soldiers and we will prepare pilots and equipment to be used,” the Czech Press Agency (CTK) reported last Tuesday.
Stefka said the government should also take into account which aircraft would eventually be bought for the Czech army after the lease period expires. The manufacturer of the jets selected to guard Czech skies temporarily will be in prime position to eventually sell new jets to the country.
That is one of the main factors fueling competition to supply the jets now.
“We must think of what will follow, whether to continue with the Gripen program or whether it will be a different plane,” Stefka was reported by CTK as saying at a meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels on Tuesday. “We also have to consider using logistical support.”
So far, Hungary is the only NATO country that has opted for Gripen jets and could work in conjunction with the Czech army on shared servicing and logistics support for aircraft. Hungary decided to lease 14 of Jas-39s in the beginning of 2003.
A source close to the Swedish offer said the country has offered three options to the Czech government after the initial lease expires. The first option is to continue with the lease after the initial 10 years, to return the jets to Sweden after the lease period ends or to purchase them.
The Jas-39 Gripen was developed in the 1990s. The jet’s technical capabilities were previously questioned. Other jet producers, especially Lockheed Martin, argue that Gripens are handicapped by the fact they have no combat record, unlike the well-tested F-16s.
The Gripen has also only recently started to make planes that meet NATO interoperability requirements. Currently there are only eight such Jas-39s that are NATO interoperable flying for the Swedish Royal Air Force. Sweden is not a NATO member.
Steve ~ Touchdown-News
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