Spitfire9Gripen Rear Fuselage, Designed by Akaer, Passes Load Tests
Spitfire9A report from the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) has made important recommendations about the F-35 to Congress and the Pentagon.
The GAO draws attention to the significant deficiencies that the F-35 fighter continues to have, and to the budgetary cost of correcting them. Belgium’s CDH opposition party considers that these are serious warnings against one of the two candidates vying to replace the Belgian Air Force’s F-16s, and Georges Dallemagne, a CDH member of Parliament, has asked the government to think twice before closing the door to the European offer.
Would the Belgian govt be interested in the opinion of a member of the opposition?
If Belgium does order F-35, will the country then have to contribute financially to fixing the bits that do not yet work/are not going to be there until the mid-2020’s?
Spitfire9Can’t find the story now but it reported that French govt was still pushing Belgium to buy Rafale. Don’t recall all the reasons but the French govt representative apparently has a low opinion of Typhoon (as if Belgium would ever order it with political alignments/common sense dictating F-35 which allows closer liaison/commonality savings with Netherlands air force also being a user. Possibly almost the last attempt by France to sell a product to Belgium that was not even offered as part of the re-equipment programme competition?
By the way it was also reported that the F-16 replacement choice might be announced at a July 11 NATO gathering.
Another F-35 order coming up, I feel.
Spitfire9Gripen E ready for weapons carriage trials. Also reported to be on track for 2019 delivery.
https://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/gripen-e-ready-for-weapons-carriage-trials-448691/
Spitfire9From the flightglobal article:
Meanwhile, referring to a 25 April declaration of intent between Airbus Defence & Space and Dassault to jointly pursue a development activity for a broad-ranging European future combat air system, Buskhe says: “We have many open doors, to see what we can do, and maybe if there is a place for us or not,” referring to the possibility of a wider industrial collaboration.
But he also sees the bilateral announcement as representing a clear opportunity for the Gripen E. Describing the pact as “a signal to the market that the [Dassault] Rafale and Eurofighter [Typhoon] are in the end of their development programmes”, he notes: “We have a period of time where we can deliver the best aircraft.”
I don’t really follow the idea that Rafale and Typhoon are reaching the end of development. I thought the French government were committed to Rafale long term and if Germany opts to replace Tornados with Typhoons further development would take place.
Spitfire9State Dept Clears Potential $2.91B F-16 Aircraft Sale to Slovakia
I appreciate that this does not mean a definite sale but it does raise the question for me of where and when the aircraft would be produced. Please correct me if I’m wrong in thinking that no F-16 production faciilty exists.
Spitfire9Did anyone notice the contract value given for the Kuwait Super Hornets? $1.17 billion for 28 aircraft. How can that (about $41,7 million per frame) be possible?
Boeing was awarded a contract worth up to $1.17 billion to produce and deliver 22 F/A-18E and 6 F/A-18F Super Hornets for the government of Kuwait by 2022…
Spitfire9Isn’t the Gripen E supposed to be around $85 million each? That puts it pretty close to the other aircraft.
I think the flyaway cost of Super Hornet might be lower than Gripen E but in referring to procurement cost I was thinking more along the lines that Gripen E + the support, equipment and spares required to get it into service would be lower than any of the alternatives.
Operating cost depends wildly on what assumptions are being used and what’s being included so it’s difficult to make apples-to-apples comparisons.
Sure, but the twins are going to cost more to fly per hour as will F-35A. I read a few days ago that projected F-35 operating costs were sufficiently high for USAF to consider cutting their proposed number, viz
An internal Air Force analysis has warned the service may have to cut its purchases of F-35s by about a third if it can’t find ways to slash the price-tag to operate and support the fighter jets by as much as 38 percent over a decade, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday. The shortfall could compel the Air Force to subtract 590 of the fighter jets from the 1,763 it plans to order, the assessment found.
The assessment is queried by the head of the USAF but nevertheless it indicates that F-35 sustainment costs are high.
Spitfire9@swerve
Don’t recall… were the aircraft delivered to SA plumbed for CFT’s and electrically capable of taking an AESA?
Also, as you might know, when will the RAF be getting aircraft with a working (however limited the modes are) AESA?
Spitfire9Gripen E delivery schedule on target, says Saab boss
Spitfire9[b]RAF to Scrap 16 Twin-Seat Typhoons [b]
Spitfire9Qatar is a city state with a local citizenry only around 300,000 strong, most of whom live very comfortable (and decidedly non-martial) lives. If its GCC neighbours decided to roll up at the door, there is little the govt can do to prevent it from being absorbed into the Saudi state. And given Qatar’s resources, it’d be a rather profitable invasion.
But through these deals, influential Western states (along with Turkey and others) have been given a strong business interest in the continued survival of the Qatari state. Keep in mind, all these aircraft ordered will be delivered over the next 5-10 years. In the meantime, if the incumbent regime is overthrown, these contracts are likely to be torn up or at least heavily “renegotiated” by the new establishment.
Persuasive perception.
I don’t understand the thought process of buying three different twin engine heavy fighters from three different countries? If Qatar wants political influence through arms purchases then buy aircraft/helicopters from one country, ships/submarines from another country, and air defense/ground equipment from the third country. That seems a lot more balanced then buying three different twin engine fighters that all fill the same role.
I’m baffled, too.
Spitfire9We are approaching the point at which Eurofighter partner countries will have completed deliveries to their own air forces, leaving no more work for their FAL except for export deals secured by the country concerned.
According to figures from defense-aerospace in Oct 2016 (link: http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articles-view/feature/5/177740/eurofighter-four-face-hard-decisions-on-production%2C-damages-as-orders-run-out.html )
Spain will complete deliveries to home air force in 2018. No export orders to assemble.
Germany will complete deliveries to home air force in 2018. No export orders to assemble. Good news is that it is possible Typhoon will be selected as Tornado strike aircraft replacement. But even if it is, will the order come soon enough to keep the FAL running without a break?
UK will complete deliveries to home air force in 2019. Deliveries of 24 to Qatar should start in 2022. Can the FAL keep running without a break?
Italy will complete deliveries to home air force in 2019 but will start deliveries to Kuwait in the same year, so no FAL break threatened.
What will happen to Spain’s FAL in 2018 when work runs out?
Would a break in assembly work render German FAL Typhoons much more expensive if the German government chose Typhoon to replace Tornado?
What about the UK line: can the line be kept open without compromising the profitability of the Qatar order? What if SA were to re-order, that would keep the line busy if the supply chain could deliver the parts fast enough?
Can anyone come up with any suggestions as to how Germany, Italy, Spain and UK could co-ordinate to keep Typhoon production costs under control, thereby giving the aircraft the best chance to compete for more deals?
Spitfire9No idea whether Germany will go for a new design in conjunction with France or an existing design but if the choice were between Rafale and Typhoon it would not make financial or industrial sense to introduce a new type.
Additionally the Luftwaffe must have a considerable stock of A2G weapons, I guess mostly integrated onto Typhoon. How many of these could not be used with Rafale? I suspect that buying Rafale would need new A2G weapons of French manufacture to be bought (expensive) in the place of weapons Germany has already bought but could not use since they were not integrated onto Rafale (money wasted).
I cannot see Rafale as a serious contender as a Tornado replacement.
Spitfire9Europe as a whole, lends a trillion dollars a year to the US government. (because the US has no money) Yet the Americans have the gall to claim that the EU isn’t paying its share in the defense shakedown.
I don’t think investors buy US government debt out of the goodness of their hearts. They buy US government bonds to make money.
I don’t know how much of US military spending is committed to NATO activities but I am fairly sure that if that stopped the European nations in NATO would have to choose between a higher annual defence bill to pay or a lower defence capability.
I would say that the world covers structural US government debt for profit reasons while the USA covers European government underspending on defence for political reasons.
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