Jane’s readily acknowledges the limitations of their data, particularly insofar as pertaining to the F-35. From the link:

There are several caveats to this assessment. “Owing to the differing methods of calculating aircraft operating cost per flight hour and the large number of interlinked factors that affect such a calculation, IHS Jane’s believes that any flight hour cost figure can only be regarded as indicative and that there is no single correct answer to such a calculation,” says the report, but adds, “However, we believe that our results are of considerable merit and provide a useful benchmark when considering the costs associated with operating contemporary high performance combat aircraft.”

The report stresses that ‘without access to comprehensive military data over a significant timeframe’ the results ‘can only be regarded as approximate’ and ‘are an average cost across an entire fleet’.

The report says it is most confident about the data and its conclusions on the Gripen, F-16 and the F/A-18 ‘with good primary and secondary source data supported by logical results from our deductive modeling.’

The numbers for the Eurofighter Typhoon and the Rafale are less certain, in comparison, but the report submits that ‘the comparative modeling output appears to confirm IHS Jane’s estimates’ for them.

The report is least sure about the operational cost of the F-35 costs ‘owing to the absence of actual in-service data’. “IHS Jane’s does not feel that the modeled fuel cost figure is representative of likely CPFH costs,” it says.

Course put all those caveats together and the only thing we can be sure of is that Norway should be buying Gripens. 😉

It wasn’t Subramanian Swamy who made some allegations (most likely baseless) about the Rafale- it was MV Mysoora Reddy. It was most likely baseless since he had no access to IAF evaluation reports or the financial offers made by Cassidian and Dassault and stated that the Rafale’s performance in Libya was poor (!) and asked why the IAF had selected it. It was most likely a motivated allegation.

I don’t think that there was anything worthwhile to investigate. from all reports since then, the negotiations are going on with Dassault.

Thanks for correction. It is the silence that it is curious — no details as to investigation since initial stories in March, but nor any recent ‘full steam ahead on MMRCA’ stories either.

The allegations may be unfounded but I am interested in them because I think the official story — that the procurement was driven by operational and commercial factors alone — is nonsense. I think selection of Rafale was a strategic decision through-and-through, and this is as it should be. To buy on operational/financial criteria alone (as stated) would be foolish, so I would not be at all surprised to hear that there were ‘irregularities’ in the process.

Of course one way to square the two accounts would be to suggest that the procurement process was specifically designed to produce the result which was obtained…

From Janes just recently:

Sauce: http://www.stratpost.com/gripen-operational-cost-lowest-of-all-western-fighters-janes

Everyone is ‘strapped for cash’. Scrap the geriatric airframes and the personnel and facilities and logistics chains that fly and maintain them and spend 1/10th of the money saved over five years on buying more fancy **** for the F-16s.

@Teer (and anyone else who cares to comment)

Nevertheless, would it be fair to say that Shiv Aroor is one of the more famous/prominent/well-known of Indian defence journalists, with his appearing on Headlines Today and all that?

I’m thinking of citing one of his articles (this one) for my essay and so this discussion about Indian defence journalism is very much of interest and I know very little about it.

Anyone know offhand of any reliably sourced and preferably detailed information regarding (1) the effects of US sanctions on LCA/Tejas or (2) IAF’s experience with Mirage 2k and Dassault relating to the Kargil conflict? Am researching for an essay on the political and geopolitical aspects of MMRCA.

Too early to say anything about the capacity of the bays but it is definitely meant to carry air to ground munition.

Hrm, fair enough. Cheers.

I cannot blame China or any country for holding onto its roots when there is a constant attack by west on eastern values and belief systems.

In the west it is commonly presented as a dichotomy between the absolute superiority of ‘western’ values (rarely defined) and cultural relativism. Obviously this is a false dichotomy, but even if one were to accept the basic thesis that ‘west is best’ your point would be well taken: the stridency of the west in promoting its values abroad is precisely what engenders such resistance against those values. Nobody likes being told what to do.