Neil
Senior Member
- Joined
- Jun 23, 2010
- Messages
- 2,818
- Likes
- 3,546
DEFENCE Minister Joel Fitzgibbon will step up pressure on the US to overturn its ban on the sale of the F-22 Raptor fighter, amid growing federal government concern about delays and cost increases affecting the Joint Strike Fighter program.
Foreign sales of the F-22, described by many aviation experts as the world's best air superiority fighter, are banned by Congress, but there are signs that Washington might make an exemption for Australia.
Mr Fitzgibbon told The Australian yesterday he intended to push US Defence Secretary Robert Gates to allow the sale of the world's most advanced operational stealth fighter to Australia at next month's NATO conference in Bucharest.
"Ongoing question marks over the delivery schedule of the JSF reinforces the need we have to look at other '5th Generation' aircraft such as the F-22 Raptor," he said.
"During my bilateral meetings with Secretary Gates at the upcoming NATO meeting in Bucharest, I will again be discussing this issue with him."
More delays and increased costs to the so-far unproven US-designed Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning are driving renewed interest in the previously off-limits F-22. Reliable government sources told The Australian yesterday the RAAF might be able to buy the F-22 "off the shelf" under a congressional waiver, or a modified version stripped of some secretive technology.
Australia is part of an international coalition with purchase options on the multi-role JSF and has flagged an initial order of 100 of the jets, worth a minimum $16billion. But many defence strategists question the wisdom of the deal, given the retirement of the ageing F-111 fleet in 2010.
To bridge the capability gap, the Howard government ordered 24 F/A 18F Super Hornet fighters, at a cost of $6.5billion, to serve as frontline aircraft until the arrival of the JSFs in 2018. Despite misgivings about the procurement process, Mr Fitzgibbon last week confirmed the Rudd Government would go ahead with the controversial purchase."
Your thoughts?
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...-31477,00.html
Foreign sales of the F-22, described by many aviation experts as the world's best air superiority fighter, are banned by Congress, but there are signs that Washington might make an exemption for Australia.
Mr Fitzgibbon told The Australian yesterday he intended to push US Defence Secretary Robert Gates to allow the sale of the world's most advanced operational stealth fighter to Australia at next month's NATO conference in Bucharest.
"Ongoing question marks over the delivery schedule of the JSF reinforces the need we have to look at other '5th Generation' aircraft such as the F-22 Raptor," he said.
"During my bilateral meetings with Secretary Gates at the upcoming NATO meeting in Bucharest, I will again be discussing this issue with him."
More delays and increased costs to the so-far unproven US-designed Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning are driving renewed interest in the previously off-limits F-22. Reliable government sources told The Australian yesterday the RAAF might be able to buy the F-22 "off the shelf" under a congressional waiver, or a modified version stripped of some secretive technology.
Australia is part of an international coalition with purchase options on the multi-role JSF and has flagged an initial order of 100 of the jets, worth a minimum $16billion. But many defence strategists question the wisdom of the deal, given the retirement of the ageing F-111 fleet in 2010.
To bridge the capability gap, the Howard government ordered 24 F/A 18F Super Hornet fighters, at a cost of $6.5billion, to serve as frontline aircraft until the arrival of the JSFs in 2018. Despite misgivings about the procurement process, Mr Fitzgibbon last week confirmed the Rudd Government would go ahead with the controversial purchase."
Your thoughts?
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...-31477,00.html
