F-35 Export

[Ayoshi]

NATO pushing Norway to consider F-35 aerial refueling capability | Air Recognition - 12 October 2018 15:41

According to newspaper Klassekampen that had access to a document containing so-called NATO capabilities goals, the objectives are stated for each country and the defence ministers in the member countries have approved it.

The document stated that Norway should comply with the requirement to procure two aerial refueling aircraft that will be ready for use in 2028 and 2029 respectively.

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Norway has decided to buy up to 52 F-35 fighter jets within 2025. Currently the Norwegian Armed Forces have nine F-35s on Norwegian soil.

[Ayoshi]

Belgium officially opts for Lockheed Martin F-35A fighter jet | Air Recognition - 25 October 2018

This could have been another Belgian version of the Neverending story. Hopefully, it won’t. The last seven days were definitively critical for ACCaP. All started on October 17, when a restricted Council of Ministers (the "Kern") was briefed by the ACCaP experts team regarding potential offsets offered by each contender. Lockheed Martin's F-35A was then unofficially considered as winning on all criterias, according to the Belgian news agency Belga.

Fierce criticism regarding F-35’s expected selection as winning bidder have directly arisen, both from opposites parties and from French newspapers. So much so that Charles Michel and the Belgian MoD decided to details the experts’ opinion regarding each aircraft.

After months of twists and turns, a second “Kern” yesterday again confirmed Lockheed Martin’s selection as preferred bidder. The official decision was confirmed today by the country’s government, putting an end to a long, harsh, disputed process.

[adroth]

South Korean F-35

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=496128067461880&id=100011940726804

[adroth]

Australia prepares to receive F-35As

https://www.janes.com/article/84987/australia-prepares-to-receive-f-35a?utm_campaign=CL_%20Jane%27s%20360-Dec-5-2018_PC5308_e-production_E-21646_KP_1205_0500&utm_medium=email&utm_source=Eloqua

[Ayoshi]

New USAF squadron to house Dutch and Danish F-35A fighter jets | Air Recognition - 05 December 2018 16:06

The 308th Fighter Squadron was reactivated in a ceremony at Luke Air Force Base, Nov. 30. The squadron will house the Royal Netherlands Air Force’s and the Royal Danish Air Force’s F-35A Lightning IIs, in a training partnership. With Lt. Col. Robert Miller assuming command, the fighter squadron is scheduled to begin operations in December 2018.

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Throughout the next two years, the Dutch and the Danish air forces will be sending their jets to populate the squadron and help Luke AFB’s mission of training the world’s greatest fighter pilots.

The Royal Netherlands air force F-35A Lightning II lifts off for its first flight Dec. 18, 2013, from Eglin Air Force Base, Fla. (Credit: U.S. Air Force/Samuel King Jr.)

[Ayoshi]

Netherlands to buy 15 more F-35A Lightning II stealth fighters | Air Recognition - 17 December 2018 14:09

On 14 December, The Netherlands pledged to buy more F-35 fighter jets and strengthen its special forces and cyber capabilities. "Extra investment in defense is a necessity because our surrounding safety zone has become a more instable place," the Defense Ministry said. "There are more threats to contend with and threats have become more complex," it. The F-35A comes with a current price tag of $89.2 million (78.9 million euros), according to Lockheed Martin.

[Ayoshi]

Singapore shortlists F-35 for F-16 replacement programme | Janes - 18 January 2019

The announcement comes after a five-year technical evaluation by the RSAF and the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), which is the country’s defence procurement authority.

However, the ministry stopped short of declaring a confirmed buy, instead noting that further evaluation would be necessary before it proceeds with a full-scale acquisition.

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The RSAF is believed to operate about 20 F-16C and 40 F-16D Block 52/52+ aircraft, which were acquired in the 1990s and believed to be optimised with Israeli-built electronic countermeasures (ECM) systems. The D variants are optimised for the electronic warfare (EW) role. The service also operates 40 Boeing F-15SG multirole combat aircraft.

[Ayoshi]

Singapore to place initial buy of four F-35 JSFs for further evaluation | Janes - 01 March 2019

Singapore will place an initial order for four F-35 Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters (JSFs) for further testing, with the option of acquiring a subsequent eight, defence minister Ng Eng Hen announced in his Ministry of Defence (MINDEF) Committee of Supply debate speech in parliament on 1 March.

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Ng told parliament that that MINDEF will issue a Letter of Request (LOR) to the US government, although he did not specify when. According to the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA), the LOR is an action that formally begins the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) process.

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Ng noted that the life-cycle costs of a JSF fleet - albeit without mentioning the specific numbers or platform variants that will be acquired - will be similar to the expenditure for the Republic of Singapore Air Force's (RSAF's) F-15SG programme. He also pointed out that the current unit price of the F-35 platform, which ranges from USD90-115 million per aircraft, is comparable to that of the Boeing F-15SG.

[Ayoshi]

Top US general warns against selling Turkey F-35 | Janes - 06 March 2019

Tensions between Washington and Ankara ratcheted up after NATO's supreme allied commander US General Curtis Scaparrotti warned that if Turkey deploys the Russian S-400 air defence system, the US should not deliver Lockheed Martin's F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) to the nation.

Appearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee on 5 March, Gen Scaparrotti briefed lawmakers about the challenges he faces in Europe, threats from Russia, and the upcoming decision on whether to deliver F-35 aircraft to Turkey as planned. On the latter topic, the four-star general did not equivocate: if Ankara fields the S-400, then Washington should not hand over the new aircraft and should consider prohibiting the nation from buying other military technologies.

[Ayoshi]

US halts F-35-related deliveries to Turkey as S-400 row escalates | Janes - 02 April 2019

The move, reported by Reuters and subsequently confirmed by the US Department of Defense (DoD) on 1 April, is the latest in a series of attempts by Washington to dissuade Turkey from procuring the S-400 over concerns that networking the Russian system into NATO's wider air defence system would expose the F-35 to an unacceptable security risk. Turkey is expected to receive the S-400 in July.

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Turkey is a Tier 3 partner in the international F-35 programme, with plans to acquire up to 100 of the conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) F-35A to replace its Lockheed Martin F-16 Fighting Falcons. It reportedly plans to field approximately 20 short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) F-35Bs, although it is unclear if these will form part of the wider programme-of-record or if they will be in addition to it.

To date, the Turkish Air Force (TuAF) has received two F-35As, which remain at Luke Air Force Base (AFB) in the US as part of the wider international training fleet. They are not due to be flown to their future home operating base at Malatya-Erhac until 2020.

[Ayoshi]

Lockheed Martin awarded USD 151.2Mn contract for Norwegian and Australian F-35s | Air Recognition - 03 April 2019 11:42

Lockheed Martin is being awarded a $151,287,000 fixed-price-incentive-firm modification to a previously awarded advance acquisition contract. This modification provides for the procurement of long-lead items for the manufacture and delivery of 21 F-35 Lightning II Lot 14 low-rate initial production aircraft for the governments of Australia (15) and Norway (6).

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International partner funds in the amount of $151,287,000 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract combines purchase for the governments of Australia ($108,170,000; 71 %); and Norway ($43,117,000; 29 %) under a cooperative agreement. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Maryland, is the contracting activity.

[Ayoshi]

https://www.janes.com/article/88722/south-korea-s-f-35-offset-programme-under-fire

South Korea's F-35 offset programme under fire
22 May 2019

South Korea's Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) has criticised the administration of defence offsets linked with the country's acquisition of Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters from the United States.

The BIA said on 21 May that in an audit carried out into the F-35 offset programme it found that South Korea's military procurement agency, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), did not comply with relevant laws and regulations in negotiating the offset programme.

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In September 2014 South Korea announced a deal to procure 40 F-35 fighters in a Foreign Military Sale (FMS) deal worth about KRW7.3 trillion (USD6.1 billion). The first two of these aircraft arrived in South Korea in late March.

US and DAPA officials have previously confirmed to Jane's that a central part of the offset deal linked to the F-35 acquisition is the transfer of more than 20 suites of advanced aerospace technologies, many of which are geared towards supporting South Korea's programme to develop its Korean Fighter Experimental (KFX) 4.5-generation fighter aircraft.

[Ayoshi]

https://www.janes.com/article/89400/paris-air-show-2019-lockheed-martin-confirms-f-35a-for-finland-s-hx

Paris Air Show 2019: Lockheed Martin confirms F-35A for Finland’s HX
20 June 2019

Lockheed Martin has confirmed that the company is submitting the F-35A Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter to replace Finland’s fleet of Boeing F/A-18C/D Hornets in a programme known as HX.

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Finland is currently evaluating other bids for the programme including: the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler; a package from Saab that includes the Gripen E, Gripen F, and GlobalEye; Dassault Rafale; and Eurofighter Typhoon.

[Ayoshi]

Why North Korea Fears the F-35 Stealth Fighter | The National Interest - July 29, 2019

This was Korean Central News Agency jargon for an eye-for-an-eye: the North isn’t going to sit passively and allow the F-35 acquisition to proceed without a response.

The obvious question is why Pyongyang is so petrified of the South Koreans owning and operating this particular aircraft.  Two reasons may help explain the anger from North Korean officials.

The first is political. While it’s impossible to get inside Kim’s head, the North Korean dictator likely perceives the deployment of the F-35 on South Korean soil as a direct violation of the June 2018 Singapore statement and the September 2018 demilitarization agreement between the two Koreas—both of which were prefaced on all parties gradually replacing the historical antagonism of six decade-plus with a more constructive relationship. Trump and Kim signed their names to a non-binding, two-page piece of paper whose first bullet point were committing to the establishment of “new U.S.–DPRK relations in accordance with the desire of the peoples of the two countries for peace and prosperity.”  Three months later, Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in put pen to paper on a more comprehensive de-escalation arrangement—the top objective of which was the North and South stopping “all hostile acts against each other in every domain, including land, air and sea that are the source of military tension and conflict.” 

In a sense, Washington and Seoul both promised Pyongyang that measures would be taken to plant the seeds of a more stable, equitable, and respectful partnership even before a denuclearization accord was completed. Trump’s in-person summits with Kim, as well as President Moon’s inter-Korean initiatives throughout 2018, were designed in part to convince the North Korean leadership that the U.S. and South Korean governments were genuine in throwing out the old and bringing in the new. With South Korean pilots now in the cockpit of the world’s most technologically sophisticated aircraft, it doesn’t take a doctorate in North Korean studies to comprehend why Kim would interpret this as a hostile and duplicitous double-cross. Whether Washington and Seoul agree with the interpretation is irrelevant; to Pyongyang, the feeling is very real.

The second factor driving Kim’s animus is more practical: the F-35 is a damn impressive plane.  While the aircraft had its history of cost overruns and disappointments throughout the testing and development phase, the F-35 is second to none in terms of its versatility in the air. Its stealth features are the best in the world, which means adversarial air defense systems that are ordinarily second-rate will be reduced to shooting blind.  According toLockeed Martin, the maker of the F-35, “combination of the stealth features, active electronically-scanned array (AESA) radar technology, and the aircraft’s ability to carry its full component of weapons stores and fuel internally allows F-35 pilots to engage ground targets at longer ranges without being detected and tracked…”  For North Korea, a country that relies on over 13,000 dug-in artillery pieces a few dozen miles from Seoul as compensation for an antiquated conventional army, this kind of stealth capability is highly dangerous.

https://nationalinterest.org/blog/korea-watch/why-north-korea-fears-f-35-stealth-fighter-69871

[Ayoshi]

https://www.janes.com/article/91804/netherlands-to-buy-nine-more-f-35s

Netherlands to buy nine more F-35s
09 October 2019

The RNLAF polices Dutch airspace and, at the same time, must be prepared to send four aircraft on longer missions, the MoD pointed out, adding that nine more aircraft would substantially reduce the burden on personnel during these missions. This will also reduce the number of flight hours each aircraft flies and allow the Netherlands to deploy more quickly during crises, according to the ministry.

The Netherlands plans to buy nine more F-35s, bringing the total to 46. (Lockheed Martin)