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| An Australian F/A-18F Super Hornet (File Photo) |
By: Valerie Insinna
WASHINGTON — The State Department approved two potential high-profile fighter jet sales of up to 40 F/A-18E/F Super Hornets to Kuwait and 72 F-15QA planes to Qatar.
The sale would be a major coup for Boeing, which manufactures both planes and has banked on foreign sales to extend the life of its fighter jet lines into the 2020s.
The Kuwaiti deal is worth approximately $10.1 billion for 32 E-model Super Hornets, 8 F-models, their associated F414-GE-400 engines and spares, 41 AN/APG active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars and a slew of weapon systems, including 20mm guns, 240 guided missile launchers, 45 AN/ALR-67(V)3 radar warning receivers, 12 AN/AAQ-33 SNIPER advanced targeting pods, 48 Link-16 systems, eight conformal fuel tanks among others. The sale also includes associated support and logistics services.
The agreement with Qatar would bring in approximately $21.1 billion for the aircraft and their associated weapons systems, US-based training, maintenance support equipment, and logistics support, among other items. The country is considering splitting the 72-jet purchase between Boeing’s F-15 and the Eurofighter Typhoon.
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