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| TC-90 KingAir (Image: Wiki Commons) |
By: Jill Aitoro
LE BOURGET, France — As part of Japan’s strategy to expand defense exports, it’s looking to the United States to take part in a cooperation for the resale of used aircraft to Southeast Asia.
The prospect follows initial success from Japan’s decision to lease TC-90 aircraft to the Philippines to conduct maritime patrols, which were reportedly used during the recent battle against Islamic State militants. Overseeing that program was Takahiro Yoshida, director of the Aircraft Project Management division in the Acquisition, Technology and Logistics Agency at the Japanese Ministry of Defense, who estimated eight visits to the Philippines in the process.
“We want to further explore opportunities for providing used aircraft to ASEAN countries with package support. I cannot name the exact countries, but we have a dialogue with several and want to explore possibilities of trilateral cooperation with the U.S., Japan and ASEAN countries,” Yoshida said in an exclusive interview with Defense News at Paris Air Show. “TC-90s are gone — already sold. So we’re now exploring other components from used helicopters and other used aircraft.”
(ASEAN, or the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is an international organization made up of regional countries meant for community-building.)
That is one of many strategies to build a defense manufacturing market, perhaps outshined by the current state of Japan’s fighter program. Yoshida said Japan is “having discussions with many countries” as the time quickly approaches for deciding how it will replace the F-2 fighters: through an international buy, an indigenous development,or jointly partnering with other countries.
Japan’s F-2s are going to retire after the mid-2030s. The country plans to decide by next summer how it will proceed for replacing the fleet. And China is factoring into the decision.
Read the full story at DefenseNews