News Story: Allies Can Help US Lower Weapons Costs, Build New Force

RAAF E-7A Wedgetail refueled by A RAAF KC-30A MRTT

By ROBBIN LAIRD

Shifting from a primary focus on counterinsurgency land wars to building a high intensity combat force able to prevail against peer competitors is a significant challenge for the United States and its closest allies after 15 years of COIN.

A key dynamic within this effort is the crucial opportunity the US and its closest allies have to learn from each other thanks to the number of core weapon systems being bought at the same time.

The F-35, P-8, Triton and Growler are all being bought by the United States and by some of our closest allies, notably Australia.

And when we see American F-35As going to RAF Lakenheath this month, what can be missed is that at RAF Marham — located less than 30 miles from RAF Lakenheath — the first British squadron of F-35s will be stood up BEFORE the US does so at RAF Lakenheath. One hopes the US plans to ensure it gets as much synergy as possible between the bases where F-35s will be based in the UK.

Norway is also drawing upon this interactive modernization process to stand up its own 21st century combat force.

At the same time, Australia’s Wedgetail command and control aircraft and its KC-30A airborne tanker have been deployed for some time and are cutting edge systems NOT found in the US inventory.

Additionally, the British RAF is modernizing its Typhoons with long-range strike systems that are complementary to the F-35Bs, and they are doing it before the US has made similar adjustments to its legacy aircraft.

Read the full story at Breaking Defense

News Story: Indonesian air force considering F-5 replacement plans

JAS39 Gripen (One of the  potential replacement fighters)

by Ryan Maass

Indonesia's competition to replace its aging fleet of F-5E Tiger II fighter jets is still open, the country's air force chief said.

The announcement was made by Air Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto, who was sworn in as Indonesia's air force chief last week. According to The Diplomat, the country's government is considering the Russian Sukhoi Su-35, the U.S. F-16 Block 60 Viper, and the Swedish JAS39 Gripen to replace the F-5s.

"We are looking to replace the F5 Tiger after the jets have been grounded for at least a year," Tjahjanto told Quwa. "The Air Force is still looking for a potential replacement."

Read the full story at SpaceDaily

News Report: India, China Facing Off in Military Cooperation Race in SE Asia

A Vietnamese SU-30MK2 Flanker Fighter

Indian specialists will train Vietnamese pilots to fly Russian Su-30MK2 fighter planes. In a commentary for Sputnik China, Moscow-based military expert Vasily Kashin said this will add a new dimension to the defense cooperation between India and Vietnam.

India has long been trying to step up its military and technical cooperation with Vietnam in a bid to play a bigger role in Southeast Asia. 

“In 2013 India started training crews for Project 6361 submarines Vietnam was buying in Russia and, judging from media reports, New Delhi will soon be selling BrahMos anti-ship missiles to Hanoi,” Kashin told Sputnik China.

The SU30-MKI fighter jets used by the Indian Air Force differ from the less sophisticated SU-30MK2s Vietnamese pilots fly on in that they have forward horizontal fins and variable thrust engines.

News Story: Battle formation of British aircraft carriers, fighter jets to be deployed in South China Sea

A computer graphic of the Queen Elizabeth carrier group
(Image: Wiki Commons)

United Kingdom’s ambassador to the US, Kim Darroch, revealed a military force’s battle formation of British fighter jets and aircraft carriers will be deployed in the South China Sea by the year 2020, RT reports.

Darroch told a Washington-based think tank that UK Typhoon jets currently in Japan would likely overfly the region, with the UK’s yet-to-be-completed Queen Elizabeth class aircraft carriers that would be operating in the area by 2020.

Read the full story at Tankler

News Report: US, S. Korea, UK Invincible Shield Drills to Take Place in Korea on Nov. 4-10

Eurofighter Typhoon

Trilateral military exercises with participation of servicemen from the United Kingdom, the United States and South Korea are expected to start at the Korean Peninsula on Friday and to last until November 10.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The first drills with participation of the three countries dubbed Invincible Shield were announced in September and were aimed at training in countering Pyongyang in the event of a war on the Korean peninsula.

According to the South Korean Air Force, the servicemen from the three countries will hold the drills at the Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek located south of the country's capital. 

South Korean media reported that the United Kingdom would send Eurofighter Typhoon combat jets, Voyager tanker aircraft and C-17 Globemaster transport aircraft to participate in the drills, the United States would be represented by F-16 fighter jets, while the host nation would participate in the drills using the F-15K and KF-16 fighters.

This story first appeared on Sputnik & is reposted here with permission.

News Story: Indonesian Fighter Requirements Aired at Local Show

by David Donald

Indonesia has outlined a need for up to 200 new fighters over the next 15 years to meet its minimum force ambitions. Most pressing is the need to replace 14 Squadron’s elderly Northrop F-5E/Fs, and funding has been allocated for that in the current (2015-2019) five-year spending plan. Although selection of the Sukhoi Su-35 has been “announced,” no contract has been signed, and Western manufacturers have good reason to believe that it is still an open competition.

Apart from the merits and costs of the aircraft themselves, an important consideration is Indonesia’s Law 16, which calls for the development of the country’s own aerospace/defense industry and governs the conditions under which foreign companies can compete, including the need to provide 35 percent of the contract value in direct offsets and 50 percent indirectly.

At the Indodefence show in Jakarta this week Eurofighter, Lockheed Martin and Saab outlined their offers. Eurofighter, represented by Airbus, is offering the latest AESA-equipped Typhoon and is emphasizing its swing-role capability. This year Airbus celebrates 40 years of collaboration with Indonesia’s airframer, PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI), which has resulted in licensed production and co-development of helicopters and transport aircraft. Airbus sees an industrial share in the Typhoon program as a logical next step, and could even set up a final assembly line at PTDI’s Bandung facility if selected.

Read the full story at AINonline

News Story: UK and Japan air forces kick off first ever bilateral exercise

The Royal Air Force (UK) and Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) on Monday Oct. 23 kicked-off exercise "Guardian North 16", which is the first bilateral drill JASDF conducted with another foreign military, excluding the U.S., local media reported.

Four Typhoon fighter aircraft, flown by No 2 (AC) Squadron pilots from RAF Lossiemouth, arrived at Japan Air Self Defense Force (JASDF) Misawa Air Base, in the northern part of the island of Honshu on Saturday, Oct. 22.

An RAF Voyager from RAF Brize Norton, crewed by No 10 and 01 Squadrons, provided air-to-air refuelling during the 3,500 mile (5,600 km) non-stop flight from Malaysia.

Read the full story at Air Recognition

News Story: No real alternative to JSF - (Australian) Senate panel

Max Blenkin

The controversial F-35A Lightning Joint Strike Fighter is expensive and running late but there's no real alternative available to meet the RAAF's needs for an advanced combat aircraft, a Senate committee says.

However, it recommends that Defence adopt a "hedging strategy" to be implemented by 2019 at the latest in case further JSF delays raise the risk of a capability gap between the retirement of older RAAF aircraft and entry to service of the JSF.

In a report tabled in the Senate on Thursday, the foreign affairs, defence and trade committee said it received evidence criticising the JSF, with some calling for its procurement to be cancelled.

Committee chairman Senator Alex Gallacher said the members were not convinced any of the suggested JSF alternatives were capable of meeting Australia's needs.

They included the Saab Gripen, Eurofighter Typhoon and Dassault Rafale.

Many suggested the US F-22 Raptor but the committee said the F-22 production line was closed and unlikely to reopen. And even if it did, US law prohibited foreign sales.

"Notwithstanding the criticisms, the committee is satisfied that the F-35A is the only aircraft able to meet Australia's strategic needs for the foreseeable future, and that sufficient progress is being made in the test and evaluation program to address performance issues of concern," Senator Gallacher told the Senate.

Read the full story at news.com.au

News Story: After Indian Success, France Targets Malaysia For Rafale Jet Sales

Fresh from signing a contract to supply 36 Dassault Rafale jets to India, France is looking at Malaysia as the next possible buyer of its multi-role fighter.

Malaysia and Canada have competitions to acquire new fighter aircraft in which Dassault is a bidder but Dassault CEO Eric Trappier is more optimistic on the Asian country. Talking about the chances of the Rafale in future competitions where it would up against the American fighter jets such as the F-16 and F/A-18 Super Hornet, Trappier was quoted as saying by a French publication, Challenges, “we are not like America, we have to build a good plane.”

Reading between the lines of Trappier’s statement, is an admission of American political pressure for countries to buy its aircraft and that for the French to compete in such an environment their aircraft has to be better than the competition.

Read the full story at DefenseWorld

News Story: Airbus pushes A400M and Eurofighters in Indonesia

Airbus A400M Atlas

A team from Airbus Defence and Space, a unit of the Airbus Group, is in town this week to push for the sales of its products, including its signature A400M airlifter and the Eurofighter Typhoon heavy fighter, as Indonesia is looking to boost its weapons systems and diversify its sources.

Fernando Alonso, the head of the military aircraft division at Airbus Defence and Space, is meeting with top ministers, including Coordinating Political, Legal and Human Affairs Minister Wiranto, Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan and State Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno. He will also make a visit to PT Dirgantara Indonesia (DI) in Bandung, West Java, the Indonesian state-owned aircraft maker that has a long history of collaboration with Spain’s CASA, which was absorbed by the Airbus Group in 2000.

Alonso said the Airbus unit he heads is already in the process of delivering the twin-turboprop tactical military transport C295 aircraft to Indonesia, which are partly built in Bandung.

Read the full story at The Jakarta Post

Editorial: A Coming Shift in Vietnamese Military Aviation?

By Robert Farley

Vietnam’s People’s Air Force (VPAF) could begin flying Western fighters. Here’s why that matters.

If Vietnam buys the Gripen, Typhoon, or Rafale, what exactly will it be getting?

As several other writers have noted, the acquisition of Western aircraft (most likely the Gripen, Rafale, or Typhoon) would represent a huge shift in Vietnam’s defense trajectory. Vietnam hasn’t flown a Western warplane since the Vietnamese People’s Army overran Saigon, capturing 41 F-5 Tigers in the process. The Tigers that didn’t end up in the Soviet Union or the Eastern Bloc were soon grounded for lack of spares.

To be sure, Vietnam has experience with modern jet fighters, currently flying a few dozen advanced Flanker variants purchased from Russia. These aircraft are far more capable than the older MiG-21s that make up the bulk of the Vietnam People’s Air Force (VPAF), but they remain Soviet kit. Any European aircraft will require what amounts to a revolution in maintenance, spares, weapons, and handling procedures.

Thus, the sale would likely represent a long-term relationship between Vietnam and whatever country is lucky enough to get the sale. It would likely require some technology transfer (especially if Vietnam can generate a competitive bidding process), the presence of engineers and maintenance personnel on the ground, and a long training regimen. The aircraft will (undoubtedly) return to the host country for periodic upgrades and overhauls as new weapon and software systems become available.

Read the full story at The Diplomat

Editorial: Great Britain and Japan to Deepen Defense Cooperation

Image: Flickr User - UK in Japan- FCO

By Franz-Stefan Gady

London and Tokyo aim to tighten their defense relations in 2016.

Japan and the United Kingdom are seeking to deepen defense cooperation in 2016 including possible joint military exercises and pushing ahead with the development of a new air-to-air missile, according to U.K. Defense Secretary, Michael Fallon, who visited Japan in the first week of January.

“Japan is our closest security partner in Asia and I want to significantly deepen defense cooperation between our two nations,” Fallon said in a joint press release. “We will do that through joint exercises, reciprocal access to our military bases, military personnel exchanges and cooperation on equipment, including a new air-to-air missile.”

The British defense secretary was in Tokyo on January 8, alongside Britain’s Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond, meeting with his Japanese counterpart, Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani.

Among other things, both sides are now investigating the possibility of a joint combat jet exercise involving Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft of the Royal Air Force in Japan, following a Five Powers Defense Arrangement Exercise in 2016.

Read the full story at The Diplomat

Editorial: Can Eurofighter Beat Its Competition on the Asian Market?

By Benjamin David Baker

The Typhoon is a good fighter but faces keen competition in Asian markets.

The Diplomat has recently been writing a series on the prospects of combat aircraft sales in the Pacific states. I’ve earlier covered French Dassault’s Rafale, U.S. Boeing’s F/A-18 Super Hornet, and Sweden’s Saab’s Gripen. Robert Farley and myself have also written about the development and prospects for fifth-generation stealth aircraft in the region.

The Eurofighter Typhoon is another platform that is attempting to gain ground in Asia. Eurofighter is a consortium made up of Italian Alenia Aermacchi, European Airbus, and Britain’s BAE Systems, making it a truly European fighter. In service since 2003, the Tyhoon is the main multirole fighter of the U.K., Germany, Italy, Austria, and Spain, and has been exported to Oman and Saudi Arabia.

The aircraft has proven its combat worthiness, at least in a ground-attack capacity. In 2011, British Typhoons flew several ground attack sorties on Muammar Gaddafi’s forces during Operation Ellamy, reportedly destroying over 100 Libyan tanks and military vehicles. Italian Typhoons also participated in the operation, albeit in an aerial combat patrol capacity.

So far, the Typhoon has yet to find any buyers in South Asia or the Pacific region. This has not been for a lack of trying: Eurofighter has entered ultimately failed bids to sell the aircraft to India, Japan, South Korea, and Singapore. In each of these cases, the Typhoon lost out to its competitors (India selected a limited order of Rafales, Japan went for the F-35, and Seoul and Singapore went for varieties of Boeing’s F-15).

However, this does not mean that Eurofighter has given up on the Asian market. Several Southeast Asian states are either planning to or are in the process of,updating their combat aircraft. Indonesia and Malaysia are both in the process of replacing their aging F-5s and MiG-29s respectively. Both states have stated an interest in the Typhoon. Interestingly, there are some rumors that Vietnam is also considering buying western military hardware, possibly including the Typhoon.

Read the full story at The Diplomat

Editorial: What Are Boeing’s Prospects for the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet in Asia?

Australian F/A-18F Super Hornet (File Photo)

By Benjamin David Baker

With competition from both foreign and other U.S. companies, can the tried and tested Super Hornet stay in the game?

As the Diplomat has noted recently, the Asia-Pacific has become an important market for modern military aircraft. Companies from countries such as France, Sweden, Russia, and China have been attempting to sell their platforms to a range of states in the region (seehere and here for Beijing’s Asian aircraft bids). Several states, including Indonesia, Malaysia and India, are either planning to or are in the process of acquiring modern fighter jets.

U.S. companies have a long and established position in this market. This has partially been for political purposes. During the Cold War, many states bought American kit out of necessity as much as quality, as there were few other acceptable sellers available (the French company Dassault being an important exception).

U.S. companies are still among the top suppliers of Asian air forces. Today, however, economic considerations are becoming increasingly important and U.S hardware is often prohibitively expensive. As such, it is possible to identify two broad categories of military combat aircraft: cutting edge, “fifth generation” aircraft, and conventional “fourth generation” platforms.

In the first category, the U.S. still holds an important advantage. Lockheed-Martin’s controversial F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has attracted both confirmed and potential buyers in the Pacific, such as Australia, Singapore, Japan, and South Korea. (Although the latter two are developing their own, indigenously-designed fifth generation birds, the Mitsubishi ATD-X Shinshin and the Korea Aerospace Industries’ KF-X.)

In the second category, U.S. models are facing a more level playing field. Modern Russian jets such as the Sukhoi Su-35, so-called “Eurocanards” represented by the Eurofighter Typhoon, Saab Gripen, and Dassault Rafale, and even the joint Sino-Pakistani JF-17 Thunder, represent tough competition for U.S. fighters.

One of the United States’ main contenders for this market is Boeing’s F/A-18E Super Hornet. Originally deployed back in 1999, the Super Hornet is today the mainstay of both the U.S. Navy and the Australian Air Force, with over 500 aircraft fielded in total.

Read the full story at The Diplomat

Editorial: This Fighter Might Replace Indonesia's Aging F-5 Fighters (Hint: Not the Su-35)

Saab’s JAS 39 Gripen

By Benjamin David Baker

Sweden’s Saab recently unveiled a new bid to gain access to Indonesia’s fighter market. Can it beat the Russian favorite?

Indonesia is currently in the process of updating a part of its eclectic mix of military aircraft. The three platforms which represent Jakarta’s most formidable airborne capability are the U.S. General Dynamics (GD) F-16, Russian Sukhoi-27, and Sukhoi-30MK. The Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU) reflects the country’s recent history international relations, operating a mixed bag of Russian, U.S., Brazilian, and European aircraft.

Since its independence in 1945, the country has fielded aircraft from both sides of the Iron Curtain, often reflecting its political alignment. In 1986s, Indonesia purchased a batch of F-16s, intended to supplement its fleet of F-5E Tigers. However, after the U.S. imposed sanctions following Jakarta’s involvement in the 1999 East Timor independence, these quickly dilapidated due to a lack of spare parts. As a result, the TNI-AU acquired Russian jets. Together with the F-16s, which were modernized after Washington lifted sanctions in 2005, these aircraft still form the mainstay of Indonesia’s aerial combat fleet.

As previously reported by the Diplomat, Indonesia has been looking to beef up its aerial combat capabilities. For its long term needs, Indonesia has signed up to South Korea’s KF-X program, an ambitious project aimed at providing Seoul and Jakarta with a “4,5 generation fighter.” This fighter is supposed to fill a role between the F-16 currently fielded by both states, and the F-35, which has been deemed a too expensive option. Indonesia currently has a 20 percent stake in the project, and is expected to deploy 80 KF-Xs by 2030. (South Korea owns the remaining 80 percent and is expected to field 120.)

Read the full story at The Diplomat

News Story: Le Drian Talks Rafale but Not Mistral in Malaysia

By Pierre Tran

PARIS — French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian talked about the Rafale fighter jet but did not pitch the Mistral helicopter carrier in meetings in Malaysia with his counterpart, Hishammuddin Hussein, a defense official here said Tuesday.

Le Drian has not visited India on his way back to France, the official said. A visit to India had been planned, French website La Tribune had reported.

“The minister talked about the Rafale offer” in Malaysia, the official said. “The Mistral was not part of the discussion.”

Le Drian flew into a Malaysian airbase  on Monday with a high-level parliamentary and industry team, dubbed the French export team, and went on to meet Prime Minister Najib Razak and Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein.

Le Drian and Hishammuddin took part in a meeting of the French-Malaysian Joint Defense Committee.

Malaysia is looking at the Dassault Rafale and affordability is a key issue.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

Think Tank: Sea, air and land updates (11-Aug-2015)

Mercedes Page, Zoe Hawkins and Alice Slevison

Sea State

Last week Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced a new $89 billion domestic shipbuilding program, which includes the continuous build of surface warships in Adelaide. Here on The Strategist, Andrew Davies and Mark Thomson called the proposed plan ‘bold on two fronts’ and have questioned the soundness of a continuous build program. On the other hand, Peter Jennings welcomed the decision to create a ‘larger and more capable surface fleet’. Strategist contributor Sam Bateman thinks we should take a broader view, and over at The Interpreter James Goldrick considers some of the misconceptions of Australian naval shipbuilding.

Last week the US Navy detailed plans for its new Offensive Anti-Surface Warfare Increment II program. Over at The National Interest Zachary Keck reports that a 2017 start date will see the program replace the USN’s Boeing RGM-84 Harpoon with a more sophisticated anti-ship missile. Keck reports that the program is allegedly being motivated ‘being motivated by the growing anti-ship missile gap between the United States and countries like China.’ Watch the announcement here.

Maritime disputes in the South China Sea were front and centre at the 48th ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Kuala Lumpur last week. When asked whether China would halt land reclamation activities in the contested region, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi replied, ‘China has already stopped. You just take an aeroplane to take a look.’ Despite Wang’s remarks, Bonnie Glaser over at the CSIS’s Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative points out that China actually hasn’t stopped construction or militarisation of existing land features.

Editorial: Confirmed - India’s 'Mother of All Defense Deals' Is Dead

By Franz-Stefan Gady

New Delhi will, however, issue a new Request for Proposal (RFP) for the purchase of 90 fighter jets very soon.

It is official now: The Indian government has cancelled its $12 billion program to purchase 126 medium multi-role combat aircraft (MMRCA), according to Defense News.

“The RFP issued earlier for procurement of 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) has been withdrawn. In this multi-vendor procurement case, the Rafale aircraft met all the performance characteristics stipulated in the Request for Proposal (RFP) during the evaluation conducted by Indian Air Force,” a July 30 press release circulated by the Indian Ministry of Defense stated.

The statement provided no additional reasons for the program’s cancellation, although the announcement comes as no surprise to observers. Pricing differences as well as the inability to come to a mutually satisfactory arrangement over the question of technological transfers, as well doubts over India’s ability to build the plane locally, were the likely main causes for the withdrawal of the RFP.

As I reported back in June (See: “India to Buy Only 36 Rafale Jets”), the price tag for $20 billion MMRCA project went up 2.7 times from the original cost proposal, according to Indian press reports.

Read the full story at The Diplomat

News Story: Indian Rafale Cost Criticism Raises Doubts on MMRCA

By Pierre Tran and Vivek Raghuvanshi

PARIS and NEW DELHI — India's criticism of a high price tag on the Dassault Rafale has sharpened public focus on French negotiations to extend sale of the twin-jet fighter beyond a planned 36 units for the Indian Air Force.

Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar fueled speculation about the final size of the Rafale order May 31 when he said the French fighters were "way too expensive" and there was no longer a plan to buy a total of 126 Rafales.

But Dassault Aviation Chairman Eric Trappier said the 126-jet deal "is under discussion," although he admitted progress is slow.

"The Indian Air Force needs many more than 36 planes," Trappier told Defense News.

"There is an immediate need for 36. The negotiations for 126 are rather slow.

"They have an urgent operational requirement which does not allow time needed to set up the license, so they asked for 36 quickly," said the Dassault boss.

India has been negotiating to buy 126 Rafales under the Medium Multirole Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) program after beating the Eurofighter Typhoon to selection in 2012.

Read the full story at DefenseNews

Editorial: Confirmed - India to Buy Only 36 Rafale Fighter Jets

By Franz-Stefan Gady

Is the ‘mother of all defense deals’ finally dead?

Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar confirmed on Sunday that India will only purchase 36 instead of 126 Rafale fighter jets from France, an announcement that appears to finally bury the much hyped “mother of all defense deals” for good.

The 126 Rafale aircraft are “way too expensive” and “economically unviable and not required,” the defense minister told local press over the weekend. Purchasing the fighters would have been “a very steep slope to climb financially (…) we are not buying the rest. We are only buying the … 36,” Parrikar added.

Yet India could still purchase an additional 20 Rafale jets at a later stage, local media speculated recently. This was fueled by Parrikar’s statement to reporters last week that he is not definitely ruling out additional purchases: “I’m not saying we will buy more Rafale; I’m not saying we will not buy more.”

On Sunday, however, he made his strongest comments so far that the Indian defense budget won’t support the acquisition of a large new fleet of fighter aircraft: “I also feel like having a BMW and Mercedes. But I don’t because I can’t afford it. First I can’t afford it and second I don’t need it.”

According to Indian press reports, the price tag for the now-scrapped $20 billion MMRCA (medium multi-role combat aircraft) project went up “2.7 times” from the original cost proposal.

Read the full story at The Diplomat