The New Zealand Department of Defence will decide before the end of the year whether to proceed with a probable lease deal for Lockheed Martin F-16 fighters to replace the Royal New Zealand Air Force's (RNZAF) McDonnell Douglas A-4 Skyhawks, says defence minister Max Bradford. Negotiations are in progress.
An inspection of the aircraft has been completed and Bradford will shortly take a submission to the New Zealand Government for funding approval, say senior defence ministry officials. "We are pressing the Americans to do some things which help us and, hopefully, will help them with respect to the F-16 proposal," Bradford says.
Before the US offer, made in late July, the RNZAF had been working towards a replacement competition in 2001-2 for its 19 A-4s. The 28 F-16s are part of a batch withheld from Pakistan because of sanctions by the US Congress in response to Pakistan's nuclear weapons programme.
Bradford says that he intends to push the F-16 deal and a controversial proposal to acquire a third navy frigate, "-even though, from a political perspective, that-may be misunderstood by taxpayers. We are looking for the most innovative financing arrangements that help us, for the frigate and the F-16s," he says.
The F-16 has the potential to ensure that the RNZAF retains an "expeditionary" air capability and fits in with plans for the acquisition of a beyond visual range missile capability, a new precision guided munition (PGM), a replacement anti-shipping missile and fast-jet electronic warfare self protection.
Boeing has already briefed the RNZAF and New Zealand MoD officials on both the Joint Direct Attack Munition and the Harpoon for the PGM requirement, likely to be in the 2002-3 timeframe.
If the F-16 option is not taken up, the Saab Gripen is a clear contender for proposed RNZAF missions, according to a senior RNZAF source.
Source: Flight International
