21 February 2009

Israel Balking at JSF Cost

The flyaway cost has gone from $50-60 million to something closer to $100 million, and the IAF is beginning to wonder if it is worth it, particularly since the electronic warfare and avionics systems are going to be locked up tightly, preventing the Israelis from customizing the aircraft to their needs.

Note that this is flyaway costs, which is the lowest measure of cost, so these budget numbers, which are still in flux, are only going to get worse.

I would also note that down the road, countries that want to upgrade their JSFs are going to get done like a 3 dollar whore by Lockheed Martin.

Update: We have these comments from a Israeli Air Force (IAF) chief procurement officer Brigadier-General Ze’ev Sni giving a $200 million price tag.

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