Thread: Israel to finalize JSF purchase plans

Originally Posted by Blademaster

UK would completely flip!!!

Please spare us the theatrics. The UK is the only JSF partner that is expected to receive the right to maintain and repair all elements of the F-35 - including the stealth features and coating. Every other depot will need to return hardware to the US for repair or replacement of stealth features. In addition every USMC F-35B will include a lift fan produce by Rolls-Royce. The Meteor is expected to be integrated in later batches of the F-35, just not in the initial Blocks. The same can be said for Israeli weapons, none of which will be integrated with the JSF in time for the initial deliveries in 2015-2017. That's why the fins on the latest examples of the Meteor currently under test have been clipped: to allow them to fit inside the JSF weapons bays.

According to official JSF documents, UK industries (including BAE Systems, Rolls-Royce, and Smiths Aerospace among others), are expected to benefit from the F-35 program to the tune of $11.7 billion in revenue between 2002 and 2011, and to the tune of $31.7 billion in revenue between 2012 and 2026. The latter timescale has no doubt been stretched out due to program delays but the reality remains: UK industry stands to benefit from the JSF program to a degree that other participants will not.
JSF international industrial ... - Google Books

So just what are you complaining about? The UK has more industrial participation by far than any of the other JSF partner nations, and UK weapons are on the list for integration into the JSF - right after the US weapons packages. So why are you complaining?

The work package being offered to the Israelis was not offered through the F-35 Joint Program Office. It was offered by Lockheed Martin, to help ensure an Israeli buy. This was no accident. Saying that the Israelis bought your product means a lot more than saying that the RAF bought it.

If on the other hand, the Israelis had decided not to close a deal at this time and chose to buy an additional batch of F-15I or F-16I fighters instead, it would have sent a very clear message that the F-35 is not yet ready for prime time. You could expect to see the other JSF partner nations roll back their service introduction dates. We've already seen some of the partner nations cancel their LRIP orders for the F-35, choosing to wait instead until the airplane reaches full scale production (after the US has wrung out all of the major bugs in the system) before taking delivery of their first airplanes. If the Israelis had decided not to buy the F-35 at this time, the message would have been read that the F-35 will not be a mature enough product in 2015-2017 to waste your procurement funding on. This sale consequently meant a great deal to Lockheed. That's why they offered the generous incentives that they did.