The decision ends Israel Military Industries' chances of becoming the chief contractor for the upgrade of the second group of 48 F-4 Phantoms.
"Defense News" reports that Turkey's Ministry of Defense has decided that Turkish companies will upgrade the second group of 48 Turkish Air Force F-4 Phantoms. Israel Military Industries (IMI) upgraded the first group of 54 jets.
"Defense News" quotes a source in Ankara as saying that the decision ends IMI's chances of becoming the chief contractor for the upgrade of the second group of Phantoms. "We have the ability to manage the upgrade," said a senior Turkish procurement official. "In any event, the decision does not rule out the possibility of foreign technological support, if needed."
Turkey's Ministry of Defense, which is responsible for the upgrade program, recently notified the Undersecretariat for Defense Industries (SSM) that it would handle the Phantom upgrade. An SSM official said, "We asked to be responsible for the supervision and management of the program, in order to find local solutions, and that's what we're going to do."
A Turkish analyst said the most important aspect of the decision was that the Turkish government had decided to obtain local systems integration capabilities and end its dependence on foreign technology. "This is a wise step if Turkey wants to strengthen its domestic industry. However, it could also be too costly or slow down the upgrade work," he said.
Analysts estimate the cost for upgrading the second group of Phantoms at $500 million. The Turkish Air Force has already budgeted $400 million for the program.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on November 22, 2004
http://www.globes.co.il/
No Virgins - No Terror !©
