The American F-35 equips or has been ordered today by no less than 9 European air forces, while 3 others, Greece, Romania and the Czech Republic, have already announced their intention to provide it in the short or medium term. Not only will it become the most used aircraft in Europe, but it will form, for many air forces, the only aircraft in operation. To date, only 3 major European air forces have not announced their intention to acquire Lockheed-Martin's fighter-bomber: France, Sweden and Spain. It is now more than likely that Paris and Stockholm will continue alone…
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Italy is giving itself the means but is struggling to find the military for its new defense ambitions
The increase in appropriations devoted to defense had been one of Giorgia Meloni's campaign commitments, with the stated ambition of bringing the Italian defense effort to 2% by the end of the decade, against 1,51 .2023% in XNUMX. And in fact, speaking to the Senate earlier this week, the now Prime Minister of the country confirmed that she intended to strictly apply her campaign commitments in this area, and this in a perfectly open manner. and assumed. She was referring here to the increase in the budget of the armies granted by the previous coalition which was done in the most discreet way possible, so as to...
Read the articleAre “light” fighters destined to disappear?
It is now official, the Rafale has the preference of the Colombian authorities to replace its armed fighter fleet today with Israeli Kfir fighters. Although it is not, strictly speaking, an order for 16 new aircraft, Colombia is now in exclusive negotiations with Dassault Aviation and the French authorities to give substance to it, after having publicly estimated that the Rafale was "the best option for the country in terms of price, efficiency and operability", while being 30% cheaper to use than the Kfir currently in service. With this likely success, the Rafale would exceed the number of aircraft exported for the Mirage 2000 with…
Read the articleThe electronic warfare version of the Typhoon for the Luftwaffe far less ambitious than expected
In March of this year, the German Chancellery and the Ministry of Defense confirmed the forthcoming order for 35 F-35A combat aircraft from the American Lockheed-Martin to carry out nuclear sharing missions within the framework of NATO, in order to to replace the Tornado dedicated to this mission since the end of the 80s within the Luftwaffe, as well as about fifteen Typhoons, in an electronic warfare version and suppression of enemy anti-aircraft defenses, in order to replace the Typhoon ECR still in service. This announcement was made as part of the €100 billion envelope announced on February 27 following the offensive…
Read the article6 recurring but erroneous statements around the SCAF next-generation aircraft program
Announced in 2017 shortly after Emmanuel Macron's arrival at the Elysée for his first term, the SCAF program, for Future Air Combat System, represents one of the two main pillars, along with the MGCS program, of France's ambition -Germany developed on this date to strengthen European strategic autonomy in the field of defense around strategic industrial cooperation between the two countries. Since then, the program has integrated Spain within it, but has above all been marked by growing and increasingly divisive tensions between Paris and Berlin, more particularly between the industrialists of the two countries, in particular around the first and main 7 pillars…
Read the articleHow will collaborative drones disrupt the combat aircraft market?
Since its arrival on the international combat aircraft market some fifteen years ago, Lockheed-Martin's F-35 Lighting II has largely won the lion's share of international competitions, with firm orders from no less than 14 air forces outside the United States. And the dynamic does not seem to want to dry up, with many other countries, therefore 5 European countries (Germany, Spain, Greece, Czech Republic and Romania) having announced their intention to equip themselves with it in the short or medium term. In many cases, the American aircraft has won after a competition between it and other American fighters and…
Read the articleThe hypothesis of the F-35 in Spain grows on the tensions around the SCAF program
On the occasion of the International Fighter Conference in London 2021, a confidence of an executive director of Lockheed-Martin to the specialized magazine Défense Janes caused a certain stir within the SCAF program bringing together Germany, Spain and France for the design of the replacement for the Rafale and Typhoon combat aircraft, as well as its adjoining systems, by 2040. According to the reference magazine, Madrid had indeed undertaken to negotiate discreetly with the American manufacturer the acquisition of 50 F -35, 25 in version B with vertical or short take-off and landing to replace the AV-8B Harrier II arming the aircraft carrier Juan Carlos, and 25 in…
Read the articleSpain formalizes the order for 20 Eurofighter Typhoons to replace its F/A-18s in the Canary Islands
Like all NATO members, Madrid committed in 2014 to increasing its defense spending to a level equivalent to 2% of its GDP by 2025. But like a majority of its members, Spain had taken some liberties with this commitment. Thus, in 2020, the country devoted only $17,5 billion to its defense effort, i.e. 1,4% of its GDP, which was not without posing heavy constraints in terms of financing the modernization of the armed forces. , while they were engaged in many major programs, such as the design of the S-80 submarines and the F-110 frigates. Following…
Read the articleTyphoon, FREMM, M-346: Italy would be close to signing a €12bn super-contract in Egypt
After several years of negotiations, Cairo would be close to concretizing the largest defense contract in its history, by ordering from Rome 24 Typhoon fighter planes, 4 FREMM frigates, 20 armed patrol boats, 20 M-346 training planes and a observation satellite, for an amount exceeding €12 billion. In the spring of 2020, Italy managed to take a predominant negotiating position in Egypt on the arms contract, on the ruins left by Paris after Emmanuel Macron, during an official visit to the Egyptian capital, questioning human rights issues in the country. Rome was on the…
Read the articleSerbia could turn to the Typhoon if France refuses to deliver “certain missiles”
Things are not going as well as hoped between Paris and Belgrade regarding a possible acquisition of 12 Rafale planes to replace the aging Mig-29s of the Serbian air force. If the negotiations continue with Dassault aviation and the Hotel de Brienne, it seems that the Serbian authorities are irritated by the refusal of Paris to deliver certain missiles. And to give weight to this dissatisfaction, Nebojša Stefanovi, the Serbian Defense Minister, announced on April 16 that he had started, in parallel with the negotiations with Paris, discussions with London about Typhoon fighters, specifying that the first of the two to satisfy…
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