Saab lost Romania fighter jet deal
BUCHAREST (AFP) - Romania turned down Swedish fighter jets as the country will purchase 24 second-hand F-16 fighter jets.
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"Since Romania does not have the necessary resources to buy new multi-role combat aircraft, the CSAT has approved the defense ministry's proposal to purchase 24 second-hand F-16 jets," the Supreme Defense Council (CSAT) said in a press release at the end of a meeting headed by President Traian Basescu.
"The decision will be submitted to Parliament for approval."
Apart from the F-16, Romania was also considering purchasing Swedish-made Gripen jets (Saab), Eurofighters (EADS, BAE Systems and Alenia/Finmeccanica) and French-made Rafales (Dassault).
The jets made by US aerospace company Lockheed Martin will replace the ageing, Soviet-made MiG-21 Lancer aircraft currently used by the Romanian air force.
No detail on the cost of the purchase was immediately available.
Romania has long mulled the purchase of fighter planes but has delayed the decision due to a lack of funds.
In 2008, the defense ministry had argued that buying second-hand F-16 jets would enable Romania's armed forces to enjoy greater inter-operability with other NATO states.
At the time, military sources had said the second-hand jets would cost around 800 million dollars, while new ones could amount to 3.5 billion.
Last Updated (Wednesday, 24 March 2010 05:04)
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Comments
Another propagandist payed by our government to create a favorable impression about public perception of this blatant fraud. We all know it's fraud! Nobody does business in Romania without bribing or blackmailing the high officials! The only reason Romania bought overpriced junk is the support USA gave to our president during last (proved fraudulent) elections.
Well-done, Romania, another great mistake.
What are you talking about? The F-16 Block 30's are much older than Gripen JAS-39C.
The first F-16 entered service in 1978 and the Block 30 entered into service in 1987. In contrast, the first Gripen entered service in 1996 and the 39C entered service in 2002.
The F-16 is 18 years older than than Gripen, and the Block 30 is 15 years older than the 39C.