Israel has become the first foreign nation to place its stamp of approval on the fledgling F-35 Lightning II warplane being developed by Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Co. in Fort Worth.The Pentagon has formally notified Congress that it plans to sell up to 75 F-35s to Israel, a deal potentially worth up to $15.2 billion to Lockheed and the legion of contractors working on the program.
In a news release issued Tuesday, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said Israel has requested to buy 25 F-35A joint strike fighters like those that will be produced for the U.S. Air Force.
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Lockheed would like to claim that Israel's order is a true endorsement of the F-35's value.
ReplyDeleteHowever as the article rightly points out : "...U.S. taxpayers will pick up most of the tab through annual foreign-aid grants targeted specifically to purchases of U.S. weapons systems..."
Plausibly Israel is using US money to help boost a US product (the F-35) - thereby encouraging other key countries not to buy the competing Typhoon or Gripen.
Pete
Or more plausibly, Israel wants the aircraft if it wants to take out the nuclear facilities in Iran. I doubt the Israelis are in it just to boost a US product.
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