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AVIATION - BOEING F 16 FIGHTER
PLANES FOR SINGAPORE |
Boeing edges out Dassault for Singapore order
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BY OUR AVIATION CORRESPONDENT
11 September, 2005: It is raining billions for US Aircraft maker Boeing. Singapore has opted for Boeing F 16, the country’s defence ministry said in a statement. Singapore has sought contract talks with Boeing on the issue. The country is expected to place orders with the US firm for eight aircraft and 12 options or vice versa.
Options allow airlines to get aircraft at the rates in which purchases were made for a future buy, at the same time giving it more leverage in delivery schedules.
Industry analysts have put the value of the deal worth more than a billion dollars.
If the deal is clinched, Singapore hopes to replace its McDonnell Douglas A-4SUs. with the new aircraft. France’s Dassault Rafale was also in the race, but the choice fell on Boeing as it emerged cheaper due to the lower valuation of dollar, media reports said.
Moreover in the fierce competition to bag the airline orders, politics of diplomacy too may have to be factored in. The US provides training facilities for Singapore’s defence establishment personnel and even uses its air bases.
The Eurofighter Typhoon, Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 60 and Sukhoi 30/35 were in the race to bag the coveted
order, but were eliminated in different stages of the process as they could not come in sync with the
state’s requirements or promise deliveries within the sought time schedule.
Singapore has already announced that it would buy Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, but operational delays would mean that the city state would still need fighters.
Boeing, the world’s second largest aviation contractor, is yet to come out with a formal statement on the deal. The firm’s plans revolve around foreign sales as it sees US spending on defence purchases slowing down.
Dassault had attributed the failure to bag the order to US political pressure as well as the currency issue, which put it in a weaker wicket.
BY OUR AVIATION CORRESPONDENT
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