November 6, 2020 | International, Aerospace
By Mike Stone, Patricia Zengerle
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. State Department gave Congress notification it plans to sell 18 sophisticated armed MQ-9B aerial drones to the United Arab Emirates in a deal worth as much as $2.9 billion, people briefed on the notification said.
The move comes on the heels of last week's notification of a potential sale of F-35 fighter jets to the middle-eastern country.
This would mark the first armed drone export since the Trump administration reinterpreted a Cold War-era arms agreement between 34 nations to allow U.S. defense contractors to sell more drones to allies.
Reuters has reported that UAE has long shown interest in purchasing drones from the United States and would be among the first customers in line after U.S. export policy changed this summer. A $600 million deal to sell four unarmed but weapons-ready MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones to Taiwan was the first to be formally notified to Congress on Tuesday.
This informal notification for the Reaper-style drones is the precursor to the State Department's formal and public notification.
The U.S. Senate Foreign Relations and House of Representatives Foreign Affairs committees - whose members have criticized UAE's role in civilian deaths in Yemen's civil war - have the ability to review and block weapons sales under an informal review process before the State Department sends its formal notification to the legislative branch.
The U.S. State Department may wait to formally notify Congress of the sale once staff and members are briefed on the potential sale, one of the people said. The formal notification gives Congress 30 days to object to any sales.
A U.S. State Department spokesman told Reuters, “As a matter of policy, the United States does not confirm or comment on proposed defense sales or transfers until they are formally notified to Congress.”
The armed MQ-9B drones will also be equipped with maritime radar and could be delivered in 2024. The package notified to Congress is for 15 with an option for three additional drones, one of the people said.
The UAE is also seeking a package of Boeing Co EA-18G Growlers, an electronic warfare version of the two-seat F/A-18F Super Hornet aircraft, that are capable of jamming radar and other advanced capabilities. Growlers are operated buy the U.S. and Australia.
The United Arab Emirates, one of Washington's closest Middle East allies, has long expressed interest in acquiring the stealthy F-35 jets and was promised a chance to buy them in a side deal made when they agreed to normalize relations with Israel. The informal notification for 50 Lockheed Martin Co F-35 jets was made on Oct. 29.
But any deal the U.S. makes to sell weapons in the region must satisfy decades of agreement with Israel where the U.S.-made weapon must not impair Israel's “qualitative military edge,” guaranteeing U.S. weapons furnished to Israel are “superior in capability” to those sold to its neighbors.
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April 26, 2018 | International, Aerospace
By: Sebastian Sprenger BERLIN ― Eurofighter officials are downplaying the F-35 fighter′s stealth capability at the Berlin Air Show, positing that the consortium's non-stealthy Typhoon still beats out the American competition in the race to replace Germany's Tornado fleet. “Stealth is only 10 percent of the capability mix,” Eurofighter marketing chief Raffael Klaschke told Defense News on Wednesday. “We're still better at the other 90 percent,” he argued, referring to the aircraft's combat capabilities. While the company could rest easy with the German Defence Ministry's recent proclamation that the Eurofighter is the preferred path for the upcoming multibillion-dollar Tornado-replacement program, Lockheed Martin's massive showing at the air show may have some officials nervous. Eurofighter CEO Volker Paltzo doubled down on the argument that the Typhoon would guarantee continued vibrancy in the European military aircraft market. “I want to underscore that every euro spent on Eurofighter within Europe stays in Europe,” he told reporters. Executives also stressed that the European aircraft would come free of any “black boxes,” a reference to the expectation that all technological and operational details would be owned by Europeans, which may not be the case with the F-35. F-35 advocates have touted the fifth-generation aircraft's stealth and other advanced capabilities for deep-strike and standoff combat, and there are some in Germany, especially in the Air Force, who believe that European technology simply cannot compare. At the same time, whatever follow-on aircraft Berlin chooses for its 90-strong Tornado fleet is only expected to be a bridge toward a brand-new development, raising the question of whether a costly acquisition of the U.S. planes would be a worthwhile investment. Klaschke described stealth as a “niche capability,” adding with a nod to the F-35′s competition: “We're not scared.” Officials were less willing to discuss the expected nuclear-weapons capability of the Eurofighter, which it would pick up from the Tornado. Paltzo pointed to “confidentiality” in discussing the topic, referring to the Defence Ministry for information. What is clear, however, is that the Eurofighter will be able to carry forward Germany's pledge to deploy U.S. atomic arms at the behest of NATO, according to Paltzo. And while the U.S. Defense Department must certify the aircraft-weapon pairing, the CEO said he does not expect America to influence the fighter decision toward its own industry's product. “This is a subject where we would not expect leverage by the U.S. over the Eurofighter,” Paltzo said. https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2018/04/25/no-stealth-no-problem-eurofighter-makes-its-pitch-against-f-35-in-berlin/
September 17, 2018 | International, Naval
By: Tom Kington ROME — Italy's two state-controlled defense champions, Leonardo and Fincantieri, have fought an unusual battle over the acquisition of a smaller company as they jockey for position ahead of their expected integration of naval work with French industry. Shipyard Fincantieri thought it had sewn up the purchase of Italian firm Vitrociset in August, only for Leonardo to snatch it from under its nose on Sept. 7, leaving the Italian government to step in to mediate. The tussle between two firms that both answer to the Italian state and closely cooperate on naval programs around the world is due to new rivalry as both edge toward teaming on naval programs with France's Naval Group. The Italo-French deal is still being thrashed out, but may see a 10 percent share swap between Naval Group and Fincantieri and joint export campaigns to reduce the fractured nature of the European shipbuilding industry. The deal automatically involves Leonardo since it provides electronics, guns and radars for Fincantieri's ships. But Leonardo CEO Alessandro Profumo has expressed concerns that regarding ships built or marketed jointly by Fincantieri and the French, his systems may be overlooked in favor of those produced by Thales, which is a shareholder in Naval Group. Full article: https://www.defensenews.com/industry/2018/09/14/fincantieri-leonardo-tussle-over-acquisition-ahead-of-french-tie-up