Boeing has initiated a legal challenge against Denmark’s Ministry of Defence for selecting the Lockheed Martin F-35A over the F/A-18E/F as the Danish air force’s next generation fighter.
Boeing submitted a request for insight to the Ministry of Defence to obtain all materials related to what the manufacturer calls a “flawed” evaluation process.
“Denmark deserves to know beyond a shadow of doubt that a fair and transparent process was used to select the country’s future fighter fleet,” says Debbie Rub, vice-president and general manager of Boeing Global Strike.
In June, Denmark’s parliament approved a recommendation by the MoD to buy 27 F-35As after the New Fighter Programme Office released an evaluation showing the Lockheed fighter was the superior option compared to the F/A-18E/F or the Eurofighter Typhoon.
In four judging catetgories — military, strategic, economic and industrial — the F-35A topped the alternatives in the Danish evaluation. The F-35A was judged to be more affordable than the F/A-18E/F by almost half.
“Our action today underscores our belief that the Ministry’s evaluation of each of the four selection criteria fell short of these objectives and must be reviewed to the fullest extent allowed under Danish law,” Rubs says in a statement.
Boeing also has presented objections against the MoD’s evaluation to the Denmark Parliament Defence Committee.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
