The Israeli ministry of defence has approached Israel's national airlines and a number of investor groups to promote a deal that would see it provide state funding for the purchase of new widebody aircraft, such as Boeing 767s, which could be modified to carry fixed or removable inflight refuelling equipment.
If the proposal is supported by the airlines, the aircraft would be used for commercial flights, but also made available to meet the training and operational requirements of the Israeli air force. They could be equipped with removable refuelling booms and operator posts under the dual-use model, which emerged after budgetary problems barred the air force's planned purchase of dedicated tanker/transports to replace its Boeing 707 fleet.
According to Shalom Ben-Nathan, chief of air force and intelligence procurement in the Israeli ministry of defence, the plan could also be based on the aircraft's purchase by a US investment company. Under this framework, El Al or another Israeli airline could lease the aircraft for a period of 20 years, with the platform supplier to also receive payments from the MoD.
One benefit of this framework is that the money required to support the deal could be drawn from Israel's annual defence grant from the USA.
ARIE EGOZI / TEL AVIV
Source: Flight International
