Aircraft manufacturers lining up to meet Malaysia's airborne early warning (AEW) requirement are anticipating a delay of up to five years because of Asia's continuing economic crisis.
Malaysia cut its defence budget by 10% after its currency plunged against the US dollar, although defence minister Syed Hamid Albar says the cuts are now complete.
Boeing says it has had technical discussions with Malaysian officials, proposing its new 737 Airborne Early Warning and Control (AEW&C) system. Those contracts are expected to gear up towards the end of the year, but Boeing does not expect a decision until "three to five years" after that.
The Boeing AEW&C is based on the 737-700 airframe, with a dorsally mounted, multirole electronically scanned array (MESA) radar. The same aircraft is now being proposed to meet Australia's AEW requirement.
Sweden's Ericsson Microwave Systems also says it has offered its Erieye AEW&C system, mounted on an Embraer ERJ-145, to the Malaysian air force and Government. The original Saab 2000 was dropped after Saab's announcement that it was terminating production of the turboprop.
Source: Flight International
