Ministry narrows fighter contest to Boeing Dassault
Singapore has eliminated the Eurofighter Typhoon from its next-generation fighter competition because the four-nation consortium could not supply a capable-enough aircraft by the end of 2008. The surprise downselect comes only two to three months before an anticipated final selection. Singapore's ministry of defence (MINDEF) says the Boeing F-15T and Dassault Rafale remain in contention for the initial eight- to 12-aircraft requirement.
"MINDEF has decided not to consider the proposal from BAE Systems any further," the ministry said on 21 April. "The Typhoon is a very capable aircraft. However, the committed schedule for the delivery of the Typhoon and its systems did not meet the requirements of the Singapore air force."
MINDEF declines to say when it will decide between the F-15T and Rafale, but industry sources still expect a selection around mid-year (Flight International, 11-17 January). Boeing, Dassault and BAE Systems – which led the Singapore campaign on behalf of Eurofighter – last year submitted bids that, say the sources, expire in the third quarter. They say a final selection also must occur no later than the third quarter for Singapore to receive the first new fighter in 2008 as planned. The bids are for eight fighters plus 12 options, or 12 fighters plus eight options, but Singapore may buy more than 20 aircraft because of delays to the Lockheed Martin F-35 Joint Strike Fighter.
The F-15T, Rafale and Typhoon were evaluated in Singapore over the first seven months of last year and Singapore's Defence Science & Technology Agency (DSTA) has since asked the three manufacturers to provide additional information. DSTA eliminated the Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 60 and Sukhoi Su-30/35 from the contest in 2004.
DSTA was not initially planning to downselect from three to two to maximise leverage during the current negotiation phase. The downselect became necessary because the other contenders realised Eurofighter would not be able to meet the full requirement in time following the delay in launching the Tranche 2 configuration. Tranche 2 was approved last December, but sources say Singapore is concerned its delivery schedule and the configuration could be affected by future European political decisions.
BRENDAN SOBIE/SINGAPORE
Source: Flight International
