THE UNITED ARAB Emirates (UAE), is unlikely to decide on a long-range stand off weapon, until the outcome of a similar UK procurement programme for a conventional stand off missile.
The UAE had been expected to fund development of a long-range derivative of the GEC Marconi family of precision-guided weapons designed for the country, but this has not been forthcoming.
The UAE appears to be pursuing a competitive approach to procuring a long-range stand-off weapon, while waiting to see whether the long-range member of GEC's Pegasus family emerges as the winner in the UK competition, say sources.
If the Pegasus wins in the UK, then the UAE would effectively have the option of procuring the weapon without having to fund development. If it is not selected, the UAE would be likely to pursue an alternative weapon.
Besides GEC, Matra and British Aerospace have teamed to offer the UAE a derivative of the Apache, while the USA is likely to offer a variant of the McDonnell Douglas Stand-off Land Attack Missile.
The procurement is being run in parallel with the UAE's strike-fighter competition, with at least some of the weapons being offered as part of a package deal.
The GEC proposal has overcome problems from the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR), where concern was expressed over the weapon's potential to breach the 300km (160nm)-range barrier. There are now claims of disquiet over the potential range of the Apache derivative.
Alongside the Western systems on offer, Russia is also certain to be touting weapons to fulfil the missile requirement. Candidate systems are likely to include the AS-18 Kazoo and, possibly, conventional derivatives of the AS-15 Kent and AS-16 Kickback. The last two may also run into MTCR difficulties. The USA is understood to be concerned at the release of such systems into the Gulf region.
Source: Flight International
