via AINOnline.
Lockheed Martin’s F-35A Joint Strike Fighter and the Eurofighter Typhoon are back in play for South Korea’s F-X III fighter requirement after that country made a sudden decision to reject the last remaining contender, Boeing’s F-15SE Silent Eagle, and restart the procurement process.Why even have a contest?
An executive committee of South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA), chaired by Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin, met on September 24 and determined that the F-15SE “is not suitable as it lacks stealth features,” according to Yonhap News Agency. The defense ministry opposed the procurement agency’s selection process because it prioritized cost over combat capability, the news service said. A majority of the committee’s members “agreed that the South Korean Air Force needs fifth-generation combat jets to keep pace with the latest trends and to deter provocations by North Korea,” defense ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok told Yonhap.
Why is the Eurofighter and Boeing playing this game?
Under the table deal making...industrial blackmail on an international scale...and phony pricing has already determined the outcome of this contest.
Lockheed Martin, the USMC and USAF have rigged this contest. They want the price low and will do whatever it takes to see that the F-35 wins.
If the S. Koreans were smart they would face facts. They're Lockheed Martin's bitch. A proud people have been reduced to lap dogs for a corporation. Its sad, but its true. Don't feel bad. The US Marine Corps feels your pain.
