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CANBERRA: Australia will buy 24 F-18 Super Hornet fighter jets, made by Boeing Co., and related equipment in a deal worth up to A$6 billion ($4.6 billion), the government said on Tuesday.
Australia already operates 71 older and less capable F/A-18s and the bigger Super Hornets will fill a gap to be left by the expected 2010 retirement of Vietnam-era F-111 strike bombers.
Canberra has been in negotiations with Boeing for the purchase of the F/A-18E/F aircraft, radar systems and weapons countermeasures as an interim combat system before the arrival of up to 100 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters (JSF), worth more than A$15 billion.
“Australia remains fully committed to the JSF. But the government is not prepared to accept any risk to air combat and strike capability during the transition to the JSF,” Defence Minister Brendan Nelson told reporters.
Australia, a close American ally, is a partner with the United States and seven other countries in developing the F-35, which made its first test flight in December, and Canberra expects delivery to start in 2013.
“The JSF is the most suitable aircraft for Australia's future combat and strike needs,” said Nelson.
But Australian defence planners are concerned about the possibility of cost overruns and delivery delays with the aircraft, prompting the decision to extend the current fighter fleet with the Super Hornet.
The aircraft is substantially bigger than Australia's existing Hornets, which entered service in 1986.
The Super Hornet has bigger, more powerful engines and can fly further with up to eight tonnes of armaments, compared with six tonnes aboard the older F/A-18.
The deal, which also covers training, includes the aircraft, 48 installed engines and 6 spare engines, as well as 24 radar systems and 30 protection systems, known as electronic warfare countermeasures receiving sets.
In addition to Boeing, defense contractors involved in the possible sale would include Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, BAE Systems, General Electric, Data Link Solutions, and Visions Systems International.
