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HomeDefenceLockheed Martin says it won’t sell F-21 jets to any other country...

Lockheed Martin says it won’t sell F-21 jets to any other country if IAF contract goes through

The contenders for the IAF deal include Lockheed's F-21, Boeing's F/A-18, Dassault Aviation's Rafale, Russian aircraft MiG 35 among others.

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New Delhi: US aerospace giant Lockheed Martin says it will not sell its newly rolled out F-21 fighter jet to any other country if India places an order for 114 planes, a move aimed at pitching itself ahead of its US, European and Russian competitors for the mega deal.

Vivek Lall, vice president of Strategy and Business Development for Lockheed Martin, says if F-21 wins the contract, then India will also be integrated into the company’s global fighter ecosystem, which is a USD 165 billion dollar market.

In an interview with PTI, Lall said the new combat jet is designed to operate across over 60 air force stations in India, and its key aspects include superior engine matrix, electronic warfare system and weapons carrying capacity.

“We will not sell this platform and the configuration to anyone in the world. It is a significant commitment by Lockheed Martin and it shows importance of India and importance of unique requirement India has,” he said.

Last month, the Indian Air Force issued an RFI (Request for Information) or initial tender to acquire 114 jets at a cost of around USD 18 billion, which is billed as one of the world’s biggest military procurement in recent years.

The top contenders for the deal include Lockheed’s F-21, Boeing’s F/A-18, Dassault Aviation’s Rafale, the Eurofighter Typhoon, Russian aircraft MiG 35 and Saab’s Gripen.

Lall said if Lockheed wins the contract, it will not only set up a state-of-the-art F-21 manufacturing facility along with the Tata Group, but will also help India create an ecosystem for overall growth of the country’s defence manufacturing.

On observation that the F-21 is similar to Lockheed’s F 16 Block 70 combat jet, he said such a view is unfair as there have been significantly differences between the two platforms.

F-21 is different in terms of various aspects including its air frame, weapons capability, engine matrix and availability of engine options.

“As for example, you are now looking at 12,000 hours of service life air frame in F-21 versus 8,000 hours previously (F 16 Block 70). The additional 40 per cent weapons carrying capability is new in F-21 which was not there in F 16 Block 70. The electronic warfare system is uniquely developed for India,” he added.

“Looking from a distance may make it look similar to F 16 Block 70, but it is different,” he added.

Besides having a traditional boom-delivered refuelling facility, the F-21 also has a extendable hose-and-drogue refuelling probe.

“This is only fighter in the world which has both the capability,” said Lall, adding the cockpit has a new large area display.

“It is a modern cockpit and has a significant piece of ability to synthesise information. These are unique capabilities that we are not offering to other countries in the world,” said the Lockheed executive.

The jet has a Long-Range Infrared Search and Track (IRST), enabling pilots to detect threats with precision and Triple Missile Launcher Adapters (TMLAs) allowing it to carry 40 per cent more air-to-air weapons.

Without giving any approximate price of each bare-bone aircraft, he pitched it as the most cost effective compared to the competitors in terms of life-cycle and operational costs.

“If you look at the US government data, the advantage is 30-40 per cent in terms of cost effectiveness. This is lower compared to the comparable competitors. If you aggregate with years and years of operations in the life cycle, it is a huge amount of saving for India if it goes ahead with F-21,” said Lall.

Lockheed, which has a longstanding relationship of 25 years with India, unveiled the F-21 during the Aero India show in Bengaluru in February, saying it will address the Indian Air Force’s unique requirements.

 


Also readLockheed Martin, maker of F-16, calls out Pakistan media for fake news on suing India


 

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16 COMMENTS

  1. They may not sell it as f21, but the may sell f16, f16 1/2, f17 etc, cos its all the same, with some variation etc. As for export, India should press Lockheed Martin to sell the fighter to all other countries, cos that may make the manufacturing plant a bit more viable and , get we Indians some jobs😁😁

  2. Wait, hold on the whole f16/f21 plant is supposed to be shifted to India
    Lockheed said the will manufacture 200 f16s in india for foreign customers, one of(if not the strongest)selling point of the jet
    But with all this limited production of f21 that offer is no longer legitimate
    The Dassault aviation’s raffle is the best choice for the Indian Air force or any other 5th generation fighter IF AVAILABLE

  3. No it will not sell anyone else the F21, no, they’ll come up with other systems and call it something different but the same airframe, same old fighter. The Americans have already proven that their trust can not be sealed, nor be trusted, because they have none..

  4. IAF already have HAL Tejas ,an Indian single-engine, delta wing, multirole light fighter. So IAF must not go for another Single Engine Aircraft Like so called F21, which is just a modified version of F16. From my view Indian AirForce must go with the French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft – Dassault Rafale. And For Indian Navy the Boeing F/A-18E and F/A-18F Super Hornet are twin-engine, carrier-capable, multirole fighter aircraft is Best.
    Jai Hind.

  5. IAF already have HAL Tejas ,an Indian single-engine, delta wing, multirole light Enormous fighter. So IAF must not go for another Single Engine Aircraft socalled F21, which is just a modified version of F16. From my view Indian AirForce must go with the French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft- Dassault Rafale. And For Indian Navy the Boeing F/A-18E and F/A-18F Super Hornet are twin-engine, carrier-capable, multirole fighter aircraft is Best.
    Jai Hind.

  6. We should never ever buy this aircraft no matter what name they give it, its basically an improved version of f16 which they have already given to Pakistan who would probably known in an out of this aircraft if its not India this aircraft would go to Pakistan and it was meant for Pakistanis only but they cant afford it anymore from airframe to engines it has links to F 16 and must be avoided at all cost we should get fooled buy these silly bargains

  7. This not but a F-16 that was modified by Israel to acomodate more fuel. Now they are selli g it as a new version.

  8. Single engine copy of old vintage a/c F-16 don’t require in India. You want to fool India by giving a/c, which can not cross China boarder. If want to give than give F-35 with manufacturing licence, otherwise don’t give.

  9. Is the F21 even close to being a 5th(at least 4++) gen fighter plane ? It becomes imperative to look at technology(dated) in terms of the latest as these puppies are supposed to fly for close to 30 to 40 years after 4 or more overhauls along with technology updates. The fact that the F21 will not be sold to anyone else nullifies setting up manufacturing facilities in India as the export potential is a critical aspect of setting up shop in India. It will be interesting to see comparative flying results with the Rafale and Typhoon.

  10. We have Mig-21 Flying Coffin still a better one than this 🤣. Rebranding wouldn’t work. It’s rebranded F-16 block 72 .

  11. Lockheed Martin’s F – 21 alone is not the suitable for India. USA must give us some other facilities like engine technology, and full technology transfer, and tax less export in facilities to USA, So that India can export USA unlimited items with unlimited quantities.

  12. It looks like that Chokidar mahachor Narendra Modi is holing secret talks with Lokheed for the benefit of A __A___S.

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