Belgium is also looking to buy new fighter planes to replace her F-16 fleet. and Lo and behold: the competition is also the same! But what is different is that Belgium has decided to make at least some of their requests public. Here are news about program the RFGP document from Belgium. I have not read it through yet, but it will make a educational spell I’m sure.

As guests in YLE A-studio today (12.4.2017) concluded, you have to pick and choose the best packet for the FAF. The plane itself is just one part of the deal. Air to air missiles, both BVR and WVR, Anti shipping and anti surface missiles and bombs. For example FLIR company in USA has virtual monopoly in Infra-red Arrays, so in the end ALL planes in HX program have the same military grade parts in their IRST. Physics are the same for everybody, so really any difference boils down to diameter of optics and type of optics used and software and processors used in system. It is pretty much the same with radars. So really the parameters depend on how wide is the nosecone of the plane is and thus how many elements you can cram into it.

In HX-program the BVR missile will be, at least first, the Meteor.  Other missiles are more of a question of preference and price.

In Belgian paper the price was 33% of the complete assesment. In Finland you have to take into account the politics as well. How trustworthy you consider for example France as weapons provider. With Sweden, can you trust that they can get engines for JAS Gripen as they are not producing them themselves. What about Extortionist In Chief Trumps USA. Will there be unreasonable demands or pressures applied, if you don’t walk along straight and narrow?

So you really want the best packet.

In my last HX post I told Rafale beat Typhoon in assesment in Swiss competition. But the plane chosen after all aspects had been thought through was the JAS-39 Gripen E. But even that was woted down by the referendum.

The Swiss are making moves for new referendum, because they will need to rebuild their fighter fleet.