Lockheed Martin is pressing hard to sell its F-16U Fighting Falcon
| UAE fighter race in the balance Tim Ripley reports from the Dubai Airshow on the progress of the battle to supply the UAE with strike fighters. |
Lockheed Martin is pressing hard to sell its F-16U Fighting Falcon |
Fighter manufacturers from America, Britain and France are still locked in a multi-billion-dollar dogfight to win an order for 80 strike aircraft from the United Arab Emirates air force. The contest is valued at between US$6 and US$8 billion and has been going on for almost three years with little indication that the customer will make its selection soon. Lockheed Martin is pressing hard to sell its Fl6U Fighting Falcon, France's Dassault hopes to secure the first export customer for its Rafale and British Aerospace is leading its middle east export drive with the Eurofighter 2000. Although all three participants were present in strength at Dubai '97, the Eurofighter was there only in mock-up form. |
 British Aerospace is leading its middle east export drive with the Eurofighter 2000 |
Providing strong top cover for the fighter manufacturers are the precision guided weapon suppliers who hope their long-range products will be hanging off the wings of the UAE's new strike fighter There was a flurry of excitement when it emerged in September that BAe was offering an oil-for-aircraft deal to the UAE in the hope of recreating the success of its AI-Yamamah barter agreement with Saudi Arabia. News then emerged that Lockheed Martin's Micky Blackmore had been holding contract talks in London with UAE supreme commander Sheik Zayed bin Sultan al Nahyan over the sale of 50 F-16s. |
 France's Dassault hopes that the UAE will become the first export customer for the Rafale |
France struck back with an offer to provide an interim order of 30 Mirage 2000-9s customised to the UAE's requirements that was accepted by the UAE in December 1997. This offer involves new-build aircraft and the refurbishment of ex-French air force air frames.Some commentators have linked the French and US proposals together, suggesting that the UAE has opted to buy current generation aircraft and is delaying the acquisition of new-generation fighters until the next century |
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