According to an article published on the Website of Eurasia Times on October 19, 2021, the Argentine Air Force has been actively looking for advanced fighter jets. After it was reported that Argentina had chosen the JF-17 fighter jointly developed by China and Pakistan, where was india's domestically produced "Shining" fighter?
The Argentine Air Force has an aging fleet of fighter jets, and in 2015, the Argentine Air Force retired all of its Mirage fighters, which put the Argentine Air Force in a very weak position at home in South America.
[Argentine Air Force A-4AR Aquila attack aircraft]
However, Argentina recently allocated a budget worth $664 million to procure warplanes to increase its air power. However, buying these fighter jets does not seem to be an easy task.
Britain has imposed an arms embargo on Argentina since the Falklands War in 1982. Britain has been blocking the export of aircraft to Argentina by imposing sanctions on the embargo on British-made aircraft parts.
Examples include Britain's pressure on Spain to abandon the agreement to supply Argentina with oversupply of Mirage F1M fighter jets. Due to pressure from britain and tight U.S. controls on the production of J79 engines, Israel's agreement to supply Argentina with its Kfir jet fighter jets was also forced to be canceled.
The article pointed out that the cancellation of a large number of transactions put Argentina in an extremely dangerous situation. Argentina's neighbors, Chile and Brazil, have much better number and quality of fighter jets. The Brazilian Air Force is expected to receive 36 Jas-39E Gripen E fighters from Swedish Saab, part of which will be assembled on Brazilian soil.
Multiple arms embargoes by Britain and its Western allies have forced Argentina to turn to China to buy fighter jets. To bolster its air power, the Argentine Air Force began looking at the China-Pakistan joint development of the JF-17 Dragon fighter, a multi-role fighter jointly developed by China's Chengdu Aircraft Corporation (CAC) and pakistan's Aviation Complex (PAC).
【JF-17 "Dragon Fighter" jointly developed by China and Pakistan】
The Pakistan Strategic Forum (PSF), an Islamabad-based think tank, said: "The Argentine government has officially included funds for the purchase of 12 JF-17 Block III fighter jets in Argentina's draft 2022 budget and submitted it to parliament for review. As soon as this news came out, the JF-17 fighter jet immediately made the front page of the news media.
However, Argentine officials immediately denied the rumors. The Argentine Ministry of Defense said in a statement: "We have applied for up to $664 million in 2022 budget grants for the purchase of multi-purpose fighter jets." Similarly, the Ministry of Defense clarified that the Argentine Air Force did not select aircraft from any source and that the project is currently in the technical, economic and financial evaluation phase of five options.
Last week, The commander of the Argentine Air Force, Brigadier Gen. Xavier Julian Isaac, said in an interview with Infodefensa, a Spanish-language website that reports on South American military news, the Argentine Air Force was also waiting for proposals from the United States and India after receiving offers for new fighter jets from Russia and China. Explaining the main needs of the Argentine Air Force, Brigadier General Isaac said: "Honestly, the needs are multifaceted. I would like to make it clear that the main task of the Argentine Air Force is to monitor and protect Argentine airspace, of which fighter jets will play a major role. We have received several offers, there are JF-17 fighters, Russian MiG-35s and MiG-29 fighters. While we don't have any specific offers from the U.S., we know the U.S. is preparing a proposal. We have also established friendly relations with India, which wants to provide us with The Shining fighters, which are currently in the first round of negotiations. ”
According to Brigadier General Isaac, the Argentine Air Force hopes to receive offers for all new aircraft by the end of the year and will decide on the platform and funding before the first quarter of 2022.
Earlier, FE Online reported that India's Tejas fighter jet could be an attractive option for the Argentine Air Force, which is looking for multi-role aircraft to monitor and defend its airspace.
[Indian Air Force LCA "Tejas" fighter】
Professor Juan Batalem revealed to FE Online: "If the Argentine Air Force chooses India's 'Tejas' fighter, it will help promote further development of relations between the two countries and may become a bridge to strengthen India's relations with the West and Russia." ”
India has been concentrating on developing its domestic aviation industry. The Tejas fighter is the core element of India's "self-reliant India" approach. R Madhavan, chairman and general manager of Hindustan Aviation Ltd, announced earlier this year that the Indian Air Force would receive the Tejas light fighter (LCA) starting in March 2024.
Madhaven said several countries had shown interest in Indian Tejas fighter jets. For those countries that are looking for cheap fighter jets, the LCA fighter will be a great option. The LCA Mark-1A will be equipped with an active phased array radar (AESA), an out-of-sight (BVR) missile, an electronic warfare kit and an air-to-air refueling system.
As the Argentine Air Force is looking for multi-role fighters, planned for surveillance and airspace control missions, India's homegrown Tejas fighter could be an ideal choice.
However, the first export opportunity for LCA fighters could also be blocked by the UK. That's because the Radiance fighter is also equipped with a Martin-Baker ejection seat, the specific model is MK16 IN16 GS Tejas. In addition, LCA Tejas was equipped with other British-supplied equipment, particularly air-to-air refueling probes and radomes. These are provided by the British company Cobham.
Theoretically, aircraft manufacturers have the right to select and install new ejection seats on aircraft of their own making. However, this process involves testing and validating aircraft and equipment at different altitudes and under different flight conditions, which is not only time-consuming, but also increases costs. This situation does not bode well for Argentina, which has a relatively tight budget. In competition with aircraft from China, Russia and the United States, it remains to be seen whether india's Tejas will win.
Author: Ningpu
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