New Australian Government to review all planned defense programs including F-18 buy

December 30, 2007 by Dagpotter
Filed under: Contract Awards, FMS, Lockheed Martin, production program 

According to sources in the new Australian Government of Prime Minister Rudd, all planned defense procurements will be reviewed and considered for change or cancellation. The last Australian government had decided to buy 24 F-18 Super Hornets to fill the gap before the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft was available. The Age reports that this contract will be reviewed as part of a new look at the nation’s air defense needs. If the contract is cancelled it will be a blow to both the US Navy and Lockheed. US defense programs rely on Foriegn Military Sales (FMS) to lower the price of equipment through increasing quantities to get price breaks from the contractors. The fact that a new government, though, is reviewing the previous one’s defense plans is not new, and will happen in the US in the Spring of 2009. For example, in 1992 two budgets were submitted to Congress, one by the outgoing Bush administration and one by the new Clinton one.

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