Showing posts with label IAI. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IAI. Show all posts

Friday, February 7, 2014

Would you buy a used warcraft from these men?

The British government let a 330 million pound ($546 million) contract to modify 25 helicopters.  The choppers, EH101 Merlins currently in service with the Royal Air Force, will be modified to serve at sea with the Royal Navy.  The modified choppers will be used by the Command Helicopter Force as assault choppers, troop carriers.  Modifications include a folding main rotor, a folding tail, beefed up landing gear, and a new avionics suite.  This comes out to $21.84 million dollars per chopper.
   Compare with a new Blackhawk ($6 to $14 million depending on which website you believe)
   Far away from Britain,  Israeli Aircraft Industries is offering used, refurbished, Kfir jet fighters for $20 million apiece.  The Kfir's were retired from Israeli Air Force service in the 1990's and stored in the Negev desert to keep them from rusting.  They have only a few hundred flying hours on them and IAI will tear them down, remanufacture and rewire them and equip them with up-to-date avionics.  Such a deal for fairly decent mach 2 fighter.
    Compare with a new F-35 which are going for $60 million apiece, give or take a few million for bargaining with wily salesmen.  I think the used Kfir fighters are a reasonable deal, but I fear Her Majesty's government has been taken to the cleaners on the chopper deal.