F-35 Fighters, Why Does America Want to Sell a Non-Original Copy to the UAE?
InsideOver, the Italian website revealed US moves to design a new version of the F-35 fighters, to be given to the UAE, after recent disputes between the two sides over the delivery of a deal that includes dozens of aircraft.
The website quoted the American newspaper, the Wall Street Journal, as saying on December 14, 2021, that the UAE threatened to cancel the deal to buy 50 F-35 fighters and Reaper drones, worth $23 billion, because of "technical requirements, sovereign operational constraints, and cost-benefit analysis led to the decision to reconsider."
The deal was made during the administration of former US President Donald Trump.
It was seen as a reward for the UAE's normalization of its relations with "Israel" in 2020, but with the arrival of Joe Biden to the White House, the deal was suspended for review, because of Abu Dhabi's black human rights list.
Washington also fears that the world's most advanced combat technologies will be penetrated by the increasing Chinese investments in the UAE, especially in works in a port near the capital, Abu Dhabi.
New Copy
The Italian website indicated that the American company, Lockheed Martin, the manufacturer of the fighters, received a contract worth 50 million dollars from the Ministry of Defense, Pentagon, to design and develop a new version of the F35 aircraft designed specifically for an unspecified foreign customer.
It added that the company may have asked the US government to "reduce" the aircraft's features by redesigning it without the most "sensitive" avionics, as happens with almost all versions intended for export abroad.
This was especially after the French presidency announced that the UAE had signed an agreement to purchase 80 Rafale combat aircraft and 12 Caracal helicopters, during President Emmanuel Macron's visit to Abu Dhabi on December 3, 2021.
The reason behind this, according to the website, is to avoid losing a valuable ally to the United States in the Middle East, especially since the UAE hosts American forces inside the important Al Dhafra air base.
With this solution, the company will protect the software system of the network of F-35 fighters from Chinese and Russian attacks, and at the same time will maintain relations with the UAE.
The InsideOver also revealed a mystery currently surrounding the development program for the new version, and the identity of this foreign customer is not officially known, nor the type of modifications that will be made to the original fighter.
While a statement issued by the Pentagon on December 27, 2021, only stated that Lockheed Martin will carry out engineering work and other activities related to the design and development of a new version of the stealth fighter as part of a five-year project that will continue until 2026.
Technical Changes
The site quoted experts as not expecting the new version of the combat aircraft to be much different from previous versions such as the F-35B as well as the C.
But the avionics of the aircraft's subsystems will be reviewed, as happened with the first version of the fighters manufactured for "Israel."
The site stated that the Israeli version of the F-35 made important changes to the unique avionics, especially the "command, control, communications, computer and intelligence C4I system."
The changes allowed the Israeli Air Force to install avionics systems and a homemade electronic warfare pod in the fighter.
With regard to possible modifications to the Emirati version, the Italian website suggested that Lockheed Martin will work on developing a version of the plane that specializes in the air-to-air interception role, especially since a number of countries that have or will be equipped with F-35, mainly use it to challenge other fighters.
For example, Switzerland will take the F-35 to replace F-18 fighters, which are primarily used for air defense, while maintaining the role of attacking ground targets.
Countries such as Denmark, Singapore and Belgium may also call for a more visible air-to-air role while maintaining air-strike capabilities, according to InsideOver.
The site pointed out that to learn more about the identity of the country concerned with purchasing the new version of the F-35 fighter, it will have to wait for the publication of the proposed contract of sale by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, and until then all possibilities are on the table.
