Brazilian Air Force delays for another six months bidding for huge contract
Brazilian Air Force has asked bidders to renew their offers on a contract to provide 36 next-generation fighter jets, extending for six months a race between US, French and Swedish contestants.
The Rafale fighter, made by French firm Dassault Aviation, is competing against the US F/A-18 Super Hornet and Swedish manufacturer Saab's Gripen for the contract valued at between 4 billion and 7 billion dollars.
The air force asks the bidders to renew their offers every six months. The last bidding window ended on June 30 and the new one will end December 31.
In a statement the air force said it was a “normal procedure” to extend the offers for the government to study them so long as the winner has not yet been selected.
Dassault's Brazilian unit chief Jean-Marc Merialdo said this marked the fourth six-month extension for the offer, but stressed that “it is a purely administrative move with no further significance.”
Brazil, Latin America's dominant power and the world's sixth-largest economy, is insisting on technology transfer in all its defence agreements. It is due to announce the winner this year.
Although France has offered full technology transfers in its bid to win the contract and the Rafale is thus seen as the best placed to finish on top, the F/A-18 is being offered at the best price.
And during a visit to Brazil earlier this year, US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta pledged US advanced technology transfers if Brasilia chooses Boeing's supersonic jet.
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Also, it was very unfair of how the recently Super Tucano light attack aircraft $355 million deal was unfairly cancelled by the Obama government.
The Saab Gripen is an excellent choice from a cost/performance standpoint. It does the job well and frankly as long as Brazil wishes to defend itself, the fighter would satisfy their needs.
The French will do almost anything to sell their Rafael. Its performance is no where near the Typhoon, but they would offer almost unlimited cooperation in what the Brazilian demands are AND there would be a Rafael version for use on Brazil's new carrier.
I'm very pro-American, but it's obvious Brazil's best interests would be served going with the Europeans.
I suspect the bidding will continue well into 2013...
Embraer, on its own, is nor ready for state-of-the-art front-line first-world fighters.
Brasil is in no hurry.
the brits will just sit and wait,
new upgrades for the typhoon, will be ready by 2015,
as stated, brazil has all the time in the world .
So when the Rafael comes up against the Typhoon and gets shot out of the sky, will it still be the best buy?
Who knows what Brasil will come against now they are in bed with Argentina and Putridjelli expects their allies to fight a Falklands war for them.
LOL
This by no means is intended to sound arrogant, but we have the best armed forces in the world....and a lot of it is due to the high tech equipment...
They should go for the F 18s....... even without aircraft carriers....
Unfortunately the F18 has had around 6 accidents since 2008... but those events tend to happen, even when TV does not show it...
As a member of an Army family and living near our post...I have seen accidents that never see daylight news....
If you was on here, some months ago, we had quite a debate about who was the best army military and the best soldiers,
The result
Was that, you’re[ but we have the best armed forces in the world.]].. [came joint first, with the British,
About 50/50.
Very closely matched we believe.
you mised a good debate.
#8 briton
I believe that our Peoples and our Fighting Forces compliment each other, and should in all ways, stick together.
#3GeoffWard2
Unfortunately, you are so right Geoff about the double-dealing of Obama and his ilk.
It's not quite as simple as that to be honest. They want tech transfer and jets that can shoot off a carrier.
It's win-win for them.
Also while the typhoon is a great jet it's not THAT much better. The Rafael has even won mock engagements against the typhoon before, and visa versa. The difference isn't much different, they are both brilliant jets.
It's all down to what each jet is good at, and these jets are good for what they need.
“Buy the F-18....champion of the free world....”
F-18's were amazing jets. Though they're getting on a bit. It's hardly cutting edge tech anymore.
F18 has been in service for over 30 years.... (it has been upgraded constantly though just like any other piece of equipment)
The F 35 will be a much better jet....maybe Brazil could buy a “base model” of the F 35 ....
as always
agreed
Why on earth would they do that? One of the main reasons they want the jet is for the tech transfer. The US isn't going to give them the tech, hell they didn't even want to give it to the UK and we're helping build the thing.
A friend of mine called the Rafale a flying piece of crap....maybe a base F35 wont fall off the sky...
According Jeremy Clarkson the UK has the best of the best and here we design cars with plastic, weight 600 lbs a person and have bad taste , so they can develop better things than the F35 ;)
I never take too much notice of Clarkson:
1) He cannot even do a simple service on an old car, as witnessed on one of his comedy shows;
2) He can't drive for toffee. He has to have three or four attempts before he 'gets it right'
3) His lack of basic common sense is lamentable, never mind the laws of physics. They set up too cars to collide head on with an approach speed of 100 mph or so. Clarkson told the technician doing the job he thought the one car would have little damage compared to the other. The technician just laughed: both cars were of course, totally wrecked. Clarkson was genuinely surprised. ‘½ MV squared’ never figured in it obviously.
Anyway he changed his mind about the latest version of America’s favourite plastic car once he had driven it across one or two states. Of course the Corvette turned out to be a surprise. It was the first time he had tried it in a comprehensive run on the roads it was designed to excel on.
The only thing I agree wholeheartedly was his description of Gordon Brown - a cnut.
Your friend is quite frankly, wrong. I am no lover of the French but your friend can joke all he likes. At least the French jet flys and can(and has) flown off carriers.
”so they can develop better things than the F35 ;)”
The f-35 in it's current state is a expensive pile of nothing. I have great hopes for the jet because if it can achieve all it's supposed to, it will be one of the best jets in the world. But, in it's current state, it's nothing to brag about.
The Rafale on the other hand is CURRENTLY one of the best jets in the world, along with the Typhoon and f-22.
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