Image Credit: Filip Modrzejewski / Foto Poork
Dec 22 2017
By Jacek Siminski
Contenders could be F-35, Eurofighter Typhoon, Gripen,
Advanced Super Hornet and second-hand F-16 jets.
According to a news piece published by Dziennik Zbrojny
today, five entities have expressed their will to participate in the market
analysis initiative concerning the potential procurement of new fighter
aircraft, referred to as “Harpia”
(harpy eagle).
The operational requirement for this program is defined
as “Enhancing the capability to carry out missions within the framework of
offensive and defensive combat against the enemy air power, as well as missions
carried out for the purpose of supporting land, naval and special operations –
“Multi-Role Combat Aircraft” and “Airborne Electronic Jamming Capabilities.”
The companies that expressed their interest in the
Multi-Role Combat Aircraft portion of the initiative include: Saab AB, Lockheed
Martin, Boeing Company, Leonardo S.p.A. and Fights-On Logistics. Meanwhile, the
Airborne Electronic Jamming segment of the procurement would see involvement in
case of three potential contractors: Saab AB, Elbit Systems EW and SIGINT –
Elisra Ltd., and Griffin working together with Elta Systems Ltd, as Tomasz
Dmitruk of Dziennik Zbrojny reports.
When it comes to multi-role combat aircraft, the only
true versatile platform operated by the Polish Air Force is the F-16: 48 jets
of this type have been used by Poland for more than a decade now; MiG-29
Fulcrums are used primarily in an air-to-air role, while Su-22
Fitters are tasked with air-to-ground missions. Dziennik Zbrojny
suggests that the new aircraft sought by the Armament Inspectorate of the
Polish MoD (Polish armament procurement organ), would replace
the legacy Soviet designs heading towards the ends of their
life-cycle, with replacement of the Su-22 being more critical.
It seems that the participants would offer the following
designs to the Polish Air Force: F-35
(Lockheed Martin), Advanced Super Hornet (Boeing), Eurofighter (with
Leonardo leading the consortium bid), Gripen (Saab AB), and second-hand F-16s.
However, putting the matter into a wider perspective, we
cannot think of procurement of new fighter aircraft to be certain in Poland.
The Polish military still needs to enhance its air/missile defense systems,
within the scope of Wisła, Narew and Noteć programs, for instance. Wisła
program has a price tag of whooping 10.5 Billion USD, defined as the maximum procurement
value by the US DSCA agency which deals with the FMS (Foreign Military Sales)
procedure management.
Furthermore, the Polish MoD is also looking forward to
acquiring Orka next generation submarines, Homar rocket artillery systems,
attack and multi-role helicopters – even though no procurement has been
launched with regard to these requirements, this does not mean that the need
disappears.
If one adds Płomykówka
(SIGINT) and Rybitwa (Maritime Patrol Aircraft) procurements to the list,
it seems that the priority shall not go first to the multi-role combat
aircraft. And the above programs are just the tip of the iceberg – as land
forces and newly-established Territorial Defense service of the Polish military
also have significant equipment-related requirements.
Taking all of the above factors into account, it remains
probable that Harpia would be significantly delayed, and we will not be seeing
new fighter assets in the Polish Air Force anytime soon. If acquisition of new
multi-role combat aircraft is accelerated, then this should be done with the
use of funding provided outside the Polish defense budget (as happened in case
of the F-16s
a decade ago), or priorities ascribed to the ongoing procurement
initiatives shall be redefined and evaluated once again. For instance, Warsaw
would have to resign from acquiring helicopters or submarines, to have funds
that would be sufficient to procure the new jets.
Original post: theaviationist.com
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