[quote][b][url=/v3/forum/%C3%A9tats-unis-31/topic/f-35-news-195/?post=45866#post-45866]pilou[/url] a dit le 13/01/2010 à 15:30 :[/b]

[url=http://www.defense-aerospace.com/article-view/release/111290/uk-seen-slashing-jsf-orders-to-weather-coming-defense-cuts.html]MoD to Slash Jet Fighter Orders as it Struggles to Save Aircraft Programme[/url]

[quote][i](Source: The Guardian; issued January 12, 2010)[/i]
  
	[u]Defence chiefs are preparing drastic cuts to the number of American [F-35 JSF] stealth aircraft planned for the RAF and the Royal Navy's proposed new carriers, the Guardian has learned.[/u]

They will be among the first casualties, with existing squadrons of Harrier and Tornado jets, of a huge shift in military spending being considered by ministers, officials and military advisers.

As they head towards their biggest and most painful shakeup since the Second World War, a consensus has emerged among the top brass that they cannot afford the 140 American Joint Strike Fighters (JSF) they have been seeking.

[u]The JSF, or F35 as it is now called, has been subject to costly delays and the estimated price has soared from £37m each four years ago to more than £62m today.[/u] :mrgreen: 

[b][u]One compromise would be for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) to halve its order from 140 planes to 70.[/u][/b] :mrgreen: 

[u]There is also a growing view that Britain will not be able to afford to build the two large aircraft carriers, already delayed, let alone the planes due to fly from them. "The carriers are under real threat. There will certainly be a big reduction in JSF numbers," a well-placed military source told the Guardian.[/u]

"The carriers are about more fast jets. They are very hard to justify," added a defence official, referring to a growing consensus that the RAF already has too many fast jets.

If the order was halved, it would probably be split so that there was a short take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) version for the carriers, and a conventional version based at RAF ground stations.

Among other options being considered are: downsizing the second carrier to a much cheaper platform for helicopters, marine commandos, and unmanned drones; building both carriers but selling one, perhaps to India; and equipping them with cheaper catapult-launched aircraft.

[u]No decisions will be made until after the general election. However, there is a consensus developing in the MoD that Britain simply cannot afford existing plans to build two large carriers in a project which, if the JSF planes are included, would cost an estimated £25bn. (end of excerpt)[/u]


Click [url=http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/jan/12/defence-aircraft-jet-fighters-budget]here[/url] for the full article, on the Guardian website. [/quote][/quote]