Israeli air force debates purchase of F-35 fighter planes

A complicated argument is underway in the innermost sanctum of Israel’s Security Cabinet. On one hand, several decision-makers are asking tough questions about Israel’s plans to purchase F-35 stealth fighter jets. Even some defense officials do not wholeheartedly support the size and scope of the deal. One the other hand, most of the military establishment, particularly the air force, supports the deal. These officials consider the purchase vital to maintaining Israel’s aerial superiority in the Middle East, a task that only gets tougher as the years go by.

If the third stage of Israel’s deal with Lockheed Martin is approved, the total number of stealth fighters in the Israeli air force will reach 50. Two squadrons have already been purchased, and Israel has the option to acquire 17 more.

While the next squadron of 17 jets has yet to be approved by the Cabinet, the government has already approved the purchase of all the ancillary equipment for them. Right now, the debate is over whether Israel should complete the purchase of the jets. The first delivery of stealth jets is scheduled to reach Israel by the end of this year.

In the course of the debate, various sources have been flooding Israeli decision-makers with presentations, statistics and analyses showing that the stealth fighter's performance is much lower than what one would expect from an aircraft that costs more than $100 million. According to these claims, the jet has a limited range of just 1,200 kilometers (746 miles), problems with its stealth capacity and a diminished weapons load. The biggest deficiency of all, however, is US insistence on keeping the jet’s source code to itself. It will not allow any of the countries that purchase the jet to know what really takes place in the aircraft’s impenetrable “brain,” or to control its operating system.