Wednesday, August 17, 2011

Australia may opt for Super Hornets next year

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia's defense minister says the government may choose to buy Super Hornet jet fighters next year rather than wait for the troubled F-35 Joint Strike Fighters.

Australia has ordered 14 of the Lockheed Martin Corp. JSFs and has plans to buy as many as 100 for 16 billion Australian dollars ($17 billion).

But the project is under a cloud as the U.S. considers defense budget cuts.

Defense Minister Stephen Smith told Parliament on Wednesday that the Boeing Co. Super Hornet "is an obvious alternative" to the JSF. Smith says he will make a recommendation to the government sometime next year whether Australia needs to buy an alternative to the JSF to maintain its air combat capability.

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