UAE Orders C-17s, C-130Js
Related Stories: Americas - USA, Boeing, Contracts - Intent, Lockheed Martin, Middle East - Other, Power Projection, Transport & Utility
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The United Arab Emirates’ IDEX has become the arms industry’s biggest middle eastern event. The biggest news from IDEX 2009 is the United Arab Emirates’ twin purchases of medium and heavy transport aircraft worth AED 10.7 billion (about $2.78 billion).
The UAE will see Gulf Cooperation Council partner Qatar’s 2 C-17s, and raise them 2. Those 4 long-range strategic transport aircraft from Boeing will cost AED 4.3 billion (about $1.3 billion). They will be paired with an AED 5.9 billion (about $1.6 billion) deal for 12 of Lockheed Martin’s C-130J medium-range tactical transports, creating a force that gives the UAE’s military considerable mobility within the country – and beyond. Given the country’s geographic position, and the global shortage of military airlift capacity outside of the United States, a force of this size and quality can be parlayed into international influence by supporting multi-national military deployments and humanitarian efforts from Africa to south Asia.
Dubai has been hit hard by the global downturn, but it remains the business center of the middle east, and Abu Dhabi has a sovereign wealth fund worth several hundred billion dollars to finance military purchases. Abu Dhabi’s privately-owned Waha Capital usually finances airline purchases, and has been tapped to finance the C-17 and C-130J contracts. Flight International | Defense News | bNet | Jerusalem Post.
