F-22A Raptor
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Flight International reports that Israel has approached the USA about acquiring Lockheed Martin F-22s, as concern mounts about new threats to the IAF’s regional air superiority from proposed sales of advanced US weapons to the Gulf states, and Israeli assessments of a growing threat from Iran. Sources say that the issue was raised during a recent one-day trip by US defense secretary Robert Gates to Israel.

Current Israeli Air Force plans call for over 100 F-35s. The F-22 request, however, is likely to face tougher sledding…

The prospect of sending a signal to Iran, and the potential for presenting Congress with a package deal that neutralizes two major lobbies at once by arming both the Gulf States and Israel with more advanced weapons, will be factors in the deal’s favor. So will US-Israeli cooperation in sensitive areas like short-range missile/rocket defenses and ballistic missile defense.

Japan is also known to have asked about an F-22 export version, and a wide spectrum of opinion in Australia (including the opposition Labor Party) is pushing for an F-22EX request of their own. While unrelated, each request from an important ally does raise both the pressure to create an F-22EX version, and the perceived market & benefits from doing so.

IAI Harpy UAV
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In Israel’s case, however, its military sales to China continued even after US-Chinese relations cooled. This has resulted in lasting damage to its relations within the US security establishment, whose anger eventually boiled over into exclusion from the F-35 program. An agreement covering Israeli arms export restrictions got the exclusion lifted – albeit on a conditional basis that speaks eloquently to the state of trust within the relationship. Unfortunately for Israel, very high levels of trust are an absolute precondition for sales of an F-22 variant.

The current situation, and Japan’s strong request, make approval of an F-22EX version (likely without source code, with software lock-outs, and with a downgraded AESA radar like the APG-63v3 a possibility for Israel. It is by no means a certainty, however.

Additional Readings

• Jerusalem Post (Nov 16/06) – Sky High. “ISRAEL HAS its sights on two such planes – the F-35 and the F-22 (branded the “Raptor” by the US Air Force), the only fifth-generation fully operational fighter jet with stealth capabilities….”

• Jerusalem Post (May 22/06) – Israel, US battling over sale of jets