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The planned purchase by Australia of JSF fighter jets is a matter of grave concern and potentially jeopardises national security, Federal Member for Tangney Dennis Jensen said Tuesday.
Speaking after meeting with senior officials from the manufacturer of the planes, Lockheed Martin, Dr Jensen said the plane would probably be unable to counter the threat posed by new generation Russian Sukhoi jets which are being deployed by many countries in Asia.
“I’ve had a productive and amicable meeting with Lockheed Martin, but my concerns about the Joint Strike Fighter have not been allayed,” Dr Jensen added, following his meeting at Parliament House with Lockheed Martin executive vice president and JSF project leader Tom Burbage, Lockheed Martin Australia managing director Paul Johnson, and the company’s director of Australian market development, Graham Bentley.
“I am looking forward to a detailed briefing on the project which Lockheed Martin has promised to give me in the next few weeks, and I am grateful for this further opportunity to get answers on my concerns about the JSF.”
Dr Jensen has long been a critic of Australia’s plan to purchase up to 100 of the fighter jets, at an estimated cost of $16 billion, particularly on the aircraft’s capability in comparison to the Russian Sukhoi jets being deployed in Asia.
Last month, he spoke in parliament about his continued concerns over the project, and drew attention to the apparent dismissal of a defence analyst who wrote a report critical of the JSF.
“There are many questions remaining about the JSF and with this purchase expected to form the front-line of Australian air defence for several decades, that is not acceptable,” he added.
“Our national security is at stake and that is too important to take chances with.”
(November 11, 2008)
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