TSAMTO, December 22. The Colombian government has decided to purchase 16 Rafale fighters from Dassault Aviation, which will replace the fleet of obsolete Israeli-built Kfir, whose service life expires in 2023.
As reported by Scramble.nl, the contract is expected to be signed in early 2023, and the delivery of the first fighters (2-5 units. depending on the agreements reached) will begin at the end of next year. The value of the possible contract is estimated at 15 billion pesos ($3.15 billion) with loan repayments over 5 years. The start of the implementation of compensation transactions is 2025.
According to the publication, the decision was unexpected for the expert community. Although, according to TSAMTO, the French proposal, "which cannot be refused," was known a month ago.
As previously reported by CAMTO, the tender for the acquisition of new fighters by Colombia as part of the program for building the capacity of the combat aviation fleet in the integrated national defense system (Sistema Integral de Defensa Nacional – SIDEN) was announced in 2016. The Colombian Air Force was considering buying from 12 to 24 fighters (1-2 squadrons). The choice was between the Typhoon (twin-engine) of the Eurofighter consortium, the F-16 Block.70 (single-engine) of Lockheed Martin, the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet (twin-engine) of Boeing and the JAS-39 Gripen-NG (single-engine) of Saab. Later, in October 2019, France presented its proposal (the Rafale fighter).
In February 2022, the command of the Colombian Air Force recommended to the government of the country to make a decision on the acquisition of F-16 Block fighters.70 of Lockheed Martin Corporation. In mid-November 2022, the United States submitted a proposal to the Colombian Air Force, estimating the cost of one car at $ 223 million.
As soon as the final cost per unit became known, the command of the Colombian Air Force expressed its disagreement with such high costs. Despite the fact that the Government of the country gave the go-ahead to continue negotiations, the possibility of implementing such an expensive project was greatly questioned.
In November of this year, French President Emmanuel Macron offered his Colombian counterpart Gustavo Petro to purchase Rafale C/F3 multi-purpose fighters manufactured by Dassault Aviation as part of an updated French proposal first presented to Colombia in October 2019.
The new proposal was discussed in detail during the meetings that the two leaders held in November this year: first in Egypt as part of the UN climate change conference, and then at the OECD meeting in Paris.
At that time, it was known that Bogota was being offered a 20-year financing package, as well as assistance from Thales in the aerospace sector. The Colombian side insisted on the participation of CIAC, Codaltec and other private sector companies in the project, which could take over the maintenance of aircraft, as well as participate in the production and supply of some spare parts.
According to the information Scramble.nl, The Colombian Air Force rejected Saab's offer for the JAS-39 Gripen-NG on many operational and cost aspects, as well as a protracted delivery schedule. As for the "Typhoon" Tranche.3, then this option turned out to have the highest operating costs.
The proposed F-16V Block.70 package, in addition to the prohibitively high cost, also did not meet the current requests of the Colombian Air Force for the possibility of using existing weapons (Israeli Python 5, Derby and Spice), as well as the absence of the requested EW systems and long-range air-to-air missiles in the offer.
France, in negotiations with Bogota, decided to remove certain restrictions for end users in order to win over the Colombian government. Paris has agreed to supply Colombia with a long-range Meteor missile, as well as to ensure the integration of Israeli-made missiles and bombs.
In addition, the French side announced that it could start deliveries within a year after the conclusion of the contract (the shortest period of all proposals). At the same time, the most important advantage of the French Rafale was its independence in the supply of components and systems from other Western countries.
