Forum: Program and politics

Norway orders first F-35; secures JSM integration support
Norway today commenced the largest public procurement project in its history.

F-35 Joint Strike Fighter and Joint Strike Missile.

The event was marked by Minister of Defence Espen Barth Eide authorizing the order for the first F-35A Lightning II for the Norwegian Armed Forces. The decision to move forward was reached following an extended dialogue with the US Department of Defence aimed at securing opportunities for Norwegian industry.

- We have today made two critical decisions. For the first time in three decades we are now ordering new combat aircraft for the Armed Forces. Additionally, we will begin preparations for the final phase of Joint Strike Missile (JSM) development after receiving confirmation from US authorities of their support for the integration of the missile into the F-35, says Norwegian Minister of Defence Espen Barth Eide.

- This marks a key milestone in the Norwegian F-35 programme and the beginning of the largest public procurement in Norwegian history. The F-35, which Norway selected in 2008, represents a completely new generation of combat aircraft that will form a corner stone of the future Norwegian Armed Forces, says Minister of Defence Espen Barth Eide.

Confirmation of JSM integration support was provided in a letter from US Secretary of Defence, Leon Panetta to Norwegian Minister of Defence Espen Barth Eide earlier this week.

- Securing such support has been an important precondition for many of our partner nations before they would themselves commit to supporting the JSM. With such support finally in place there is now a significant potential for the missile among future operators of the F-35. Preparations for the final phase of procurement will therefore begin now, says Minister of Defence Espen Barth Eide.

The Norwegian-developed JSM represents one of the most advanced weapons available within its category, and will further enhance the operational capabilities of the F-35. Total market potential for the JSM is estimated to be between NOK 20 and 25 billion/USD 3.3 and 4.2 billion.

The two aircraft authorized today are expected to be joined by a second pair in 2016, and will be based in the United States as part of a joint partner training centre. They are to be followed by up to 48 additional aircraft from 2017 that are to be based at Ørland Main Air Station in central Norway. A small forward operating base will also be based at Evenes in northern Norway to provide quick reaction alert (QRA) services in the high north. An estimated 10% of the overall force generation will also be carried out from the Evenes FOB.

The overall cost of the procurement phase of the project is estimated at NOK 60 billion/USD 10 billion (2012 value) in real terms.

The decision to centralise the combat aircraft force at Ørland was approved when the Norwegian Parliament approved the new Defence White Paper on the 14th of June. This paper also confirmed the overall ambition for up to 52 F-35s for the Norwegian Armed Forces. Norway will over the coming years see a budget increase of 7% by 2016 through redistribution of funds freed up by the withdrawal from Afghanistan and the addition of significant supplementary funds for the F-35 purchase.

- Norway's parliament yesterday approved a significant increase in defence spending in order to finance the purchase and to increase the general operating budget of the Armed Forces. At the same time, the Parliament has shown courage in making tough but necessary decisions in order to continue the work to rationalize the base infrastructure. This means that the positive development we have seen in the Norwegian Armed Forces over the past four years will continue, concludes Minister of Defence Espen Barth Eide.

http://www.tnp.no/norway/panorama/2994- ... on-support

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Last edited by norseman on Jun 17, 2012 - 04:50 PM; edited 1 time in total

As a Norwegian I am very happy with this.

Hopefully the F-35 will serve us as well as the F-16 have done.

Today I listened to a radio debate the Norwegian defense minister had with a well known defense analyst and JSF critic John Berg (of Janes magazine supposedly) about the prospects of selling the JSM to the US, witch is the marked that really counts. Berg held the view that selling the missiles to the U.S would be very hard to do given the U.S Congress habit of overturning Pentagons previous decisions of buying foreign military hardware in the past. The defense minister agreed to this but was still optimistic, and refer d to other export successes Norway have had with military sales to the U.S.

$10 billion / 52 aircraft ~ $192 million each. I assume that includes training, engines, spares, etc. (total program procurement cost). Cheaper than a Typhoon at least!

Some aircraft numbers for the record on this forum...

Norway Places F-35A Buy By Robert Wall wall@aviationweek.com 15 June 2012

http://www.aviationnow.com/Article.aspx ... 468335.xml

"...The F-35A commitment is for the first two of 52 aircraft to be purchased over the program’s duration. The program’s cost for Norway is put at around $10 billion.

The two aircraft now ordered are to be used for training and will be based in the U.S. Two more F-35s are to be acquired for that purpose, with all four aircraft to be in place in 2016. The 48 other F-35s are to be based at Norway’s Orland Main Air Station, with deliveries to begin in 2017, the defense ministry says.

The Evenes base will be used as a forward operating location to help secure Norway’s interests in the north. The base projects that it will host 10% of operations.

The Norwegian parliament this week signed off on a budget increase needed for the deal."

Info about JSM part of deal at URL.

Norway’s JSF Deal Bolsters JSM missile By Robert Wall 25 June 2012

http://www.aviationweek.com/Article.asp ... ml&p=1

"...Several other F-35 Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) partners have shown interest in the weapon, which is still in development, with even the U.S. Navy viewed as a potential customer. Norway sees a potential of $3.3 billion to $4.2 billion in sales for the missile....

...The missile, to be carried inside the F-35's weapons bay, is to be integrated on JSF starting with the Block 4 configuration standard. Missile development is expected to be completed before then. Critical design review for the weapon is planned for mid-2013, with the final development phase to begin soon after, says Paal Bratlie, executive vice president at Kongsberg Defense Systems. Pre-integration studies on the fighter go back as far as 2008, with development to wrap up around 2018 or 2019, according to a Norwegian defense ministry official.

JSF flight trials are set to begin in early 2014. The JSM is derived from the in-service Naval Strike Missile, although the air-launched version uses a dual-intake and dispenses with the booster motor. Kongsberg also plans to retrofit the seeker being developed for JSM on NSM, which uses INS/GPS guidance. JSM will have land-attack and anti-ship capabilities and is being designed to have a range exceeding 150 nm even when fired at low attitude [altitude]. The missile will deliver a 120-kg (265-lb.) warhead...."

Norwegian training program for F-35 pilots 28 June 2012

http://www.norwaypost.no/news/norwegian ... 27110.html

"The Norwegian company Applica Training Systems (ATC) has signed a contract with the US Defence for the development and delivery of a computer-based training program for F-35 fighter pilots...."

Nothing else at the JUMP.

First JSM fuselage unveiled, signalling development milestone 30 Nov 2012

http://www.nortrade.com/sectors/news/-f ... milestone/

"...The JSM is derived from the Naval Strike Missile (NSM), also developed by Kongsberg, which is already operational with the Royal Norwegian Navy. The new missile, the JSM, offers superior capabilities against well defended naval targets, and is capable of being carried internally on the F-35. This allows the aircraft to maintain its low observability while carrying a powerful long range strike capability. The unveiling on Thursday signals that the fuselage design effort has been completed, and that preparations for further testing can continue...."

...- There is a world of difference between an F-35 carrying the JSM and one without it, says Brigadier General Morten Klever with the Norwegian F-35 program, who as a fighter pilot participated in the integration of the Penguin missile on the F-16. – We need the ability to defeat heavily defended high-value targets without having to resort to saturating the target with less capable weapons, an option few can rely on in today’s environment. The JSM, with its long range, high manoeuvrability and accuracy, low signature, and advanced guidance provides just the capability we need, Brigadier General Klever concludes.

The year 2013 will be very important to the JSM development programme, as it will undergo a Critical Design Review during the summer of 2013, after which preparations will begin for its final stage of development and full integration on the F-35."

http://www.nortrade.com/PageFiles/9183/ ... 290994.jpg

IMHO, this is one of the most exciting weapons planned for the F-35.

US Defense Secretary meets Norwegian counterpart 18/Dec/2012 World News

http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticleDetails.a ... anguage=en

"WASHINGTON, Dec 18 (KUNA) -- US Secretary of Defense, Leon Panetta, met here late Monday with Norway's Minister of Defense, Anne-Grete Strom- Erichsen, during which they discussed a number of issues. Pentagon Press Secretary, George Little, said in a statement that Panetta "expressed his gratitude for Norway's continuing support to operations in Afghanistan and for its steadfast commitment to NATO." Panetta "underscored the importance of Norway's involvement in alliance operations, and praised Norway for expediting its acquisition of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter." Little noted that Panetta "highlighted the importance of defense spending and developing future alliance interoperability through the NATO Response Force."... [CANADA - I can't hear you....]

...They also discussed the strategic importance of access to the Arctic," according to the statement."

That is it.

Norway Has Already Considered the Cost Picture for Defence's New F-35 (Source: Norwegian Ministry of Defence; issued Dec.13, 2012)
(Issued in Norwegian only; unofficial translation by defense-aerospace.com)

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articl ... costs.html

"“New cost estimates in any of the partner in the F-35 program may give the impression that there are large increases in lifetime cost around F-35. This is not correct - what happens is that other countries are beginning to work with many of the same assumptions as Norway has done from the beginning,” says Anders Melheim, director of the fighter program.

One such example of the new estimates is that Canada has commissioned an external evaluation of its cost-based consulting firm KPMG. In their report, they presented figures for the possible life-cycle costs of the F-35 which is considerably higher than previous estimates that have been presented by the Canadian government.

This is largely because KPMG believes that Canada must take into account factors that have long been included in the Norwegian estimates.

“From the beginning, we put forward the most complete and true image that conveys what it will actually cost Norwegian society to buy, own and operate a fighter capacity until around 2050. Other countries are now also starting to include as many factors, and are planning to operate the aircraft as long as we do, so it is not surprising that their estimates gradually begin to resemble ours,” says Melheim.

Parliament has decided that the military of the future will have a structure of up to 52 combat aircraft of the type F-35, and that these will be based in Orland.

Deliveries of the aircraft will begin in 2015 when the first aircraft will to be used for training Norwegian pilots stationed in the U.S., followed by the delivery of the first operational aircraft to Norway in 2017.

The Norwegian cost estimate for the procurement phase has remained stable at just over 60 billion since 2008, and is now estimated at 61.2 billion in real 2012-kroner.

“We have made good progress in the program and look forward to building the first Norwegian aircraft will soon be starting. This is a major investment in Norway's security and independence and it is our duty to undertake procurement within the framework of the program as defined by the political leadership,” says the program director."

That is it - with link to Norwegian Language article: http://www.regjeringen.no/nb/dep/fd/dok ... ?id=676224

Good post Spaz, but doesn't it belong in the never ending Canada thread? I think it can really do some good there Wink

Last edited by maus92 on Dec 27, 2012 - 11:12 PM; edited 3 times in total

spazsinbad wrote:

Norway Has Already Considered the Cost Picture for Defence's New F-35 (Source: Norwegian Ministry of Defence; issued Dec.13, 2012)
(Issued in Norwegian only; unofficial translation by defense-aerospace.com)

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articl ... costs.html

"“New cost estimates in any of the partner in the F-35 program may give the impression that there are large increases in lifetime cost around F-35. This is not correct - what happens is that other countries are beginning to work with many of the same assumptions as Norway has done from the beginning,” says Anders Melheim, director of the fighter program.

One such example of the new estimates is that Canada has commissioned an external evaluation of its cost-based consulting firm KPMG. In their report, they presented figures for the possible life-cycle costs of the F-35 which is considerably higher than previous estimates that have been presented by the Canadian government.

This is largely because KPMG believes that Canada must take into account factors that have long been included in the Norwegian estimates.

“From the beginning, we put forward the most complete and true image that conveys what it will actually cost Norwegian society to buy, own and operate a fighter capacity until around 2050. Other countries are now also starting to include as many factors, and are planning to operate the aircraft as long as we do, so it is not surprising that their estimates gradually begin to resemble ours,” says Melheim.

Parliament has decided that the military of the future will have a structure of up to 52 combat aircraft of the type F-35, and that these will be based in Orland.

Deliveries of the aircraft will begin in 2015 when the first aircraft will to be used for training Norwegian pilots stationed in the U.S., followed by the delivery of the first operational aircraft to Norway in 2017.

The Norwegian cost estimate for the procurement phase has remained stable at just over 60 billion since 2008, and is now estimated at 61.2 billion in real 2012-kroner.

“We have made good progress in the program and look forward to building the first Norwegian aircraft will soon be starting. This is a major investment in Norway's security and independence and it is our duty to undertake procurement within the framework of the program as defined by the political leadership,” says the program director."

That is it - with link to Norwegian Language article: http://www.regjeringen.no/nb/dep/fd/dok ... ?id=676224

That's about US$11b to procure - but not operate/sustain - 52 aircraft, about US$211m each.

UPDATE:

The report defines the Investment Phase: "This part of the model includes the cost elements that are expected to accrue in fighter weapon investment phase (until final delivery in 2021), including, among other aircraft, weapons (but not including weapons development,) basic investments in logistics and support organization." From what I can tell, the US$11b is the budget for this phase.

After all the jets are delivered by 2021, the 30 year "Operational phase" begins.

The report defines the Operational phase: "This part of the model includes the cost elements to be incurred in the combat aircraft weapon operational phase (until phased out), which will include upgrade costs, spare parts, fuel, education, training, and maintenance. This also includes investments that are expected to apply in the period (30 years from the last aircraft delivered)."

The report calls the costs associated with the Operational phase as "Lifetime costs," which are estimated at US$41b. The report notes that they expect the annual operating costs of the F-35 weapon system is about US$440m more expensive to operate per year than the F-16 weapon system. The total number of flight hours is assumed to be 9,100 per year, 1,200 of which are training hours flown in the US.

Note: I used Google to translate the report, so any Norwegian speakers please correct any errors that I may have made.

What is included in the sale of the aircraft?

maus92 wrote:

spazsinbad wrote:

Norway Has Already Considered the Cost Picture for Defence's New F-35 (Source: Norwegian Ministry of Defence; issued Dec.13, 2012)
(Issued in Norwegian only; unofficial translation by defense-aerospace.com)

http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articl ... costs.html

That's about US$11b to procure - but not operate/sustain - 52 aircraft, about US$211m each.

Wrong there. The procurement of the a/c themselves was NOK 18 billion (URF, cy2008), now revised to approx NOK 19 billion (URF, cy2008). The rest is contingency, support, spares, logistics, infrastructure (in Norway), fuel, armaments, salaries, crew training, etc. during the procurement phase which at the time of the costing ran from 2016-2021.

The Gripen NG RBI for the acquisition of the a/c was NOK 20 billion plus NOK 4 billion Norway specific upgrades (a notion which Saab did not agree to).