F-15 T was chosen over Rafale and Eurofighter
Facing a last hurrah in 2008, Boeing Co.'s F-15 production line scored a major victory on Tuesday when French rival Dassault Aviation SA said Singapore chose the St. Louis-made combat plane in an arms deal worth up to $1.7 billion.
Paris-based Dassault, whose Rafale fighter squared off against the F-15 Eagle in the final round of bidding, conceded defeat early Tuesday. "The American vendor prevailed in Singapore," Dassault said in a statement.
Singapore's selection of the F-15 means that a program that employs 1,000 workers in St. Louis probably will extend through 2010. About 125 defense suppliers in Missouri and Illinois participate in a program whose current orders allowed for production through 2008. Singapore will buy as many as 20 combat planes.
Even better news may be around the corner, said Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo., a senior defense appropriator who has pressed for the sale on annual trips to Singapore in the past five years.
Bond said that "high Air Force officials" told him that when the Pentagon's Quadrennial Defense Review is completed in January, it might show a need for other aircraft - including as many as 100 F-15s - to fill in for Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F/A-22 Raptor. The Air Force prefers the Raptor, but the plane is proving to be more expensive than expected.
For years, members of the Missouri congressional delegation have managed to get small buys of the F-15 by the Air Force to keep the line alive for sales such as to South Korea and now to Singapore.
The sale is a major victory for Missouri and the work force at Boeing, said Sen. Jim Talent, R-Mo., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "Singapore's decision confirms, once again, that our workers in St. Louis build the best military aircraft in the world," he said.
Industry analysts pegged the value of Singapore's order at $1 billion. In addition, the Pentagon notified Congress last month that Singapore would spend up to $741 million on weapons, logistics and training if the F-15 were chosen. Boeing and Raytheon Inc. would get most of that work.
Dassault blamed the dollar's weakness against the euro for making its bid less competitive.
Boeing declined to comment. Singapore's Ministry of Defense said it is "seeking final clarifications and contract negotiation with Boeing," according to a statement on its Web site.
The F-15's weapons payload and combat range clearly outstrip the Rafale, said Richard Aboulafia, a defense and aerospace analyst at the Teal Group in Fairfax, Va. "What you can carry with an F-15, in theory, is equal to an empty Rafale," he said.
In the early 1980s, McDonnell Douglas Corp. delivered more than 100 F-15s in a year. Now, those operations under Boeing will deliver a dozen or so planes a year, after the Pentagon shifted spending to Lockheed Martin Corp.'s Raptor and Joint Strike Fighter.
Boeing's F-15 victory in Singapore comes as the aerospace and defense giant faces a potentially costly strike by more than 18,000 Machinists at its commercial-aircraft division. The strike, which began last week, could reduce the company's earnings by $113 million and revenue by $2.1 billion in the current quarter if the work stoppage lasts more than 30 days, J.B. Groh, an analyst at D.A. Davidson Co., told investors in a research note.
So far, Boeing's strong cash flow and steady contributions from its St. Louis-based defense business have kept credit-rating agencies from getting jittery about the Machinists' strike at plants in Seattle, Oregon and Wichita, Kan.
In the first half of this year, Boeing's defense unit generated $1.7 billion in operating profit, nearly twice as much as the commercial-airplane division.
Boeing's stock has skyrocketed in the past two years as it appeared ready to reclaim its No. 1 ranking from Europe's Airbus SAS for the most deliveries of large commercial jets. In trading Tuesday, shares of Boeing gained 69 cents to close at $65.03; they're up 25.6 percent this year.
Boeing and McDonnell Douglas, which Boeing acquired in 1997, have produced more than 1,500 F-15s since the early 1970s. Most recently, Boeing rolled out the first of 40 F-15Ks for South Korea. The latest version going to Korea will be better than what U.S. pilots fly, because it comes with the latest radar, computers and cockpit displays.
Boeing has positioned the F-15 as a capable alternative to the new combat planes under development. As Boeing defense chief Jim Albaugh often points out, aircraft-development programs have a history of being late and over budget. He doesn't rule out a big order from the Air Force, but recently called it a long shot.
Still, Bond and the rest of the Missouri delegation are pushing ahead and ignoring the odds.
"All along, this was our goal - to keep that line hot so there's not restart costs, so they can move into production potentially for as many as 100 airplanes for the Air Force," Bond said. "The F-22 is behind schedule and over budget, and they can't afford nearly as many as they wanted."
The St. Louis-made F-15
First flight: 1972
Number produced: More than 1,500
Speed: Twice the speed of sound
Combat radius: 1,118 miles before refueling
Other international customers: Israel, Japan and Saudi Arabia
Source: Boeing Co.
Coming out on top
Boeing Co. defeated Paris-based Dassault Aviation in a competition to build fighter jets for Singapore. Here are some reasons why Boeing's F-15 might have gained an edge:
Economics: The weak dollar handicaps the competitiveness of Dassault's bid.
Battle-tested: F-15 models tout 101-0 record in combat.
Allies: Singapore further aligns itself with America's defense industry.
Bells and whistles: The F-15 has been around since the 1970s, but when equipped with the latest radar, computers, weapons and communications, the aircraft remains viable for the future.
Payload: The F-15's maximum weapons load, about 25,000 pounds, is equivalent to an empty Dassault Rafale.
Source: Boeing, Dassault, industry reports
Facing a last hurrah in 2008, Boeing Co.'s F-15 production line scored a major victory on Tuesday when French rival Dassault Aviation SA said Singapore chose the St. Louis-made combat plane in an arms deal worth up to $1.7 billion.
Paris-based Dassault, whose Rafale fighter squared off against the F-15 Eagle in the final round of bidding, conceded defeat early Tuesday. "The American vendor prevailed in Singapore," Dassault said in a statement.
Singapore's selection of the F-15 means that a program that employs 1,000 workers in St. Louis probably will extend through 2010. About 125 defense suppliers in Missouri and Illinois participate in a program whose current orders allowed for production through 2008. Singapore will buy as many as 20 combat planes.
Even better news may be around the corner, said Sen. Christopher "Kit" Bond, R-Mo., a senior defense appropriator who has pressed for the sale on annual trips to Singapore in the past five years.
Bond said that "high Air Force officials" told him that when the Pentagon's Quadrennial Defense Review is completed in January, it might show a need for other aircraft - including as many as 100 F-15s - to fill in for Lockheed Martin Corp.'s F/A-22 Raptor. The Air Force prefers the Raptor, but the plane is proving to be more expensive than expected.
For years, members of the Missouri congressional delegation have managed to get small buys of the F-15 by the Air Force to keep the line alive for sales such as to South Korea and now to Singapore.
The sale is a major victory for Missouri and the work force at Boeing, said Sen. Jim Talent, R-Mo., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "Singapore's decision confirms, once again, that our workers in St. Louis build the best military aircraft in the world," he said.
Industry analysts pegged the value of Singapore's order at $1 billion. In addition, the Pentagon notified Congress last month that Singapore would spend up to $741 million on weapons, logistics and training if the F-15 were chosen. Boeing and Raytheon Inc. would get most of that work.
Dassault blamed the dollar's weakness against the euro for making its bid less competitive.
Boeing declined to comment. Singapore's Ministry of Defense said it is "seeking final clarifications and contract negotiation with Boeing," according to a statement on its Web site.
The F-15's weapons payload and combat range clearly outstrip the Rafale, said Richard Aboulafia, a defense and aerospace analyst at the Teal Group in Fairfax, Va. "What you can carry with an F-15, in theory, is equal to an empty Rafale," he said.
In the early 1980s, McDonnell Douglas Corp. delivered more than 100 F-15s in a year. Now, those operations under Boeing will deliver a dozen or so planes a year, after the Pentagon shifted spending to Lockheed Martin Corp.'s Raptor and Joint Strike Fighter.
Boeing's F-15 victory in Singapore comes as the aerospace and defense giant faces a potentially costly strike by more than 18,000 Machinists at its commercial-aircraft division. The strike, which began last week, could reduce the company's earnings by $113 million and revenue by $2.1 billion in the current quarter if the work stoppage lasts more than 30 days, J.B. Groh, an analyst at D.A. Davidson Co., told investors in a research note.
So far, Boeing's strong cash flow and steady contributions from its St. Louis-based defense business have kept credit-rating agencies from getting jittery about the Machinists' strike at plants in Seattle, Oregon and Wichita, Kan.
In the first half of this year, Boeing's defense unit generated $1.7 billion in operating profit, nearly twice as much as the commercial-airplane division.
Boeing's stock has skyrocketed in the past two years as it appeared ready to reclaim its No. 1 ranking from Europe's Airbus SAS for the most deliveries of large commercial jets. In trading Tuesday, shares of Boeing gained 69 cents to close at $65.03; they're up 25.6 percent this year.
Boeing and McDonnell Douglas, which Boeing acquired in 1997, have produced more than 1,500 F-15s since the early 1970s. Most recently, Boeing rolled out the first of 40 F-15Ks for South Korea. The latest version going to Korea will be better than what U.S. pilots fly, because it comes with the latest radar, computers and cockpit displays.
Boeing has positioned the F-15 as a capable alternative to the new combat planes under development. As Boeing defense chief Jim Albaugh often points out, aircraft-development programs have a history of being late and over budget. He doesn't rule out a big order from the Air Force, but recently called it a long shot.
Still, Bond and the rest of the Missouri delegation are pushing ahead and ignoring the odds.
"All along, this was our goal - to keep that line hot so there's not restart costs, so they can move into production potentially for as many as 100 airplanes for the Air Force," Bond said. "The F-22 is behind schedule and over budget, and they can't afford nearly as many as they wanted."
The St. Louis-made F-15
First flight: 1972
Number produced: More than 1,500
Speed: Twice the speed of sound
Combat radius: 1,118 miles before refueling
Other international customers: Israel, Japan and Saudi Arabia
Source: Boeing Co.
Coming out on top
Boeing Co. defeated Paris-based Dassault Aviation in a competition to build fighter jets for Singapore. Here are some reasons why Boeing's F-15 might have gained an edge:
Economics: The weak dollar handicaps the competitiveness of Dassault's bid.
Battle-tested: F-15 models tout 101-0 record in combat.
Allies: Singapore further aligns itself with America's defense industry.
Bells and whistles: The F-15 has been around since the 1970s, but when equipped with the latest radar, computers, weapons and communications, the aircraft remains viable for the future.
Payload: The F-15's maximum weapons load, about 25,000 pounds, is equivalent to an empty Dassault Rafale.
Source: Boeing, Dassault, industry reports
