Media Statement - 19th March 2007
Minister Nelson’s appearance on 60 Minutes last night raises more questions than it answers about the Howard Government’s management of Australia’s air defences.
Inexplicable was his failure, on three occasions, to say which aircraft the Government compared the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter with before putting its trust in the aircraft’s ability to adequately defend the nation.
His refusal to run through an “exhaustive” list certainly can’t be explained by time constraints given the limited number of alternative aircraft in existence. And no possible national security issues arise from disclosing such a list.
The truth is, the Howard Government was all too hasty in signing up to the purchase of 100 United States sponsored and manufactured Joint Strike Fighters. And Minister Nelson’s performance last night fuels doubt about whether any comparative work was undertaken at all.
The fact is that the Prime Minister signed up to the $16 billion JSF project and made a decision to retire the RAAF’s F-111s early without properly doing its homework and giving proper consideration of the likelihood of delivery delays and cost blowouts and the consequent narrowing of the price gap between the JSF and the F-22 Raptor.
The Government’s handling of Australia’s air capability has already led to an unfunded $6 billion purchase of 24 Super Hornets to fill the gap caused by the expected delay in the delivery of the JSF. Again, no proper comparative analysis appears to have been undertaken prior to making that decision.
An immediate review of the Government’s air capability plan is necessary to restore confidence in the RAAF’s ongoing ability to defend the nation and our defence assets. The Government should also press the US Administration for access to the F-22 Raptor to expand our air capability options as part of the review
Minister Nelson’s evasiveness on these key questions must end.