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Germany confirmed on Monday it aims to replace its ageing fleet of Tornado fighter-bombers with aircraft from both European manufacturer Airbus and US-based Boeing.<\/p>\n
Berlin is eager to balance European and American alliances via its military aircraft-buying scheme, but the decision to move ahead with the US purchases has angered some politicians who allege a lack of transparency.<\/p>\n
An official decision on the procurement plan will be sent to parliament\u2019s defence committee \u201cin the coming days,\u201d defence ministry spokesman Arne Collatz-Johannsen told reporters in Berlin.<\/p>\n
\u201cFewer than a third\u201d of the new aircraft would be American models, with the majority made up of European products, he added.<\/p>\n
A source close to the plans confirmed German media reports that the defence ministry prefers to hedge its bets between EU and US suppliers, by purchasing around 90 Airbus-made Eurofighters and 45 Boeing F-18 jets.<\/p>\n
The solution balancing allies on both sides of the Atlantic is seen by the conservative-led defence ministry as vital because even after the Tornados are retired, Berlin must maintain its air force\u2019s capability to carry American nuclear weapons as part of its commitments under the NATO military alliance.<\/p>\n
At present, the Tornado is the only Luftwaffe, or air force, aircraft certified to carry the nuclear bombs.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe recommend a mixed solution which would keep the European defence industry running at capacity and what\u2019s more, concerning less than a third of the total, possibly come from non-European suppliers,\u201d Collatz-Johannsen said.<\/p>\n
France \u2018pleased\u2019<\/strong> But with a final procurement decision is unlikely before the next parliament beginning in 2021, that has angered some from the centre-left social democrats (SPD), junior coalition partners in Chancellor Angela Merkel\u2019s government.<\/p>\n \u201cNothing has been made transparent to us in any way,\u201d defence committee chief Wolfgang Hellmich told the Sueddeutsche Zeitung daily.<\/p>\n \u201cSo far we have received nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n While the defence spokesman said SPD Finance Minister Olaf Scholz and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas had been informed, the centre-left party\u2019s most determined opponents of nuclear weapons \u2013 and of buying American planes to carry them \u2013 are among its MPs.<\/p>\n Operating the Tornado will \u201cno longer be economical\u201d by 2030 according to ministry spokesman Collatz-Johannsen, making 2025 the deadline for finding a replacement.<\/p>\n Meanwhile a Franco-German next-generation fighter dubbed the Future Combat Air System (FCAS) is not expected to be ready until 2040.<\/p>\n \u201cThat leaves us with a capability gap to bridge,\u201d the defence spokesman said.<\/p>\n But a French diplomatic source told AFP that Paris is \u201cnever pleased to see a European partner buy American equipment\u201d.<\/p>\n Germany buying the F-18 is judged by France as \u201cless problematic\u201d than the newer F-35, a significantly more expensive alternative that could have called into question Berlin\u2019s commitment to FCAS.<\/p>\n
\nGerman Defence Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer had told her American counterpart Mark Esper about the plans over the weekend, the spokesman said.<\/p>\n