Proposed acquisition of Kuwaiti Hornet jets aligns with RMAF plans, says Khaled

The Star

The proposed acquisition of 38 F/A-18C/D Hornet fighter jets from the Kuwait Air Force (KAF) is in line with the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) plans.  Speaking to reporters on Friday (Oct 11), Defence Minister Datuk Seri Mohamed Khaled Nordin said the procurement of the KAF jets is also appropriate as the aircraft have low flight hours.  Read more at https://tinyurl.com/y5kedmtd  WATCH MORE: https://thestartv.com/c/news SUBSCRIBE: https://cutt.ly/TheStar LIKE: https://fb.com/TheStarOnline

Transcript

00:00Can you tell us about your visit to Kuwait last night?

00:06Yes, Kuwait welcomed us well and gave us a good service to the Human Relations Group

00:16We had the opportunity to meet with the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister

00:22Both of them have presented positive signs for our request to acquire Jet F-18 legacy Hornet assets

00:40which are owned by them for the past 39 years, except for the 38th year due to an accident

00:48It was due to two reasons. First, the agreement between the US government and the US manufacturer

01:02Second, when Kuwait was able to acquire the Super Hornet, which was expected to be acquired by the end of next year

01:19So, based on these two factors, Kuwait has no obstacle. And to show that the agreement is positive,

01:32Kuwait also agreed to form a force to discuss the acquisition aspects

01:39Do you have any plans to expand the Hornet business in Kuwait?

01:46The use of the Hornet is still in an unfavorable environment for us to manage

01:59Meaning, its flying time is 2,000 hours, 3,000 hours, it can go up to 6,000-7,000 hours

02:10So, it is still there. Second, we have to look at our plans

02:15In our quest for modernization of the army, every service has its own framework

02:26And for the Air Force, what has been stated, if we acquire from Kuwait, it meets the plans made by the Air Force

02:43As a stopgap, we have to understand that to buy a plane, it takes up to 10 years

02:58If we want to wait, if we want to buy a new one, our delivery will be in 2035

03:06Because in the plane, there are various equipments that do not come from one company

03:16We have to make sure that it is suitable for our country, in our capabilities, and it is the latest

03:24And it will take time to acquire

03:27Then we have to ask for approval, like precision missiles, if the government does not agree, we cannot install

03:36So, it takes time

03:38So, if we acquire, let's say I acquire, I want to buy a plane, it will take 3-4 years

03:45It will take 3-4 years to start building

03:48So, in 2035, if we want to acquire, let's say we buy a new one, in between, we have nothing

03:57And we have to understand that in 2027, all the Hawk aircrafts in Labuan will be decommissioned

04:07It is no longer possible

04:09So, what are we going to do?

04:11And we have planned to see the acquisition of Kuwait since 2018

04:18In 2018, Kuwait has ordered Super Hornet, until now, it has not accepted

04:25Until now, it has not accepted, how many years

04:28So, that's the question, to buy a plane, so it's not easy

04:32If it's a car, it's okay, there's a showroom, you can buy it right away

04:38This is a plane, and that's a ship, not like that

04:41So, we have to understand

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