Forum

Prolonged Uncertainty Likely for Dutch on JSF
Aviation Week’s DTI | Robert Wall | May 24, 2010

This article first appeared in Aerospace Daily & Defense Report.

LONDON—The state of flux concerning the Netherlands’ involvement in the Lockheed Martin Joint Strike Fighter program is expected to last several more months.
The lower house of the Dutch parliament has narrowly voted to cancel the purchase of an F-35 initial operational test and evaluation (IOT&E) aircraft, but the caretaker government now in place is refusing to follow suit and wants the decision left to the new government.
General elections in the Netherlands are planned for June 9. But industry officials warn the situation could remain unresolved for several months as new coalition agreements are worked out. Those could drag into September.
The F-35 purchase has been politically contentious in the Netherlands for some time, with left-leaning parties trying to quash the deal. The debate has become more heated in recent weeks owing to the F-35’s schedule and cost overruns.
In a series of three votes, the left coalition May 20 voted to force the government to cancel the purchase of the IOT&E aircraft that was ordered last year and is due for delivery next year—the Netherlands was going to buy a second, but the contract had not been placed yet.
The parliament also required the government to consider other aircraft for its F-16 replacement and not to take any major program decisions. The key vote, on the IOT&E cancellation, passed by 79 to 71.
Program supporters believe the decision to call the vote despite a prior agreement within parliament not to do so is viewed as an effort by the left-leaning parties to mobilize their political base in advance of elections.
What the actual effect of the vote will be is still not clear. A defense ministry official says the government says it is refusing to adhere to the legislators’ demand and will not cancel the contract.
The Netherlands has been operating with a caretaker government since February, when the coalition in power at the time split over a dispute on continued involvement in Afghanistan.
The defense ministry official says the decision on what to do about JSF should be left to the new government and parliament, which also will be reshaped by the June elections.
According to a prepared statement, Lockheed says it is “currently monitoring the Dutch election… The way forward for the Netherlands on the specific structure of its F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program is not expected to crystallize until after the formation of the new government coalition, which will depend on the outcome of the elections and talks between the leading parties.”
The current government had urged lawmakers to hold off on any decision until more detailed JSF cost figures were available and the effect on the costs to the Netherlands were fully understood. The Dutch military was looking to start buying operational F-35s starting in 2012—having last year slipped the decision two years already—with a total purchase of 85 units planned.
“The situation is confusing,” one military official says.
The Netherlands has a representative involved in contractual talks between the U.S. and Lockheed for the fourth low-rate production lot, under which the second IOTE aircraft would be purchased.