Saudi Arabia signs up for Erieye surveillance system

[fatman17]

MIDDLE EAST/AFRICA
Date Posted: 08-Oct-2010


Jane's Defence Weekly


Saudi Arabia signs up for Erieye surveillance system

Robert Hewson Jane's Air-Launched Weapons Editor - London

Saudi Arabia is at the centre of an SEK4.5 billion (USD670 million) deal for the Erieye airborne surveillance system announced by Saab on 4 October. Citing a confidentiality agreement, Saab will not name the customer concerned, but the Swedish company was forced by financial reporting rules to reveal the order.

Several official sources have now confirmed to Jane's that Saudi Arabia is the buyer, making it the eighth country to adopt the Erieye mission system after Brazil, Greece, Mexico, Pakistan, Sweden, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Saudi Erieye order is thought to be part of a larger package of defence systems the Kingdom is looking to acquire from Sweden.

As announced, the contract includes "delivery of the Saab 2000 airborne early warning & control [AEW&C] system, which comprises a Saab 2000 aircraft equipped with the advanced Erieye radar system. The contract also includes ground equipment as well as logistics and support services." The language implies the order involves a single aircraft, although the value of the deal would seem to indicate otherwise.

Saab made a follow-on statement to note: "The project will run for a period of approximately 4.5 years from the time the order was announced." This suggests the Saudi programme is a turn-key deal, with Saab providing aircraft and personnel to support operations within Saudi Arabia.

The most obvious tasking for an Erieye is along Saudi Arabia's disputed border with Yemen. The system's ability to track low and slow-moving targets, along with its overland and maritime surveillance capabilities, is immensely valuable to the Kingdom.

The Royal Saudi Air Force (RSAF) already has a fleet of Boeing E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning And Control System (AWACS) aircraft, currently the subject of a USD2 billion upgrade effort. It is possible, therefore, that the Erieye programme is the responsibility of a national agency other than the RSAF.

Saudi Arabia is set to become the second customer, after Pakistan, for the Erieye airborne surveillance system mounted on a Saab 2000 platform.

 

[Peregrine]

Nice! Eireye is almost on the path to set it's legacy like F-16 did, show's how potent this system is. I wonder if, Pakistan had any role to play in this deal, as Sentry would have been the likely option for Saudis.

 

[muse]

WHY? Don't Saudi Arabia with all their money and cushy US connections, have access to US equipment? What capability the Saab 2000 can offer that the E3 does not?

 

[Archie]

So saudi Arabia is the secret customer which SAAB Microsystems was talking about
As far as E3 Sentry is concerned my guess is that there could be some restrictions placed by US on its use , or saudi have found some spy bugs on there E3

 

[muse]

there could be some restrictions placed by US on its use

you think?

But why has that suddenly become a cause for concern?

 

[Peregrine]

WHY? Don't Saudi Arabia with all their money and cushy US connections, have access to US equipment? What capability the Saab 2000 can offer that the E3 does not?

There could be several reasons for that, for starters, maybe Saudis want to diversify their military equipment, have access to new defense market & above all may be Saudi's have finally learned to not judge a book buy it's cover?

 

[muse]

The only reason that seems credible to me is that :

The Swedes provide something that the US refuses to because it will cause political problems for the US inside the US.

Which is curious, or at least a bit of a problem, because after all, the US and Saudi have reached an agreement to sell/buy armament worth US$ 60 Billion.

There is some optimistic suggestion in some quarters that if this purchase from the Swedes is real, that it is meant to augment or support the other user of the Erieye 2000 system - but this is an absurd suggestion, the strategic distance between the Saudi and the Pakistani has increased given the Saudi funding of Wahabi fanatics waging "Jihad" against the Pakistani state and nation.

 

[fatman17]

KSA already has the E-3 sentry which was approved by Pres/RReagan under intense opposition by the US Congress in the 80s. the 3 a/c are now going through a complete MLU and there is once again opposition in congress against some of the software which is part of the MLU. so the Erieye cld be a 'back-up' plan.

 

[muse]

Yaara, what about this US$60Billion ? Software not included? special price for Arbi only?

 

[fatman17]

Yaara, what about this US$60Billion ? Software not included? special price for Arbi only?

watch for news - radar for the F-15s will be a stumbling block! only time will tell.