TOKYO — Japan picked Lockheed Martin’s F-35 jet as its next mainstay fighter on Tuesday, choosing the aircraft over combat-proven but less stealthy rivals, as concern simmers over North Korea and as China introduces its own stealth fighters.
The decision came as Japan and the United States stressed that their security alliance was tight in the face of worry about an unstable North Korea after the death of its leader, Kim Jong-il.
The Japanese defense minister, Yasuo Ichikawa, said the decision to buy 42 of the stealth aircraft, valued by analysts at more than $7 billion, would help Japan adjust to a changing security environment after the announcement of the death of Mr. Kim, the 69-year-old North Korean leader.
“The security environment surrounding future fighter jets is transforming. The F-35 has capabilities that can firmly respond to the changes,” Mr. Ichikawa told reporters.
Lockheed Martin and the Pentagon hailed Japan’s selection of the F-35, saying it would help establish a strategic, conventional deterrent in the Asia-Pacific region, where officials are worried about about instability under Mr. Kim’s successor, his son Kim Jong-un.
“The F-35 Program Office looks forward to strengthening partnerships with Japan, and contributing to enhanced security throughout the Asia Pacific region,” the Pentagon said in a statement after Japan announced its decision.
The F-35, which is in an early production stage, competed against Boeing’s F/A-18 and the Eurofighter Typhoon, made by a consortium of companies including BAE Systems.
Experts said the decision to choose the Lockheed plane, made informally well before news of Mr. Kim’s death, reflected Japan’s desire to tighten its ties with the United States in the face of concern over China’s rising military might and other regional uncertainties.
“It reflects Japan’s recognition on a variety of levels that at a time of greater insecurity, it needs to be more deeply engaged with the United States on security issues,” said Brad Glosserman, executive director at Honolulu’s Pacific Forum Center for Strategic and International Studies. “Once again, Japan’s security policy is right back to the post-war Japanese mainstream — the decision that the U.S. is Japan’s best security partner.”
Japan had been widely expected to choose the F-35 because of its advanced stealth capability and its United States origin. Stealth technology has drawn much attention in Japan since China, confirmed in January that it had held its first test flight of the J-20 stealth fighter jet.
Japan’s choice helps Lockheed Martin’s F-35 program, which has been restructured twice in the past two years, and is expected to increase the odds that South Korea will follow suit with its own order for 60 fighters.
“This program badly needed an endorsement like this, particularly one from a technically respected customer. But there are still many complications, especially price tag and work share demands,” said Richard Aboulafia, an analyst with the Teal Group in the United States.
He said the F-35 program was facing scrutiny from American lawmakers and officials who want to trim hundreds of billions of dollars from the defense budget over the next decade.
Boeing’s loss of the order would be a real setback for the company’s prospects in the fighter business, especially since there were few other large competitions open, said Loren Thompson of Lexington Institute. “The market place is signaling to Boeing that its days in the fighter business may be numbered,” Mr. Thompson said.
Three Japanese firms — Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, IHI and Mitsubishi Electric, will participate in the production and maintenance of the F-35, the Defense Ministry said.
Article source: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/21/business/global/japan-picks-lockheed-fighter.html?partner=rss&emc=rss