Boeing announced this week the expansion of its industrial partnership strategy in Germany. The aim is to establish far-reaching new industrial partnerships to support a potential F/A-18 Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler fleet for the German Armed Forces. A corresponding Request for Information (RFI) has been sent to more than ten German companies.
German industrial partners will play an important role in providing support equipment, logistics and overall maintenance, components, local maintenance programs, training and other relevant repair and overhaul solutions for Germany’s Super Hornet and Growler fleet, should the need arise. The German industry will also have the opportunity to participate in the development of the Next Generation Jammer (NGJ) for the EA-18G Growler. The RFIs are the first step towards long-term support from Germany. The value over the entire term of the announced industrial partnerships is around 3.5 billion euros. The continuous deepening of these partnerships will create further cooperation opportunities for German industry in the future. “Germany is home to both outstanding expertise and innovation in the aerospace sector. We look forward to expanding our partnerships within the German F/A-18 Super Hornet and EA-18G Growler fleet,” said Michael Haidinger, President of Boeing Germany, Central and Eastern Europe, Benelux and the Nordics. “With this partner expansion strategy, we are laying the foundation for new business opportunities for German industry champions while creating highly skilled new jobs and long-term economic growth.” According to Boeing, the F/A-18 Super Hornet Block III and EA-18G Growler combination offers “advanced, proven capabilities and low lifecycle and acquisition costs that are ideally suited to meet Germany’s requirements for new combat aircraft, including existing NATO commitments”. With the “lowest operating costs of any US tactical aircraft” according to the manufacturer (17,000 euros per flight hour, source: Special Acquisiton Report of the US Department of Defense), combined with low procurement costs, the Super Hornet could save several billion euros over its entire service life of more than 10,000 flight hours compared to comparable systems. For more than a decade, the EA-18G Growler has supported the full spectrum of electronic warfare missions worldwide, protecting all US Navy and US Air Force 4th and 5th generation systems. Proven in numerous missions, the EA-18G Growler employs broadband jamming capabilities to provide protection across the spectrum of military operations, including defensive air defense, suppression of enemy air defenses, force protection and reconnaissance. The combination of the Super Hornet Block III and EA-18G Growler will provide the Air Force with unmatched capabilities in both air-to-air and ground-to-air operations.
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