Not even the maintenance - German Ministry of Defense ignores its own industry

This time it's not a warning about dependency on China, but on the US. And it doesn't affect the semiconductor industry either, but armaments. The Federal Association of the German Aerospace Industry (BDLI) sees the risk of going almost empty-handed with the planned purchase of F-35 fighter jets and CH-47F Chinook heavy-duty helicopters for more than 16 billion euros.

So far, the Ministry of Defense or the federal government has not even demanded that the German industry be involved at least in the maintenance, repair and support of the models, BDLI representatives criticized in a video conference.

The new US fighter jets or helicopters for the Bundeswehr could therefore not be maintained in Germany, but in other European countries in the network of the US armed forces or by the US companies Lockheed (F-35) or Boeing (Chinook), said Martin Kroell BDLI Presidency. This creates a dangerous dependency.

With a view to the future viability of the German industry, this would be a major loss for both military and civil aviation. There is also an economic aspect: "Money that we spend on the USA does not come back." A participation of the domestic industry, on the other hand, brings returns and creates jobs.

"It's not just about maintenance and support, but also about strategic industrial policy," says Kroell. The German industry should sit at the table on an equal footing “and not leave everything to friends in the USA”.

Wolfgang Schoder, BDLI board member and head of Airbus Helicopters Germany, argues similarly. As long as there is no contractual requirement, Boeing will see no urgent need for the helicopters to involve the German industry. The focus is on supplying the US armed forces. The federal government must therefore determine before signing the contract which shares are made in Germany in order to have sovereignty.

The purchase of the fighter jets and helicopters in the USA is one of the major projects from the 100 billion euro special fund for the Bundeswehr. One of the special features is that the replacement for the old Tornado models and the heavy-duty helicopters are being handled as a deal between the governments in Berlin and Washington. Experts speak of an FMS business (Foreign Military Sales), in which purchases are made almost off the peg, without extensive special requests, which are often referred to in the industry as expensive German "gold edge solutions".

In the case of helicopters, Europe does not have a comparable model anyway, so it has to be ordered in the USA. When replacing the outdated Tornado models, rapid availability plays a role. The F-35 model can be used as a future carrier aircraft for dropping tactical atomic bombs, the so-called nuclear sharing of the Bundeswehr.

The industry association BDLI cannot understand why the federal government has so far not planned to involve its own aviation industry in the billion-euro purchases. Other European countries that have ordered the F-35 have firmly agreed on extensive consideration as well as maintenance, servicing and parts production, said BDLI representative Kroell. The most recent example is Switzerland.

After all, tax money was used to build up a competitive industry in Germany for the operational readiness of the Bundeswehr. Over the next 30, 40, 50 years, however, the new systems would have to be maintained, repaired and possibly further developed.

The BDLI executive committee members Schoder and Kroell have a guess for the request that has not been made so far. The Federal Ministry of Defense has said it fears that German participation will make procurement even more complex and could be delayed.

In addition, US manufacturers could take advantage of this to raise prices. Obviously, the ministry also lacks some experience in dealing with these international corporations. According to information from the BDLI, the Ministry of Defense does not feel responsible for industrial policy.

Kroell admitted that involving the German industry could make procurement a few percentage points more expensive. However, the projects would have to be calculated over the entire period of use. In the case of heavy-duty helicopters, only 30 percent of the total costs would go to procurement, but 70 percent to maintenance over the next 30 years.

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