/reeve.gif)
http://www.defence.pk/forums/military-f ... ystem.html
MIDDLE EAST/AFRICA
Date Posted: 08-Oct-2010
Jane's Defence Weekly
Saudi Arabia signs up for Erieye surveillance system
08-10-2010
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.