http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/04/world ... .html?_r=0 (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/03/04/world/middleeast/kerry-announces-millions-in-us-aid-for-egypt.html?_r=0)
Beats the fuck out of me.
Fucking politics man.
Damn.
U.S. gift of F-16 fighters headed to Egypt, despite Morsi's harsh rhetoric (//http://www.foxnews.com/world/2013/01/22/gift-us-f-16-fighter-jets-en-route-to-egypt-amid-criticism/)
QuoteA source who works on the naval air base in Fort Worth, Texas, confirmed the departure of the state-of-the-art fighter planes to FoxNews.com. Sixteen F-16s and 200 Abrams tanks are to be given to the Egyptian government before the end of the year under a foreign aid deal signed in 2010 with then-Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, a longtime U.S. ally.
Birthday present?
If we care so much about Israel, why exactly give their potential enemies state of the art weapons?
Oh U.S.A., so logical...
Quote from: "Shiranu"If we care so much about Israel, why exactly give their potential enemies state of the art weapons?
Oh U.S.A., so logical...
Same reason Prescott Bush financed Hitler... you finance both sides of the conflict and make shitloads of $$$.
Hegelian Dialectic: Problem-Reaction-Solution.
Create or exacerbate the problem, wait for the reaction, then offer your preferred "solution" that benefits you and your cronies.
War is a racket.
Quote from: "Shiranu"If we care so much about Israel, why exactly give their potential enemies state of the art weapons?
Oh U.S.A., so logical...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_Air_Force#Current (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_Air_Force#Current)
That's why. Those aren't exactly state of the art anymore either.
Quote from: "BarkAtTheMoon"Quote from: "Shiranu"If we care so much about Israel, why exactly give their potential enemies state of the art weapons?
Oh U.S.A., so logical...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_Air_Force#Current (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Israeli_Air_Force#Current)
That's why. Those aren't exactly state of the art anymore either.
I worked as an Aircraft Welder for a few years at Hill AFB in Utah. The F-16 dates back to 1979, it is not a new bird. Additionally, all depot and major tear down maintenance is basically done in this country- you give or sell old fighters to other countries. They then have to pay us to maintain them. Same with the tanks. This is a "gift horse" in a sense, because for them to operate, they have to depend on us for support. The F-16 has a non-weldable airframe, and most maintenance involves high tech shit. The engines are wrapped in a Titanium shell and are also mostly non weldable. I worked on the F-4 Phantom, its predecessor. By contrast, it is made almost entirely of weldable metals and can be maintained more easily in the field for that reason.
Trust me, anything we give them has major strings attached.