The Lavi jet fighter project, which appears to have lost the confidence of the defense establishment and is in deep trouble because of cost overruns, was vigorously defended by Moshe Keret, director of Israel Aircraft Industries (IAI), the government-owned company that manufactures the plane.
Keret had the ear of Vice Premier and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, a strong advocate of high technology industries, who visited the IAI plant Thursday.
His main argument was that halting the Lavi project would remove Israel from the roster of aircraft producing countries. IAI has built two prototypes of the advanced combat jet and is currently testing them. It plans to test additional prototypes and select the best for production. But that awaits government approval.
IAI also manufactures the Kfir, the first jet fighter designed and built in Israel, as well as a line of executive jets. Keret told Peres that half of IAI’s 20,000 employees were engaged in the production of various types of aircraft. He said IAI’s exports accounted for 15 percent of Israel’s total exports, with sales of some $600 million a year.
Since 1980, IAI has exported about $2.2 billion worth of planes and other high technology products, Keret said. But while Peres had praise for its high technical level, he could make no promises about the Lavi. Its future depends on economic considerations, he said.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
