Special negotiating task team had reservations as the air force’s supersonic Cheetahs were serviceable until 2012

A special government task team suggested deferring the purchase of 28 new Gripen fighter aircraft because of concerns that SA might not have enough pilots to fly them, it has emreged from conflicting versions of the government's arms-deal report.

The disclosure is one of several new revelations contained in the draft report, which was apparently "sexed-down" before being released in an edited version as confirmation by AuditorGeneral Shauket Fakie that all had been above board in the multibillion-rand arms deal.

In terms of the controversy-wracked arms deals, 28 Gripen fighter jets, 24 Hawk trainers, 30 utility helicopters, four navy frigates and three submarines were bought for R30bn in 1999.

But the new document shows that an International Offers Negotiating Team including officials from the defence, finance and trade and industry departments, and Armscor had reservations about the need for the Gripen fighter jets.

According to the draft report, the negotiating team told a meeting of cabinet ministers in May 1999 that "the air force has 50 Supersonic Cheetah fighter aircraft which have recently had a midlife upgrade (and which) are able to operate until 2012".

But it warned that "currently the air force has only nine pilots able to fly these Cheetah fighters (plus an additional seven staff officers who are currently based at the air force headquarters)".

"There is therefore a capacity constraint to absorb the Gripen should these be supplied earlier than the time required."

The team also warned that it was risky to buy the planes so far in advance, considering possible currency fluctuations and the possibility "that there may be better-priced suitable alternatives available" in the future.

The team suggested government should "seek to negotiate a deferment of the procurement (of the Gripens) on terms and conditions which are practical and favourable, failing which the tender should be scrapped for the present moment".

Government then modified its plans, deciding that the negotiators should try to put together a single contract for the delivery of the Gripen and lead-in fightertrainer Hawks, rather than the two separate contracts as planned.

Ultimately, the deal was done with UK defence group BAe for both sets of planes.

The Gripens are now due to be delivered in 2007 and 2009 three or more years before the draft report suggested the Cheetahs were due to be retired.

At the time the contracts were signed, in December 1999, the total arms deal was valued at R30,3bn, roughly half of which was for the Hawks and Gripens.

However, last year government estimated that with currency fluctuations, the cost of the entire arms deal had risen to about R48,7bn.

This week, Fakie's office refused to answer specific questions over why this section of the report, regarding pilot capacity, and others matters, had been edited out of the final version.

However, Helmut Roemer Heitman, analyst for Jane's Defence Weekly, said the government team's concerns over pilot capacity in 1999 were largely irrelevant anyway.

"This objection is rather silly. Nine pilots in 1998 is irrelevant when it comes to assessing how many pilots can be trained for when the Gripen are delivered in 2007 and 2009," he said.

Nor did Roemer Heitman see much merit in the suggestion that the Gripen purchase be deferred.

"If the Cheetahs are due to retire in 2012, then you need to have the replacements by no later than 2008 so that you can work these up until they are fully operational, so there is no gap," Roemer Heitman said.

He said that in this context, it would have been almost impossible to delay the purchase of the Gripens.

But whether SA will be able to provide enough pilots to fly the costly Gripen purchases remains a contentious issue.

The defence ministry would not say yesterday whether SA had expanded its list of jet-ready pilots considerably beyond the initial nine, nor would it discuss any progress in preparing its pilots for the arrival of the Gripens.

Defence department spokesman Sam Mkhwanazi said that, "as a matter of policy, we don't respond to unofficial reports and matters based on these reports".

But Roemer Heitman pointed out that the South African Air Force was struggling to find enough black pilots to meet quota requirements.

"They are training people on the fighter lines, but how many of these people will be ready to fly the Gripen when they arrive remains to be seen," he said.

But the debate makes the excised passages that have now emerged all the more important, showing that these concerns worried a high-level government team back in 1999.

Ultimately, the merits of any delay, and the likelihood of SA being able to provide enough pilots for the Gripens, were edited from the final report without the public being any the wiser in this debate.

With acknowledgements to Rob Rose, Tim Cohen and the Business Day.