He said it did not appear that Malaysia would need a multi-role combat fighter (MRCA) urgently as the country would not be facing the threat of conventional warfare in the foreseeable future.
“We must look at who our immediate and long-term enemies are. The immediate threats are those who don’t fight their battles in a conventional manner,” he said.
“For example, militancy, terrorism, piracy and smuggling activities in the ocean are more immediate threats,” he told FMT.
“The Royal Malaysian Air Force’s (RMAF) fleet of Hawk 108 and F/A-18 Hornet are more than capable of providing close air support for non-conventional warfare,” he added.
Lam was commenting on a Reuters report that quoted sources as saying the government is putting on hold a US$2 billion (RM8.6 billion) plan to replace the Russian-made MiG-29 fleet which has been in service since 1990.
According to the report, the government is looking instead at upgrading aerial surveillance capabilities in view of the growing threat of Islamic State (IS)-inspired militancy.
Lam also said the MRCA replacement programme is extremely expensive and the government should explore options that are cheaper in the long run, such as Boeing’s F18F.
He said this should be done instead of limiting options to European solutions like France’s Rafale jet and the Eurofighter Typhoon built by Britain’s BAE Systems, which have been shortlisted by the government.
He also said the F18F shared nearly 30% of the same maintenance and repair services with the RMAF’s F18D squadron.
He added that since the F18F was used by more countries than the Rafale – the front runner for Malaysia’s MRCA replacement programme – it would mean cheaper spare parts in the future.
He said the government needed to consider not just the cost of a fighter jet, but also that of maintenance and repairs.
Even though the Rafale was technologically good and it was cheaper per unit than the F18F, the cost of maintenance would be heavier in the long run as fighter jets are used for decades, he said.
“Given the current economic situation, perhaps we should look outside of Europe,” he said.
Lam also pointed out that Malaysia should be planning for next-generation fighters, given that the development of fighter jets was shifting towards stealth fighters, leaving non-stealth ones obsolete.
On threats from non-conventional warfare, Lam said maritime patrol aircraft would be more vital than MRCA, especially since Malaysia had already lost one Beechcraft B200T in an accident last year.
Last December, Major C Kayamboo, the pilot of the turboprop plane, was killed and three others were injured after the aircraft crashed close to the RMAF Butterworth landing strip.
Ageing aircraft need to be replaced
Meanwhile, retired brigadier-general Mohd Arshad Raji said he believed that the MRCA replacement programme should not be postponed given the importance of air superiority in modern warfare.
“I think the bottom line is the cost. I believe this is more likely the primary reason (for shelving the purchase) rather than a shift in priorities,” he said.
“We do need to replace the ageing aircraft and also increase our surveillance capabilities,” he added.
It has been reported that nearly half of the RMAF’s MiG-29 fighters have been grounded, while the number of Beechcraft B200T has been reduced to three after last year’s crash.
“Based on the report it seems that we don’t have enough funds for the MRCA replacement programme. But it’s a shame when you think of how much money we’ve lost to leakages as revealed every year in the Auditor-General’s reports,” he said.
Arshad said that when it came to surveillance, Malaysia could also count on the joint efforts of Indonesia and the Philippines, and should therefore not sacrifice the MRCA replacement programme for surveillance assets.
Joint operations
Last month, Nikkei Asian Review reported that Malaysia, the Philippines and Indonesia started joint sea operations to deter piracy and counter the growing threat of terrorism.
The joint operations will cover the Celebes Sea, where the three countries share maritime borders, and the nearby Sulu Sea.
The joint patrols came following a string of abductions in the Sulu Sea where southern Philippines-based insurgency group Abu Sayyaf abducted an Indonesian ship crew and other victims to hold them for ransom.
It also comes in the wake of the IS-affiliated Maute group’s attempted takeover of Marawi City in Mindanao to create the movement’s stronghold.
Defence source: Malaysia shelves plan to buy new fighter jets