Israel offers Hungary MiG upgrade

[Reuters]

BUDAPEST, Hungary (Reuter) - Israel Aircraft Industries said
Thursday it could bring Hungary's MiG fighter jets up to NATO
standards for $130 million to $150 million, less than a tenth
the price of buying new aircraft.
In a lavish sales presentation, officials of state-owned
IAI's Lahav Division sought to woo public and government opinion
away from competing proposals for Hungary, a former east-bloc
country eager to join NATO, to buy western-made planes.
Also in the running for what could be a more than $1 billion
order by Hungary for up to 30 NATO-compatible fighter planes are
McDonnell Douglas/Northrop's F-18 and French manufacturer
Dassault Aviation's Mirage 2000-5.
``Our offer is to do something in the way of an interim
solution,'' said Hilal Shacham, Lahav's marketing manager. +
He said the Israeli proposal to rebuild 28 of Hungary's
ageing MiG 21s would permit the cash-strapped country to delay
purchasing new fighters and at the same time would bring the
MiGs up to NATO standards in terms of weaponry, radar, computer
tracking devices and avionic equipment.
``The avionics is similar to the avionics in a new
fighter,'' he said, adding that the price for upgrading the MiGs
was about 9 percent that of buying Swedish-made Gripens and just
under 14 percent of the cost of upgraded Lockheed F-16s,
considered the main contenders for Hungary's business.
IAI officials, who brought in a flight simulator and one of
their test pilots for the presentation, said about 40 percent of
the contract price would be reinvested in Hungary in offset
projects, primarily in the Dunai aircraft factory. The work
would employ 500 to 600 Hungarians, the officials said.