Japan eyes F-15 fighter jet upgrade, stealth jets

TOKYO, Aug 31 (Reuters) Japan's defence ministry plans to request billions of dollars to upgrade its F-15 fighter jets and develop its own stealth fighter since Washington is reluctant to sell its advanced Raptor fighters to its Asian ally.

The ministry is asking for a 4.82 trillion yen (41.6 billion dollars) budget for the fiscal year beginning next April, a rise of 0.7 per cent from this year, officials said.

The budget request, announced today, must be approved by the government as part of its draft budget in December and then enacted by parliament by the end of March.

It includes a request for 112 billion yen to upgrade 32 F-15 fighter jets. Japan's has about 200 F-15s and only eight of them have been upgraded so far.

The ministry wants to upgrade the F-15s to be competitive with neighbouring countries such as China and North Korea, at least until Japan finds successors to its ageing fighter fleet, officials said.

Chinese Defence Minister Cao Gangchuan, on a rare visit to Japan this week, has sought to ease Tokyo's concerns about Beijing's huge military build-up, but mutual mistrust runs deep.

China, seeking to modernise its huge but often poorly equipped military force of over 2 million personnel so it can extend its strategic reach, has said it would increase defence spending by 17.8 per cent to about billion in 2007.

Worries about North Korea also persist after Pyongyang tested its first nuclear weapon last year, despite progress toward implementing a disarmament deal struck in February.

''We will modernise and upgrade the F-15s to respond to the rapid modernisation of the air forces of our neighbours,'' a Japanese air force official said, without singling out China.

''Although the F-15s are major players, they are lagging behind the global trend.'' RAPTOR, THE BEST CHOICE? Japan's defence ministry wants to buy Lockheed Martin's radar-evading F-22s or ''Raptors'' as well as Boeing F-15FX fighters to replace its ageing F-4EJ fighter fleet.

But current US law bans exports of the Raptor, Washington's most advanced stealth fighter, for security reasons.

Japanese defence officials still figure the Raptor, which is equipped for ground attack, electronic attack and eavesdropping, was the best replacement to deal with regional threats.

But they have not ruled out selecting European-made rivals to the F-22, which carries a 136 million dollars price tag.

Possible alternatives include the Eurofighter Typhoon built by a consortium headed by BAE Systems, Europe's largest defence firm, and France's Rafael fighter.

''Whether we continue to upgrade remaining F-15s beyond the next fiscal year depends on the situation involving the selection of next-generation fighter jets,'' a ministry official said.

In the face of U.S. resistance to exports of the cutting edge fighter, the ministry will seek 15.7 billion yen for research and development on home-made radar-evading fighter jets.

''We may be able to have a bargaining chip in our negotiations with the United States by demonstrating the possibility of Japan developing fighter jets on its own,'' another official said.

The ministry is also seeking 158 billion yen for missile defence, including the purchase of ground-based PAC-3 interceptors worth 9.7 billion yen.

Japan and the United States are stepping up cooperation between their armed forces in the face of rising regional tensions after North Korea's nuclear and missile tests last year.

The budget request also included proposed purchases of one 5,000-tonne destroyer, one 2,900-tonne diesel submarine, one 570-tonne mine sweeper and four patrol helicopters.

The army wants funds to buy nine tanks, one fighter helicopters and two transport helicopters.

REUTERS KK VC1450