By Gabriel Porfilio
The Uruguayan government has officially intended to acquire Bae Hawk 200 aircraft, Infodefensa.com has confirmed.
The Uruguayan Air Force’s purchase option would be a batch of single-seat 200-series units, along with two or three two-seat 100-series, to restore some of the capabilities lost with the retirement of most of its fighter aircraft, with only one or two Cessna A37B Dragonfly aircraft currently in flying order.
The purchase has yet to clear the legal hurdle imposed by the US government regarding the modifications the US government has requested to the Shootdown Act, passed as part of the Law of Urgent Consideration (LUC) years ago.
The amendments include prohibiting the Uruguayan Air Force from shooting down possible civilian aircraft in violation, something the US disapproves of.
The shootdown law was not included in the referendum that was popularly voted to overturn some dozens of articles of the LUC, so it can be modified by law with a simple majority, something that the government has today and would easily be joined by opposition votes.
Although the Uruguayan government has expressed off the record its willingness to make the referred changes, something that would be relatively simple considering that the political opposition also does not support demolition as a way to deter potential violators, in reality, not much progress has been made in the legislative process necessary to make the changes.
All that remains now is to wait and see what political moves the Uruguayan government makes to lift the US veto and thus gain access to much-needed air assets for its Air Force.
With information from Infodefensa
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