Japan has formally given up plans to acquire next-generation fighter jets and cargo plans for the Air Self-Defense Force in fiscal 2009, Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura said Saturday after endorsing a revised version of the Defense Ministry's fiscal 2005-2009 Mid-Term Defense Program earlier in the day.
Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said it has taken the government longer than expected to decide which models to buy.
Japan planned to introduce seven "FX" fighters and eight "CX" cargo airplanes by end of fiscal 2009 to replace the Air Self-Defense Force's F-15 fighters and C-1 cargo jets.
The government is trying to secure outlays to upgrade 22 F-15s in the fiscal 2009 budget "to make sure that our defense capability will not decline," Hamada told a press conference, referring to the delay.