Colombia made the decision for the ageing Kfir fighters. Colombian Air Force is planning to order Rafale for replacement. It is known that the Kfirs will reach the end of their technical life.
Several aircraft, including JAS-39 Gripen, F-16V and Eurofighter Typhoon, are entitled to the transition process. The Colombian government is announced its intentions for Rafale officially after feasibility studies. Local officials said that Saab could not meet requirements during negotiations. Eurofighter is also removed from the list because of its high operating costs. Official sources claim that all requests are met by France"s offer after the removal of certain end-user restrictions on Rafale. French offer has also consisted shortest delivery term for aircraft. During the process, Rafales will gain Derby, Python and several Israeli weapons. The total ordered aircraft amount is expected as 16.
Colombia did not give priority to Kfir"s replacement for a time. After negotiations and feasibility studies, local sources claimed that only the French offered to accept new weapon integration to the aircraft and met end-user requirements.
