New Israel Warplane Expected This Year
The head of Israel Aircraft Industries said Saturday that the prototype of the Lavi, the first Israeli-produced fighter-bomber, will be in the air by September.
Speaking on Israel radio, David Ivri, a former air force chief, said production of the Lavi--its name means “lion”--is proceeding according to schedule. The plane, which has been under development for 10 years, is to spearhead Israel’s air force in the 1990s.
Finance Minister Yitzhak Modai has called for scrapping its production to cut the national budget and help fight inflation, running at an annual rate of 200%.
But Ivri argues that the Lavi will be cheaper than comparable U.S. warplanes.
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