Vietnam eyes C-130s as Greece, Slovakia get US jets; India buys Russian missiles

(Originally published July 26 in “What in the World“) Blast from the past: A version of “Puff the Magic Dragon”—the famed American warplane—may be making a return to Vietnam.

Hanoi is in talks with Washington to buy C-130 military transport aircraft as part of its effort to diversify away from its dependence on Russian suppliers for its defense procurement. The C-130 Hercules has been in operation since the Korean War, with more than 2,500 flown by more than 70 different nations.

History buffs may recall that the U.S. converted the C-130 in 1967 into a heavily armed gunship to provide ground support by delivering heavy fire with pinpoint accuracy on a single point on the ground. The AC-130 Spectre replaced the Douglas AC-47, which was first deployed in Vietnam in 1964. Fitted with gatling guns on its port side, the airplane’s devastating effectiveness won it its nickname from ground troops, who also dubbed it “Spooky.” The U.S. Air Force still has AC-130 Ghostriders based in Florida, where they support U.S. special operations globally.

Greece, meanwhile, announced a $3.5 billion deal to buy 20 U.S. F-35 fighter jets. A member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Greece will receive its first F-35s in 2028 and has an option to buy 20 more.

It’s Christmas in July for Slovakia. Two of the 14 F-16 fighter jets the country has ordered finally arrived Monday after a two-year delay. Bratislava signed its $1.8 billion deal to buy the jets back in 2018 to replace its Soviet-era MiGs, which it has since donated to Ukraine. But the pandemic and a chip shortage slowed production, forcing Slovakia to rely on neighbors Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic for air defense. It will have to wait another two years, however, for the full delivery of its F-16 order.

F-16s are proving increasingly popular among Western allies that aren’t close enough to Washington—or rich enough—to lay hold of the more modern F-35. Lockheed Martin is already working to fill orders from Bulgaria, Bahrain, Morocco, Jordan, Slovakia and Taiwan, while Argentina is buying 24 pre-loved F-16s from Denmark, which is upgrading to F-35s. Pres. Biden has already cleared a deal to sell 40 F-16s to Turkey, and Lockheed Martin is also negotiating sales to the Washington’s new BFF against China, the Philippines, and to Thailand.

Already, though, the Pentagon is looking at what comes after the 17-year-old F-35, which many regard as inferior to the 26-year-old F-22. With drones radically changing the nature of combat, helicopters are already regarded as obsolete on the battlefield, and the next fighter may or may not even have a pilot on board. And while the U.S. has air-defense systems capable of knocking down even the most advanced missiles, it’s still testing ways to defend against swarms of relatively cheap drones coordinated using artificial intelligence.

China and Russia, meanwhile, flew their first joint bomber patrol over the waters west of Alaska. Guided by Russian fighter jets, the two pairs of nuclear weapons-capable Chinese and Russian bombers were intercepted by fighter jets from the U.S. and Canada, though they didn’t enter either countries air space. Though China and Russia began conducting joint bomber patrols in 2019, the latest was seen in Washington as further evidence of their growing military ties.

But China may not be the only Russian ally Washington needs to worry about. Newly leaked documents reveal that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Moscow early this month—which culminated in a bear hug with Russian President Vladimir Putin—may have helped clinch a deal for India to buy Russian S-400 missiles. The U.S. has courted India as a bulwark against China, including India as a member of its Quadrilateral Security Alliance with Australia and Japan. But India, like China, hasn’t condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and instead has been buying record amounts of Russian oil. And like China, India has been accused of allowing companies to export equipment to Russia that can be used by the military.