As a replacement for the current F16 fighter jet long found in the Danish air force, talks have been to buy the new Joint Strike Fighter Jets, but according to NATO and the American Congress, confidential information about the jets have been systematically hacked by China from the spring of 2009 to the fall of 2012, reports the Danish post Jyllands-Posten.
Denmark’s government is currently considering buying Joint Strike Fighter, JSF, for DKK 20-30 billion. JSF is one of the most advanced fighter jets in the world and is being developed in cooperation between the USA and a number of countries. Denmark is one of the countries involved and they have contributed with DKK 500 million to the project.
”It is a problem that the Chinese might know about the weaknesses of the jet. Of course that could be used in a potential conflict,” said Thomas Elkjer Nissen, an expert in strategic communication at the Academy of Defense.
Joint Strike Fighter is equipped with stealth technology, which means that the jet cannot be seen on radar. If the Chinese managed to get a hold of information about the technology, it could be critical, according to associate professor Jens Ringmose from the Center of War studies at the University of Southern Denmark.
”Purchasing new fighter jets is a very large and comprehensive investment. From a Danish point of view, one should ask critical questions of how many states have obtained information about the Joint Strik Fighter program and how much information how much information that has been leaked about the actual jet,” he said.
The Chinese espionage is reported to have started in 2009. China denies having hacked the program but in the fall of 2012 China tested flights with a stealth jet that had a similar appearance as joint Strike Fighter.
Source: dr.dk
