National returns to fight over strike wing

National is keen to put the potential restoration of the Air Force's strike capability back on the defence agenda, but the Government is asking how National thinks the country could afford it.

Five years ago, the Government scrapped the Air Force's strike wing, a decision National criticised.

Yesterday, National Defence spokesman Murray McCully said although it was unlikely the country could afford the immediate cost of re-establishing an air combat wing, it would be worth exploring if a deal could be done with Australia which would see the Air Force equipped with fighter planes. Australia is about to buy up to 100 F-35 Joint Strike Fighter air craft.

"I'm not saying that we're committing to anything," Mr McCully said. "I'm simply saying that we should have an intelligent discussion about our future defence requirements across the board without artificially scrubbing any participation in air combat from our agenda."

There would be opportunities in the future to allow greater co-operation between the air forces and they should be explored, he said.

Defence Minister Phil Goff said restoring jet fighters to the Air Force was unaffordable, and to suggest otherwise was illusory and misleading.

"If he points out to me where he will get the extra $207 million a year it will cost to operate it, which is $2 billion a decade, plus a billion dollars to buy it ... he knows that it's utterly unrealistic, which is why he's talking about investigating it rather than doing it. It will come to absolutely nothing."