VZCZCXRO9736
PP RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHLZ
DE RUEHRL #1626 3401520
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 051520Z DEC 08
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2771
INFO RUCNFRG/FRG COLLECTIVE
RUEHTV/AMEMBASSY TEL AVIV 0571
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS BERLIN 001626 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
STATE FOR PM/DDCT LT COL RONALD KELLAR 
STATE FOR JUDY GARBER 
STATE FOR EUR/CE CLAIR PIERANGELO 
SECDEF FOR SAF/IARE COL DAGS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KOMC ETRD IS GM
SUBJECT: URGENT REQUEST TO EXPEDITE POTENTIAL UAV SALE TO 
GERMANY - TAA 3773-08 
 
¶1.  (U) This is an action request, please see paragraph 5. 
 
¶2.  (SBU) In support of a potential $150 million Foreign 
Military Sale (FMS) of U.S.-origin Unmanned Aerial Vehicles 
(UAV) to Germany, Embassy Berlin requests that PM/DDCT move 
as quickly as possible in gaining approval for Technical 
Assistance Agreement (TAA) 3773-08 by December 12.  This 
urgent request is in support of a FMS case (designator 
GY-D-STZ) that the USAF is offering in a competitive tender 
to the German Armed Forces.  The German Ministry of Defense 
(MOD) will decide next week on whether to purchase up to five 
reconnaissance UAVs from Israel or from the U.S. company 
General Atomics of San Diego, California.  If the TAA is not 
approved by December 12, General Atomics will likely not have 
a shot at securing this contract.  General Atomics submitted 
TAA application 3773-08 on November 28. 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Earlier this year, the German defense and armaments 
agency (BWB) requested bids from the Israeli Aerospace 
Industries Ltd. and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems for 
five medium altitude, long-endurance (MALE) unmanned 
reconnaissance aircraft to support operations in Afghanistan. 
 At this time, there is support in the MOD (civilian) 
Armaments Directorate for an Israeli competitor's product, 
the Heron TP, but the German Air Force remains solidly behind 
General Atomics' MQ-9 Reaper (Predator B).  (COMMENT: The 
German Luftwaffe has approached Office of Defense Cooperation 
(ODC) Germany to expedite the processing of the TAA because 
the relationship between General Atomics and its German 
partner, Diehl BGT Defense GmbH is currently limited in scope 
to a marketing effort; MoD procurement officials currently 
rate this aspect of the FMS offer as inferior to the Israeli 
offer.  END COMMENT). 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Ruediger Wolf, German State Secretary (Under 
Secretary equivalent) for Armaments Acquisitions in MOD, 
needs TAA 3773-08 approved by December 12 in order to examine 
this proposal and then bring his recommendation before 
high-level MOD officials later next week.  Charge d'Affaires 
John Koenig has already met with State Secretary Wolf twice 
to discuss this contract, most recently on November 19. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Embassy believes that timely action on this TAA 
could make the difference in the sale and would appreciate 
DDCT's support to expedite the processing of TAA 3773-08. 
Koenig