US embassy cable - 04TEGUCIGALPA1652

C O N F I D E N T I A L TEGUCIGALPA 001652 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR P, T, WHA, WHA/CEN, PM, AND INR/IAA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/27/2014 
TAGS: PARM, PREL, MASS, MCAP, PBTS, PINR, HO 
SUBJECT: HONDURAS' DECISION TO TERMINATE FOUR FMS SERVICE 
LOA WILL SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCE ITS FLEET OF F-5S 
 
REF: 03 TEGUCIGALPA 2380 
 
Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Roger D. Pierce; 
Reasons 1.4 (B) and (D). 
 
1. (SBU) On July 22, USMILGP Tegucigalpa received a letter 
from the Honduran Air Force's (HAF) Department of Logistics 
requesting that the number of Honduran F-5s under U.S. 
Foreign Military Sales (FMS) service Letters of Agreement 
(LOAs) be reduced from ten to only six jets.  The request 
appears to have been generated from the Commanding General of 
the HAF, Colonel Manuel Enrigue Caceres Diaz, in an effort to 
conserve limited HAF funds.  This move effectively reduces 
Honduras' original fleet of 12 F-5s to six.  Note:  Although 
the GOH originally had 12 F-5s, two of these are inoperable 
(one crashed and one has been used for spare parts).  End 
Note. 
 
2. (C) In reftel, Post noted that Honduras' aging fleet of 
F-5s would likely face further reductions due to a lack of 
spare parts and other budgetary constraints.  Honduras' move 
to reduce FMS F-5 contracts appears to be an effort to keep 
its remaining six jets in a state of adequate repair rather 
than attempt to continue to service the others at a cost of 
significantly reduced readiness.  As it is, Honduran pilots 
train on their F-5s only one hour a month due to high fuel 
costs. 
 
3. (C) Comment:  The Government of Honduras (GOH) has 
consistently indicated it would not negotiate a reduction in 
F-5s on a bilateral basis with Nicaragua regarding its excess 
Man Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADS) (reftel), and this 
latest move by the GOH was not necessarily in the spirit of 
furthering regional arms reductions.  However, this 
unilateral move by Honduras, albeit apparently for budgetary 
reasons, could be used to encourage Nicaragua to consider 
deeper cuts in its current MANPAD arsenal.  It could also be 
used as a catalyst for furthering regional arms reductions 
through established channels such as the Central American 
Security Commission (SICA) and/or the Armed Forces Conference 
of Central America (CFAC).  End Comment 
 
4. (U) Post will transmit via fax the original HAF letter to 
WHA/CEN. 
Pierce