Lockheed Martin Tactical Aircraft Systems delivered the 3, 035th F-16 from Air Force Plant No. 4 located in Fort Worth, Texas, on March 26. This makes the F-16 the largest production program in the plant's history, surpassing the B-24.
Greek air defenses locked onto a Turkish F-16 flying over the Aegean Sea. Turkey has sent a stern protest note to its formal NATO ally calling the action "hostile".
The forces NATO can call on to strike against Yugoslavia greatly outweigh Belgrade's, but Yugoslav defenses, especially ground-to-air missiles, still count as among the most powerful in central Europe. The breakdown of the opposing forces is as follows (most figures from the International Institute for Strategic Studies)"
Two U.S. F-16s made an unscheduled landing at a South Korean airport Thursday around 10. 15GMT, nearly running into a protective wall at the end of the runway. A Defense Ministry official said the airport was occasionally used by both Korean and U.S. military planes. But he said he did not know why the planes had made the unscheduled stop. Airport officials said the fighter pilots seemed unharmed. The airport was closed after the landing. Four flights had to be rerouted while 15 others, all domestic, were cancelled.
The United States said on Monday it had formally offered to sell 26sophisticated ``AMRAAM'' air-to-air missiles along with associated equipment and training to Bahrain for $110 million. The package was offered to Bahrain by Defense Secretary William Cohenlast week during a visit to the Gulf but no specifics were given at the time. In addition to the AMRAAMs, the package would include 50 missile launch rails for Bahrain's F-16 fighter jets, missile containers, software, maintenance and pilot training.
The UAE said Sunday its aircraft deal with the United States worth about $7 billion remained unsigned, and it may still seek an alternative source on the international market.
The United States Thursday agreed to sell Egypt $3.2 billion worth of new American weapons, including 24 F-16 fighter jets, 200 M-1A1 tanks and32 Patriot missiles.
Lockheed Martin Tactical Aircraft Systems (LMTAS) has modified the first Korean F-16 with the AN/ALQ-165 Airborne Self-Protection Jammer (ASPJ). The aircraft was accepted on February 26, 1999, on schedule.
The United States will sell air-to-air missiles to Bahrain to bolster the security of Gulf states against Iraq and Iran.
U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright said on Thursday the United States is prepared to sell used F-16 jet fighters to Thailand. The US is prepared to work with Thailand towards the purchase of used American F-16 fighter aircraft. This would further reinforce our strong bilateral security relationship.
The US Government and Egypt are close to announcing approval for sale of 24 new build F-16s for the Egyptian Air Force.
The Polish government will decide how to acquire Western fighter jets for its ill-equipped air force in the coming months and choose a supplier by the end of the year. By the end of March a special commission will advise the government whether to buy, lease or rent aircraft for the Polish air force, which will eventually need around 100 multi-purpose jets to replace its 350communist-era warplanes. Ambitious plans to buy jets have fallen foul of budget restrictions and Poland has been offered cheaper lease or rent deals by Western manufacturers who hope eventually to secure larger sales contracts. America's Boeing and Lockheed Martin have offered to lease F-18 and F-16fighters respectively, while British Aerospace and Sweden's Saab have offered to modernize existing jets and sell Grippen planes.
Israel has raised the stakes in its tender for fighter planes, telling Lockheed Martin Ltd. and Boeing Co it would spend up to $4 billion on the order expected by May. The two companies are in the final stage of a competition which began in late 1997. At the time Israel said it had about $2.5 billion to spend on new planes. A little while ago they asked LAMTAS for prices on a range of 30 to 110 planes.
The Belgian Air Force announced it will probably add two additionalF-16 fighters to the four already based at Amendola air base in southern Italy, where pilots and ground staff total 70 and also put one C-130"Hercules" transport plane on standby. They will take part of NATO-led actions to enforce peace in the Yugoslav province, "
LMTAS received authorization for executing an option for 18 additional F-16A/B Mid-Life Update (MLU) kits for the Belgian Air Force. The authorization was received on January 22, 1999, and is valued at $46million.
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