Lockheed Martin held a handover ceremony for the Slovak Republic’s first two F-16 Block 70 fighter jets on February 29.
The event at the Greenville facility was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense of the Slovak Republic, Robert Kaliňák, along with delegates from the United States and Slovakia.
The two aircraft, a single-seat F-16C and a two-seat F-16D, will still remain in the US for maintenance training.
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The first fighters, however, will be sent to Slovakia in 2024, with more jets being completed by 2025.
“Slovakia is at the forefront of adopting Europe’s most advanced 4th generation fighter, the F-16 Block 70. These jets not only represent a stronger alliance between Slovakia, the United States, and NATO allies but also equip the Slovak Air Force with advanced capabilities to face 21st Century Security challenges,” said OJ Sanchez, vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin’s Integrated Fighter Group.
The Slovak Air Force will receive 14 F-16C/D Block 70 fighters that will replace the 13 recently decommissioned MiG-29s that were transferred to Ukraine
The F-16 Block 70 fighters are equipped with the Northrop Grumman APG-83 AESA radar, advanced avionics and extended structural service life of 12,000 hours.
Lockheed Martin has a backlog of 133 F-16 Block 70/72 jets to be produced in Greenville, with a total of seven jets delivered to date to countries such as Bahrain and Bulgaria.
