Iraq to buy 18 F-16s from US
September 27th, 2011 - 10:35 pm ICT by IANS
Baghdad, Sep 27 (IANS) Iraq has signed a contract with the US to buy 18 Lockheed Martin F-16 fighter jets, an official told Xinhua Tuesday.
Part of the contract money has already been paid to the company, the official from Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s media office said.
He did not give details about the delivery date and exactly how much has been paid.
Al-Maliki had announced in July that Iraq would purchase 36 F-16 jets to bolster the country’s air force.
The F-16 is a multi-role jet fighter originally developed by General Dynamics for the US Air Force. Over 4,400 aircraft have been built since 1976. Although no longer being purchased by the US Air Force, improved versions are still being built for export customers. In 1993, General Dynamics sold its business to the Lockheed Corporation, which later became Lockheed Martin in 1995.
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Tags: baghdad, export customers, fighter jets, general dynamics, iraq, jet fighter, lockheed corporation, lockheed martin, money, nuri al maliki, prime minister nuri, s media, us air force, xinhua