19 août 2020 | International, Aérospatial

Taiwan signs deal to purchase 66 F-16 jets from Lockheed Martin

Taiwan has signed an agreement to purchase 66 F-16 jets from Lockheed Martin amid escalating tensions between the US and China.

As part of the $62bn deal, Taiwan will procure the latest generation of F-16s to boost its air power. The Pentagon also confirmed the deal without specifying the buyer.

According to a Bloomberg report, the deal marks the first sale of fighter aircraft to the Asian island, which China considers to be part of its territory since 1992 when the former US administration approved the sale of 150 F-16s to Taiwan.

The latest agreement comes a year after Taiwan received approval from Washington for the purchase.

After the potential deal was announced last year, China issued a strong response and said that the deal will violate the one-China principle.

During the past year, the relationship between the US and China further deteriorated over the Covid-19 pandemic, 5G technology, Hong Kong and trade impasse.

Lockheed Martin has an initial order of 90 F-16 jets, the delivery of which is scheduled for late 2026.

https://www.airforce-technology.com/news/taiwan-66-f-16-jets/

Sur le même sujet

  • Northrop Grumman Receives Award to Upgrade US Army Lightweight Laser Designator Rangefinder Systems

    10 juillet 2019 | International, C4ISR

    Northrop Grumman Receives Award to Upgrade US Army Lightweight Laser Designator Rangefinder Systems

    APOPKA, Fla. – July 9, 2019 – Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) has received a $17.6 million award from the U.S. Army to upgrade Target Locator Modules (TLMs). The TLMs will be retrofitted with high accuracy capability to modernize the Lightweight Laser Designator Rangefinder 2H (LLDR 2H) man-portable targeting system. “The LLDR has been at the core of Army ground targeting for more than a decade, and the innovations in the 2H provide even greater accuracy to support the Army's missions into the future,” said Bob Gough, vice president, land and avionics C4ISR, Northrop Grumman. The LLDR 2H hybrid sensor solution fuses data from a digital magnetic compass and celestial navigation sensors to provide high accuracy target location and long-range imaging to allow warfighters greater leverage to shape the field of engagement. Interconnectivity within the digitized battlefield enables the operator to use LLDR 2H to quickly acquire, locate and designate high-value targets. The LLDR 2H system also features Northrop Grumman's patented thermal diode pumping technology for designation, which consumes less power than older lasers, yet yields greater output energy and lower beam divergence. More than 2,700 LLDR systems have been delivered and fielded to date. Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing innovative systems, products and solutions in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, space, strike, and logistics and modernization to customers worldwide. https://news.northropgrumman.com/news/releases/northrop-grumman-receives-award-to-upgrade-us-army-lightweight-laser-designator-rangefinder-systems

  • German Cabinet approves new cybersecurity agency

    4 septembre 2018 | International, C4ISR

    German Cabinet approves new cybersecurity agency

    By: Sebastian Sprenger COLOGNE, Germany – Germany is one step closer to getting its own version of a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, as officials here seek to bolster the country's cybersecurity posture. The Cabinet of Chancellor Angela Merkel this week approved the new organization, to be headed jointly by the Defense and Interior ministries. The outfit is slated to get a budget of €200 million ($230 million) between 2019 and 2022. The new “Agency for Innovation in Cybersecurity” will eventually have 100 employees. The German parliament, the Bundestag, will debate the proposal in the upcoming months. Once the funding is cleared, analysts will begin their work in earnest next year. While the Pentagon's DARPA served as a model in creating the new organization, the American agency's funding and personnel commitment dwarfs that of new German effort. But the move is still a major step forward here because it shows a political commitment to cyberspace in the context of defense and security that officials said was previously lacking. Notably, one of the explicit goals is to speed up the acquisition cycle for cybersecurity technology. That puts Germany in the same boat as many governments around the world, where officials have found themselves perennially lagging behind sophisticated attack schemes employed by hackers. Full article: https://www.fifthdomain.com/global/europe/2018/08/31/german-cabinet-approves-new-cybersecurity-agency

  • Greek parliament considers major arms deals with France

    16 février 2022 | International, Terrestre

    Greek parliament considers major arms deals with France

    Lawmakers are also debating whether to add six new Rafale fighter jets to an existing order for 18 planes '€’ six of them newly built and 12 that were previously in service in the French air force.

Toutes les nouvelles