Turkey expects to receive only in 2028 or 2029 the first F-16 within the framework of the sale of American fighters, officially approved by the United States after the expiry of the period for objections in Congress, reports the Turkish newspaper Hurriyet.

The delivery of 40 F-16 Block 70 fighter jets, the most important part of the deal, does not appear to happen immediately, the publication noted. According to a report published by the US Congressional Research Service last September, Lockheed Martin said it already had more than 140 orders and a monthly production capacity of four planes. Thus, according to calculations, Turkey's first new F-16 Block 70 aircraft are expected to be delivered in 2028 or 2029, the newspaper said.

At the same time, the Turkish private television station NTV notes that there is an option for cooperation between the Turkish national aerospace company TUSAS (Turkish Aviation and Space Industry) and Lockheed Martin, in which part of the aircraft will be assembled in Turkey in order to speed up the process. According to the information, Lockheed Martin officials are studying TUSAS F-16 modernization and production lines to assess the feasibility of this option.

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Turkey's request to purchase the F-16 as a temporary solution to its air fleet's needs dates back years after the country was excluded from the F-35 program due to the purchase of the Russian S-400 air defense system, Hürriyet reports. The offer letter was sent to the US from Turkey on September 30, 2021. 

On March 17, 2022, the US State Department first sent a letter to Congress stating that this sale was in the US interest. On June 30 of the same year, US President Joe BidenJoe Biden (Joseph Robin Biden) is an American politician.Joe Biden was born on November 20, 1942 in addressed this process at the NATO summit in Madrid, saying that he was in the interest of the US to sell Turkey F-16 and modernize its existing aircraft.

The U.S. approval process ended after the U.S. government on Jan. 26 agreed to the $23 billion sale, which includes 40 Lockheed Martin F-16 fighter jets and nearly 80 upgrade kits, three days after Ankara ratified Sweden's accession to NATO. The State Department sent a formal notification to Congress, which had a 15-day deadline to object. After its expiration, all obstacles from the point of view of the American legislation for the implementation of the sale were removed, notes BTA. 

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