Two more F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft out of five, arrive in the country

The third and fourth F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft - from the new batch of five that will endow the Romanian Air Force - arrived on Friday from Portugal, at 86th Air Base Lieutenant Aviator Gheorghe Mociornita, from Borcea, the Ministry of National Defense (MApN) informs.

The last aircraft in batch of five aircraft will be delivered in the first quarter of 2021.

The acquisition of the new batch of F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft and the related package of goods and services will ensure the increase of Romania's security through the permanent execution of national/NATO airspace defense, in time of peace and in crisis situations, through the Permanent Combat Service - The Air Police (SLP-PA), under NATO command, in accordance with the assumed commitments, states the Ministry of National Defense in a press release sent to AGERPRES.

The Romanian Air Force also has 14 F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft, which are already conducting air police missions.

The first two aircraft in the new batch of five arrived in Romania in August of this year, and after the last F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft enters the endowment of the Romanian Air Force (scheduled for the first quarter of 2021), all 17 aircraft - in M5.2R configuration, will move on through a modernization program to the M6XR standard.