Norway selects F-35 to replace F-16sBy BOB COX
The F-35 Joint Strike Fighter has won its first foreign battle.
The government of Norway said today that its Minister of Defence had chosen the F-35 Lightning II to replace its fleet of F-16 fighters.
The Norwegian government made the decision following a lengthy competition that evaluated both the F-35 and Sweden’s Saab Gripen fighter jet.
A press release issued by Norway’s Office of the Prime Minister said the F-35 was selected on a "clear recommendation" of the country’s air defense experts and that the "evaluation has been carried out in a professional and ethically sound manner."
"The JSF is the only candidate which fulfills all the operational requirements specified by the Norwegian Government," the release said, and also was available at a lower price.
Norway will pay $2.54 billion for 48 F-35s, a government spokesman told the Reuters news service.
Sweden has been lobbying its neighboring countries hard to buy the Gripen. Denmark and the Netherlands, which like Norway participated financially in development of the F-35, are also holding competitions to select their F-16 replacements.
Lockheed Martin officials have not yet commented on the decision. They have previously indicated that the Norwegian government is not expected to order planes for several years.
No nation has yet placed a firm order for production of F-35s. But Lockheed and the U.S. government are negotiating with Israel for the purchase of 25 planes with an option for 50 more.
The F-35s will be built by Lockheed in its Fort Worth plant.
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