South Korea plans to purchase 20 more F-35 fighter planes from the United States, its arms procurement agency announced.
The first F-35A for the ROKAF, known as aircraft AW-1, makes its public debut in late March 2018 (Picture source: Lockheed Martin)
3.3 billion from the F-X III fighter jet program is expected to go toward purchasing more of the fifth-generation stealth fighters. While it’s unclear which variant of the F-35 aircraft Seoul intends to purchase, an anonymous source from the country’s Ministry of National Defense informed the outlet earlier this week that the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses concluded a study which revealed “the introduction of more F-35As” would be a “more feasible” acquisition for the air force.
“There are two issues [with getting] the F-35B. First, it’s more expensive than the conventional-takeoff-and-landing version. Second, the deployment of a carrier-type landing ship is far away from now,” the source added.
Seoul has so far received 8 F-35A planes out of the ordered 40. The agreement for 40 aircraft valued $6.4 billion was signed in 2014. The new jets were inducted to service on October 1 on the occasion of Armed Forces Day.
According to the South Korean Air Force, a total of 26 more F-35A planes will arrive in the country by the end of next year.
