Lockheed Martin announced it has delivered the first F-16 jet as part of the F-16 Sustainment Depot program back to the U.S. Air Force.

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On March 9, 2021, Lockheed Martin  received its first F-16 from the U.S. Air Force as part of the $900 million indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) contract the company received in December 2020 to provide sustainment support and depot-overflow services for F-16 aircraft. (Picture source: Lockheed Martin)

Lockheed Martin was originally selected for the U.S. Air Force’s F-16 Sustainment Depot program in December 2020, and the first jet arrived in Greenville, South Carolina for work in spring 2021.

“This was the first fighter sustainment work awarded to the site, and with F-16 production also well underway in Greenville, the site is now the global home of the F-16,” says Danya Trent, Lockheed Martin vice president, F-16 Program.

The company provides full lifecycle support to the warfighter from development, production and sustainment to ensure mission readiness. On the F-16, Lockheed Martin is hiring for more than 300 new jobs by the end of 2022 to support both F-16 sustainment and production. These new roles represent Lockheed Martin's long-standing commitment to meet our customers' current and future needs, and to bring more jobs to the Greenville area.

Many of these positions are on the leading edge of Lockheed Martin’s digital engineering efforts – using advanced technologies and automation to reduce cost, decrease span time and improve product quality.