Lockheed Martin to upgradeTaiwan's fleet of F-16 aircraft

FORT WORTH, Texas, 3 Oct. 2012. Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] has been awarded a contract with a value of up to $1.85 billion by the U.S. Government to initiate the upgrade of 145 Block 20 F-16A/B aircraft for Taiwan. This retrofit program will include the addition of an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, embedded global positioning, as well as upgrades to the electronic warfare and other avionics systems of Taiwan's F-16s.

Lockheed Martin has a proven track record of upgrading more than 1,000 existing F-16s for a combination of the U.S. Air Force and international customers. Most recently, Lockheed Martin was named the prime integrator to upgrade the USAF F-16 fleet. Both new upgrade programs will be based on the F-16V configuration announced by Lockheed Martin earlier this year.

The F-16 A/B is a multirole jet fighter aircraft that is designed for air superiority. Featuring numerous upgrades and variants, the F-16A/B are the initial production variants of the F-16.

The F-16 is used by 26 nations. More than 4,500 aircraft have been delivered worldwide from assembly lines in five countries since the aircraft began production in 1976. The F-16 program has involved international cooperation among governments, air forces and aerospace industries. Major upgrades to all F-16 versions are being incorporated to keep the fleet modern and fully supportable over the aircraft's long service life.