Romania has been cleared to buy the F-35A, which is already in service with a number of European NATO allies including Norway (pictured). (Royal Norwegian Air Force)
The US government has approved the sale to Romania of 32 Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) aircraft.
Announced by the US Defense Security and Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on 13 September, the approval covers the conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) F-35A variant of the aircraft, along with spares, related equipment, training, and support for an estimated USD7.2 billion. Weapons are not included in this notification and will follow at a later date.
“The proposed sale will improve Romania's capability to meet current and future threats by further equipping it to conduct self-defence and regional security missions while enhancing interoperability with the United States and other NATO members,” the DSCA said.
As previously outlined by the Romanian Ministry of National Defence (MND), this approval covers Phase 1 of the country's plan to acquire two squadrons worth of F-35As in the near term, with the longer-term Phase 2 to follow in later years, concerned with an additional squadron of 16 jets for a final fleet of 48 aircraft. The timeline, content, and final value of Phase 2 will be determined after the procedure for awarding the procurement contract has been approved by the Romanian government.
The MND has said that its intention is to field the first F-35 squadron after 2030. Romania could receive its aircraft from the primary Fort Worth line in Texas or from the Cameri facility in Italy.
For more information on European F-35 programmes, please see Lightning Strike: F-35 continues to storm Europe .
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