Military Space News
AEROSPACE
Czech Republic to buy 24 US-made F-35 fighter jets
Czech Republic to buy 24 US-made F-35 fighter jets
by AFP Staff Writers
Prague (AFP) Sept 27, 2023

The Czech Republic will buy 24 US-made F-35 fighter jets, Prime Minister Petr Fiala told reporters on Wednesday.

"The first F-35s will be ready in 2029 and our pilots will start training with them in the United States then," Fiala said.

He added that the first supersonic jets would arrive in the Czech Republic in 2031 and the army would have all 24 planes at its disposal by 2035.

Defence Minister Jana Cernochova said the total price was 150 billion koruna ($6.5 billion).

"We will pay about 106 billion koruna for the planes, ammunition, simulators, training and other items by 2034," Cernochova told reporters.

The rest will include covering fuel and infrastructure.

An EU and NATO member of 10.5 million people, the Czech Republic has provided substantial military aid to Ukraine since Russia's invasion.

Its contribution has included aircraft, tanks, howitzers, armoured vehicles and ammunition.

In exchange, Prague has received German-made Leopard tanks and financial compensation from the United States and the EU.

The Czech army currently uses 14 Swedish-made JAS-39 Gripen fighter jets, supplied in 2005. Their lease will expire in 2027.

- 'Against modern threats' -

Starting next year, the government plans to spend two percent of its gross domestic product on defence, in line with its NATO pledge.

"For our defence, it is important to boost our ties with NATO allies," Fiala said.

By getting the F-35s, "we are telling them we're taking the defence of our country seriously and that they can reckon with us."

The US State Department approved the sale of the F-35s to the Czech army in June.

The US government's Defense Security Cooperation Agency said at the time that the F-35s would "improve the Czech Republic's defense capabilities as well as support NATO operations by guarding against modern threats and maintaining a constant presence in the region".

It added that the sale would "not alter the basic military balance in the region".

Produced by Lockheed Martin and equipped with anti-detection stealth technology, F-35s are used across NATO, but also by Australia, Japan, Israel and South Korea.

Other countries including neutral Switzerland have also signed deals to buy the planes, which were launched in 2006.

The Czech army recently bought US-made Viper combat helicopters and Venom multi-purpose helicopters, replacing obsolete Russian-made Mi-24 aircraft, some of which it has sent to Ukraine.

Czech pilots are also using locally made L-159 fighter jets.

Related Links
Aerospace News at SpaceMart.com

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
AEROSPACE
Duke Field breaks ground on first electric aircraft charging station
Duke Field FL (SPX) Sep 25, 2023
AFWERX and one of its Prime division partners, BETA Technologies, an electric aerospace company, broke ground on the first electric aircraft charging station on a military installation at Duke Field, Florida, Sept. 19, 2023. The expected completion date for the Level 3 direct current electric vehicle fast charging station construction project is Oct. 13, 2023, weeks before BETA's electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft arrives for testing. "Level 1 is a typical home power outlet and ... read more

AEROSPACE
$3.5 bn Germany deal the biggest yet for Israeli arms sector

Germany and Israel sign 'historic' missile shield deal

Estonia, Latvia acquire 1bn-euro German air defence system

SpaceX launches new batch of Space Defense Agency missile tracking satellites

AEROSPACE
Northrop Grumman to provide new strike missile capability for fifth-generation aircraft and beyond

Bulgaria to provide air-defence missiles to Ukraine

North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles

Two killed by falling debris after missile strike on Kyiv: authorities

AEROSPACE
AI drones to help farmers optimize vegetable yields

Northrop Grumman to deliver in country maintenance for the Triton UAV sustainment

Ukraine war pushes NATO to bolster drone-tackling expertise

Ukraine says 17 of 24 Russian drones destroyed overnight

AEROSPACE
US Army awards Comtech $48M for future EDIM SATCOM solutions

SSC partners with Johns Hopkins for software best practices in protected SATCOM

Picogrid releases smallest AI-Enabled Command Station deployable in minutes

PLD SPACE signs a MOU with WISeKey to launch ultra-secure satellites with MIURA 5

AEROSPACE
US aid for Ukraine will last 'little bit longer': Pentagon

EU seeks to protect sensitive tech from Chinese buyers

First batch of U.S. Abrams tanks arrive in Ukraine

How L3Harris' multirole approach to EW enables superior mission agility

AEROSPACE
Russia unveils huge spending hike to battle 'hybrid war'

Africa interested in making Ukrainian weapons: Kyiv

Government shutdown would have wide array of detrimental effects

U.S. signs agreement to help Poland modernize its military

AEROSPACE
Biden reassures shaken allies on Ukraine aid

Ukraine closer to NATO 'than ever' as Russia reduced to Iran, NKorea deals

HK bishop optimistic about China-Vatican ties

Maldives pro-China winner to eject Indian troops

AEROSPACE
World Nano Foundation highlights nanotech's role in space materials science

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.