URGENT: Iraq receives first of 36 F-16 fighter jets from USA

(IraqiNews.com) The American company Lockheed Martin stated  that Iraq will receive the first aircraft F-16 from a total of 36 fighters at the end of the this week. Meanwhile, Iraq’s ambassador to the USA declared that this deal will bolster Iraq’s ability to defend its vast borders with Iran and other neighboring countries.

Reuters news agency mentioned that Iraq’s Ambassador, Lukman Faily, traveled to the ‘Lockhead’ factory in Fort Worth, Texas last Thursday to attend a celebration in which Lockhead and the United States would hand over Iraq the first jet of F-16 officially.

A group of three or four new jets will be transported to Iraq before the end of this year.

“Iraq is a big country and its borders are more than 3600 kilometers and we need to protect it. We as a country do not have those capabilities before”, Faily said to Reuters in a phone call.

“Iraq is about to complete the work on an air base that will house the new F-16 aircraft”, he added.

“Some Iraqi pilots have already received training on the leadership of the new aircraft and that more are being trained now”, said Faily.

Iraq had submitted an order to buy the first batch of 18 fighter aircraft F-16 for $3 billion dollars, and there is an order to buy 18 aircraft that was initially submitted in October 2012.