The U.S. State Department approved a sale to the Czech Republic of F-35 aircraft, munitions and related equipment worth up to $5.62 billion.
The sale includes 24 Lockheed Martin fifth-generation Joint Strike Fighters (JSF) in conventional take-off and landing (CTOL) configuration, better known as F-35A, along with 25 Pratt & Whitney F135 engines, aircraft spares, and assorted weapons, including AIM-120 AMRAAMs and AIM-9X Sidewinders.
“The proposed sale will 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,” the U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said in a statement. It added that the new fighters “will not alter the basic military balance in the region.”
This potential sale comes a year after the Czech Republic announced it wants to procure F-35 fifth-generation fighter jets from the United States to replace its fleet of Swedish Saab Gripen fighter jets.
The Czech Republic joins nine other countries in Europe and 17 worldwide that have selected the F-35 for their air forces.
The foreign military sale comes after the United States had approved the sale of Patriot missile defense equipment valued at as much as $15 billion to Poland, another NATO ally accelerating its defense modernization since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.