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Taiwan expects first F-16 Block 70 jets to arrive amid possible delays
The first two aircraft under a NT$247.3 billion, 66-plane deal departed South Carolina on Aug. 17 and are scheduled to reach Chihhang Air Base in Taitung, with typhoons along the route a key timing risk.
Taiwan expects its first two US-made F-16 Block 70 fighter jets to arrive within days, a milestone for a procurement program that has faced repeated delays since Washington approved the sale in 2019, according to SCMP Economy.
The aircraft, numbered 6727 and 6728, left a production facility in South Carolina on August 17 and made a stop in Hawaii before moving to Guam and then flying to Chihhang Air Base in Taiwan’s eastern county of Taitung, the outlet reported.
Taiwanese military sources said the jets could reach Taiwan by Thursday if weather cooperates, but several typhoons across the trans-Pacific route could push delivery until after Sunday.
The fighters are being flown by US pilots and require aerial refuelling and servicing en route, with conformal fuel tanks and three external fuel tanks fitted to extend range, SCMP Economy added.