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The sale of Norwegian F-16s to Romania has been approved by the Norwegian and American authorities.
In November 2022, Defense Material signed a contract with Romania for the sale of two squadrons, 32 aircraft, with associated equipment. The sale has now been approved by the US authorities. The Ministry of Defense writes in a press release.
TV2 reported the sale first.
The sale also includes spare parts and training for technical personnel. Because the planes are manufactured in the USA, the US authorities had to approve Norway’s export of the planes to Romania.
– We are now implementing the agreement we entered into with Romania in November last year regarding the sale of Norwegian F-16s to the Romanian armed forces. This will be an important contribution to strengthening the air defense of a NATO ally, while also providing added value to the Norwegian defense industry. The sale has now been approved by both the Norwegian and American authorities, says Defense Minister Bjørn Arild Gram (Sp) in the press release.
Before the aircraft are handed over to Romania, all aircraft must undergo maintenance. Defense materiel has therefore extended the agreement with Kongsberg Aviation Maintenance Services (KAMS) to maintain F-16 fighters for sale to Romania. This involves the preparation of a total of 32 F-16 fighters.
The agreement also includes technical assistance and support for the training of Romanian technical personnel. The value of the extended contract with KAMS is over NOK 700 million.
Norway has also sold twelve F-16 aircraft to the American company Draken International, which will use them for combat training. This sale has not yet been approved by the US authorities.
