This is the third phase of the project, which began in December 2021. The August contract is valued at 12.9 million USD and is scheduled for completion by the end of 2028. At the time of signing, the contractor received the full amount of funds, all of which came from the undisclosed country. The entire effort is being carried out through the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) procedure, which means it does not involve the seven nations that are industrial partners in the program.
Photo: IDF
The country in question is likely Israel, which, through the FMS and the Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program, has been steadily purchasing additional F-35A Lightning II aircraft. In total, the signed agreements cover 75 units. Thanks to special arrangements, Israel was able to negotiate the installation of locally produced, non-standard onboard equipment. For this reason, fully equipped Israeli F-35 Lightning II aircraft bear the designation F-35I Adir.
The already delivered F-35Is have been intensively used in combat operations across the Middle East. In recent months, they have operated over Iran and Yemen, among other areas. Previously, the IDF employed these aircraft over Syria and Lebanon. It cannot be ruled out that Israeli F-35Is have also been present in other regions.
