The US Department of Defense (DoD), according to its announcement, awarded Lockheed Martin a $520.4m contract modification for Block 70/72 F-16 Viper Shield electronic warfare (EW) suite production being conducted in the context of Foreign Military Sales (FMS) deals, with the systems destined for Bahrain, Bulgaria, Morocco, Slovakia, and Taiwan.  

Specifically, the contract modification expands the current materials contract to allow the contractor to begin production tasks, with FMS funding of $177.7m being obligated at the time of the award.

Introduced in 2021, Viper Shield EW is designed to provide protection and offensive EW capabilities on the fourth-generation Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70/72 multirole aircraft.

Software-defined technology components create an electronic shield around the aircraft, revealing digital radar threats and providing countermeasure capabilities in an integrated, internally mounted system.

Regarding Greece, the 20th upgraded F-16 Viper fighter has been delivered to the Hellenic Air Force.

Also read: USA | Yes to F-16 delivery to Ukraine – A historic decision according to Zelensky