The first F-16s arrive in Slovakia. First such delivery in 30 years

The pilots of the new Slovak machines first circled the airfield, then folded the landing gear and gradually flew down the runway. Only on the next approach did they land and pass under the symbolic victory gate made by water jets from the fire engines.

The purchase of 14 modern F-16 C/D Block 70 fighter jets from the United States is the most expensive deal in the history of independent Slovakia. Bratislava paid 1.5 billion euros for them. The planes were supposed to be delivered to Slovakia last year, but a shortage of chips delayed their production.

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Slovakia will wait for more combatants until 2026.

The deal was signed in 2018 by the government of then-Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini, who on Monday welcomed the new machines at the airport as the country’s president and commander-in-chief of its armed forces.

– This is an opportunity for the protection of Slovak skies to return to Slovak hands – said the President.

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