The 5th Generation aircraft, designated AS-1, is expected to be delivered to the Israeli Air Force (IAF) later this year.
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“Israel is proud to be the first country in the area to receive and operate it”, said Avigdor Liberman, Israel’s Minister of Defense.
Israel will be the first country outside the U.S.to receive the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, which the Israel Air Force terms the “Adir”.
“The Adir will create real deterrence and enhance our capabilities for a long-time”.
The US military has begun replacing its fighter aircraft with the F-35.
The F-35 combines advanced low observable stealth technology with fighter speed and agility, fully fused sensor information, network-enabled operations and advanced sustainment support, Lockheed said in a statement.
“The United States under President Obama and previous administration has been absolutely committed to maintaining Israel’s qualitative military edge and that Israel can defend itself against any threat it faces”, U.S. Embassador to Israel, Daniel Shapiro, told NewsFix.
Israel has ordered 33 of the jets and is negotiating to add 17 more.
With a ceremony broadcast live on Youtube, the first Israeli F-35 was rolled out on Jun. 22 at Lockheed Martin production plant at Ft.
The Elbit Systems-Cyclone produced centre fuselage composite components for IAF’s F-35.
“Israel’s military power ensures its security”.
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Brig. -Gen. Tal Kalman, the IAF’s Chief of Staff, said that he felt he “had the future in my hands” while testing out the F-35 simulator.
