January 23 (SeeNews) - U.S. security and aerospace company Lockheed Martin said on Wednesday a possible relocation of its F-16 fighter jet production line to India will not affect a planned deal with Bulgaria, as the aircraft for Bulgaria will be manufactured in the U.S.
“The F-16 Block 70 aircraft for Bulgaria, the very latest version of NATO’s benchmark single-engine fighter, will be manufactured at Lockheed Martin’s F-16 production line in Greenville, South Carolina, where aircraft for Bahrain and Slovakia will also be built," the company said in a statement.
"We have not planned, nor have we ever suggested having F-16s for Bulgaria manufactured in any other country, including India,” Jim Robinson, F-16 Bulgaria campaign lead, Lockheed Martin, said.
Earlier this week, Reuters reported that Lockheed Martin has offered to move its F-16 production line from the U.S. to India. The news agency quoted Vivek Lall, the vice president of strategy and business development at Lockheed, as saying that that the company would make India the sole global production centre for the F-16 that would meet the requirements for the Indian military but also overseas markets.
Last week Bulgaria's parliament mandated the government to prepare a draft contract for the purchase of F-16 Block 70 aircraft and to hold talks with the U.S. government on a possible deal.
In October, Bulgaria said that the U.S., Sweden and Italy have responded to its request for proposals for supply of up to 16 fighter jets to replace the ageing fleet of Russian-made combat aircraft of the Bulgarian Air Force.
The U.S. offered to supply new F-16 or F-18 jets, Saab offered to supply new Gripen C/D fighter jets, while Italy offered used Eurofighter aircraft. Subsequently, Saab improved its bid and offered to deliver 10 jets instead of the initially proposed eight.
In June, Bulgaria’s parliament approved a plan for the acquisition of NATO-compatible combat aircraft in two stages. The first stage envisages the purchase of no less than eight aircraft for an estimated total of some 1.8 billion levs ($1.1 billion/ 920.3 million euro).
NATO said last year that it expects Bulgaria's defence spending to rise to 1.56% of the country's GDP in 2018, from 1.27% in 2017. Bulgaria's defence spending amounted to 1.26% of GDP in 2016. At the NATO summit in Wales in 2014, Bulgaria committed to a defence spending target of 2% of GDP, to be reached in the following 10 years.
1 euro=1.95583 Bulgarian levs