Bahrain to keep its F-16 fighter fleet operational with new U.S. $445 million deal
{loadposition bannertop}
{loadposition sidebarpub}
The United States approved a $445 million Foreign Military Sale to Bahrain on December 1, 2025, for F-16 sustainment components, technical services, and associated support activities, to maintain the operational readiness of the Royal Bahraini Air Force’s F-16s.
On December 1, 2025, the U.S. approved a possible Foreign Military Sale to Bahrain valued at $445 million, involving F-16 sustainment and a wide set of associated components and services that expand an earlier $47 million sustainment case that contained no major defense equipment and remained below the congressional notification threshold. The current notification states that Bahrain seeks aircraft components, missile containers, radar receiver parts, guidance and control section spares, weapons system support, ground handling equipment, and instruments and laboratory equipment to maintain the Royal Bahraini Air Force’s F-16 operational readiness.Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
In the late 1980s, Bahrain evaluated multiple fighter jets, including the F-15, F-16, F-18, Tornado, Mirage 2000, and Russian ones, before selecting the F-16 Block 40, becoming the fifteenth F-16 customer and the first in the Gulf region. (Picture source: US Air Force)
This new package also covers activities already established under the first sustainment case, including major and minor modifications, Computer Program Identification Numbers, aircraft maintenance support equipment, launcher spare parts, consumables, accessories, and repair and return support, together with software deliveries, publications, studies, surveys, transportation support, engineering services, technical services, and logistics services. The U.S. indicates that Bahrain will not face difficulties absorbing these items because they align with its existing F-16 operations, and the sale is expected to maintain Bahrain’s ability to meet current and future threats through a credible force able to participate in regional operations with the U.S. and other partner nations. General Electric Aerospace and Lockheed Martin Aeronautics are identified as the principal contractors for the sustainment effort. The overall structure of this package keeps focus on the continuity of operations and the long-term readiness of the Bahraini F-16 fleet as part of a multi-decade modernization path.
This new sustainment effort follows Bahrain’s expansion and updating of its F-16 inventory, including a May 2019 authorization for up to $750 million in weapons intended to support F-16 Block 70 and F-16V aircraft, as well as upgraded legacy aircraft within the Royal Bahraini Air Force. That weapons approval covered AIM-120C-7 AMRAAM, AGM-88B HARM, AIM-9X, and Harpoon AGM-84 Block II missiles, as well as AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon, and GBU-39 SDB-1 all up rounds. Two major approvals issued on September 8, 2017, also built the structural basis for Bahrain’s current modernization program, with one case authorizing $2.785 billion for nineteen new F-16V aircraft and associated equipment, and another FMS authorizing $1.082 billion to upgrade twenty existing F-16C/D Block 40 aircraft to the F-16V configuration. Both cases stated that these aircraft would strengthen Bahrain’s homeland defense and deterrence capacity, improve interoperability with the United States and regional allies, and preserve long-term fleet capability without altering regional military balances.
Bahrain’s F-16 program began in the late 1980s when the Bahrain Amiri Air Force evaluated multiple fighter types, including the F-15, F-16, F-18, Tornado, Mirage 2000, and Russian options, before selecting the F-16 Block 40 based on maintainability, reliability, and upgrade potential, becoming the fifteenth F-16 customer and the first in the Gulf region. Under Peace Crown I, Bahrain signed an 1987 agreement for eight F-16C and four F-16D aircraft, with the first aircraft handed over in March 1989 and the first four delivered to Bahrain in May 1990. These aircraft entered operational service during the Gulf War, flying defensive missions beginning on January 25, 1991, and offensive missions on January 26, while the conflict ended on February 28.
After the war, Bahrain evaluated a U.S. Navy proposal to exchange 18 retired F-16N aggressor aircraft for its F-5E/F fleet, but rejected the idea due to high airframe hours, the absence of an internal cannon, and concerns about supporting non-standard aircraft. Bahrain also considered surplus U.S. Air Force F-16A/B aircraft and embargoed Pakistani F-16s, but declined these options due to cost and compatibility issues. Peace Crown II followed in 1998 with a $303 million order for ten additional F-16C Block 40 aircraft delivered between 1999 and 2000 in the same configuration as the original batch. During the 1990s, Bahrain integrated AN/AAQ-14 LANTIRN targeting pods for GBU-10 and GBU-12 bombs, used AGM-65B and AGM-65G Maverick missiles, and in 1999 received the approval to purchase AIM-120B AMRAAM missiles for long-range air intercept missions to replace AIM-7.
The F-16 Block 40 configuration, introduced in 1989, features LANTIRN navigation and targeting pods, APG-68V(5) radar, digital flight controls, GPS navigation, ALE-47 decoy launchers, automatic terrain following, a holographic head-up display, and strengthened structures enabling 9G maneuvering at 28,500 pounds and a maximum takeoff weight of 42,300 pounds. The aircraft used the F110-GE-100 or F100-PW-220 engine, depending on variant, and incorporated longer landing gear, bulged gear doors, larger wheels and brakes, and relocated landing lights to accommodate the LANTIRN pods. Precision weapons capability included GBU-10, GBU-12, GBU-15, and GBU-24, with later upgrades such as Sure Strike adding night vision goggle compatibility and improved data modems for rapid coordinate transfer from forward air controllers. Gold Strike later expanded this system with two-way imagery transfer to and from cockpit displays.
On the other hand, the F-16 Block 70 configuration, referred to as the F-16V or F-16 Viper, includes F110-GE-129 or F100-PW-229 engines around 29,000 pounds of thrust, structural life extended to 12,000 hours, conformal fuel tanks, advanced weapons integration, a modern cockpit with a 6 by 8 inch center pedestal display, improved mission computers, Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance capability, an infrared search and track system, and the AN/APG-83 AESA radar with extended detection range, multi target tracking above twenty targets, all weather synthetic aperture radar mapping, interleaved air to air and air to surface modes, and improved reliability relative to mechanically scanned radars. Production of Block 70 upgrade kits began in 2019 for global users, including Taiwan, Greece, South Korea, Turkey, Morocco, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Jordan, with more than 450 upgrade kits and 153 new build aircraft ordered by late 2023.
Bahrain also became the first customer for the newly built Block 70 aircraft in 2017 under a $3.8 billion agreement for 16 aircraft, followed by a June 2018 $1.124 billion fixed price contract for their production, with early delivery targets set for 2021 and later adjusted to 2024 because of pandemic delays. The first Bahraini Block 70 aircraft was completed in Greenville, South Carolina, in early 2023, conducted initial flight testing, and was held under U.S. Air Force supervision before overseas transfer. Five aircraft had been produced by March 2024, with eleven more in production and testing, and three aircraft departed Greenville in March 2024 on a ferry flight to Bahrain. Ferry delivery procedures follow standard Foreign Military Sales practice in which the aircraft carry U.S. Air Force markings until arrival in the receiving country, and U.S. Air Force pilots conduct the ferry flights in groups of four aircraft whenever possible. Bahrain currently operates about twenty older F-16 Block 40 aircraft and five F-16 Block 70 aircraft, with further deliveries planned as production continues. Lockheed Martin projects annual deliveries of nineteen to twenty-one Block 70 aircraft and maintains a backlog of around 127 to 133 aircraft for six countries, with potential demand for about 300 more aircraft.
Written by Jérôme Brahy
Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.
{loadposition bannertop}
{loadposition sidebarpub}
The United States approved a $445 million Foreign Military Sale to Bahrain on December 1, 2025, for F-16 sustainment components, technical services, and associated support activities, to maintain the operational readiness of the Royal Bahraini Air Force’s F-16s.
On December 1, 2025, the U.S. approved a possible Foreign Military Sale to Bahrain valued at $445 million, involving F-16 sustainment and a wide set of associated components and services that expand an earlier $47 million sustainment case that contained no major defense equipment and remained below the congressional notification threshold. The current notification states that Bahrain seeks aircraft components, missile containers, radar receiver parts, guidance and control section spares, weapons system support, ground handling equipment, and instruments and laboratory equipment to maintain the Royal Bahraini Air Force’s F-16 operational readiness.
Follow Army Recognition on Google News at this link
In the late 1980s, Bahrain evaluated multiple fighter jets, including the F-15, F-16, F-18, Tornado, Mirage 2000, and Russian ones, before selecting the F-16 Block 40, becoming the fifteenth F-16 customer and the first in the Gulf region. (Picture source: US Air Force)
This new package also covers activities already established under the first sustainment case, including major and minor modifications, Computer Program Identification Numbers, aircraft maintenance support equipment, launcher spare parts, consumables, accessories, and repair and return support, together with software deliveries, publications, studies, surveys, transportation support, engineering services, technical services, and logistics services. The U.S. indicates that Bahrain will not face difficulties absorbing these items because they align with its existing F-16 operations, and the sale is expected to maintain Bahrain’s ability to meet current and future threats through a credible force able to participate in regional operations with the U.S. and other partner nations. General Electric Aerospace and Lockheed Martin Aeronautics are identified as the principal contractors for the sustainment effort. The overall structure of this package keeps focus on the continuity of operations and the long-term readiness of the Bahraini F-16 fleet as part of a multi-decade modernization path.
This new sustainment effort follows Bahrain’s expansion and updating of its F-16 inventory, including a May 2019 authorization for up to $750 million in weapons intended to support F-16 Block 70 and F-16V aircraft, as well as upgraded legacy aircraft within the Royal Bahraini Air Force. That weapons approval covered AIM-120C-7 AMRAAM, AGM-88B HARM, AIM-9X, and Harpoon AGM-84 Block II missiles, as well as AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon, and GBU-39 SDB-1 all up rounds. Two major approvals issued on September 8, 2017, also built the structural basis for Bahrain’s current modernization program, with one case authorizing $2.785 billion for nineteen new F-16V aircraft and associated equipment, and another FMS authorizing $1.082 billion to upgrade twenty existing F-16C/D Block 40 aircraft to the F-16V configuration. Both cases stated that these aircraft would strengthen Bahrain’s homeland defense and deterrence capacity, improve interoperability with the United States and regional allies, and preserve long-term fleet capability without altering regional military balances.
Bahrain’s F-16 program began in the late 1980s when the Bahrain Amiri Air Force evaluated multiple fighter types, including the F-15, F-16, F-18, Tornado, Mirage 2000, and Russian options, before selecting the F-16 Block 40 based on maintainability, reliability, and upgrade potential, becoming the fifteenth F-16 customer and the first in the Gulf region. Under Peace Crown I, Bahrain signed an 1987 agreement for eight F-16C and four F-16D aircraft, with the first aircraft handed over in March 1989 and the first four delivered to Bahrain in May 1990. These aircraft entered operational service during the Gulf War, flying defensive missions beginning on January 25, 1991, and offensive missions on January 26, while the conflict ended on February 28.
After the war, Bahrain evaluated a U.S. Navy proposal to exchange 18 retired F-16N aggressor aircraft for its F-5E/F fleet, but rejected the idea due to high airframe hours, the absence of an internal cannon, and concerns about supporting non-standard aircraft. Bahrain also considered surplus U.S. Air Force F-16A/B aircraft and embargoed Pakistani F-16s, but declined these options due to cost and compatibility issues. Peace Crown II followed in 1998 with a $303 million order for ten additional F-16C Block 40 aircraft delivered between 1999 and 2000 in the same configuration as the original batch. During the 1990s, Bahrain integrated AN/AAQ-14 LANTIRN targeting pods for GBU-10 and GBU-12 bombs, used AGM-65B and AGM-65G Maverick missiles, and in 1999 received the approval to purchase AIM-120B AMRAAM missiles for long-range air intercept missions to replace AIM-7.
The F-16 Block 40 configuration, introduced in 1989, features LANTIRN navigation and targeting pods, APG-68V(5) radar, digital flight controls, GPS navigation, ALE-47 decoy launchers, automatic terrain following, a holographic head-up display, and strengthened structures enabling 9G maneuvering at 28,500 pounds and a maximum takeoff weight of 42,300 pounds. The aircraft used the F110-GE-100 or F100-PW-220 engine, depending on variant, and incorporated longer landing gear, bulged gear doors, larger wheels and brakes, and relocated landing lights to accommodate the LANTIRN pods. Precision weapons capability included GBU-10, GBU-12, GBU-15, and GBU-24, with later upgrades such as Sure Strike adding night vision goggle compatibility and improved data modems for rapid coordinate transfer from forward air controllers. Gold Strike later expanded this system with two-way imagery transfer to and from cockpit displays.
On the other hand, the F-16 Block 70 configuration, referred to as the F-16V or F-16 Viper, includes F110-GE-129 or F100-PW-229 engines around 29,000 pounds of thrust, structural life extended to 12,000 hours, conformal fuel tanks, advanced weapons integration, a modern cockpit with a 6 by 8 inch center pedestal display, improved mission computers, Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance capability, an infrared search and track system, and the AN/APG-83 AESA radar with extended detection range, multi target tracking above twenty targets, all weather synthetic aperture radar mapping, interleaved air to air and air to surface modes, and improved reliability relative to mechanically scanned radars. Production of Block 70 upgrade kits began in 2019 for global users, including Taiwan, Greece, South Korea, Turkey, Morocco, Slovakia, Bulgaria, and Jordan, with more than 450 upgrade kits and 153 new build aircraft ordered by late 2023.
Bahrain also became the first customer for the newly built Block 70 aircraft in 2017 under a $3.8 billion agreement for 16 aircraft, followed by a June 2018 $1.124 billion fixed price contract for their production, with early delivery targets set for 2021 and later adjusted to 2024 because of pandemic delays. The first Bahraini Block 70 aircraft was completed in Greenville, South Carolina, in early 2023, conducted initial flight testing, and was held under U.S. Air Force supervision before overseas transfer. Five aircraft had been produced by March 2024, with eleven more in production and testing, and three aircraft departed Greenville in March 2024 on a ferry flight to Bahrain. Ferry delivery procedures follow standard Foreign Military Sales practice in which the aircraft carry U.S. Air Force markings until arrival in the receiving country, and U.S. Air Force pilots conduct the ferry flights in groups of four aircraft whenever possible. Bahrain currently operates about twenty older F-16 Block 40 aircraft and five F-16 Block 70 aircraft, with further deliveries planned as production continues. Lockheed Martin projects annual deliveries of nineteen to twenty-one Block 70 aircraft and maintains a backlog of around 127 to 133 aircraft for six countries, with potential demand for about 300 more aircraft.
Written by Jérôme Brahy
Jérôme Brahy is a defense analyst and documentalist at Army Recognition. He specializes in naval modernization, aviation, drones, armored vehicles, and artillery, with a focus on strategic developments in the United States, China, Ukraine, Russia, Türkiye, and Belgium. His analyses go beyond the facts, providing context, identifying key actors, and explaining why defense news matters on a global scale.
