By Jim Morris, Warrior Vice President, News
It took a couple years longer than expected, but Slovakia has finally received its first two American-made F-16 fighter jets.
The planes landed in western Slovakia on Monday, temporarily bearing US insignia and flown by American pilots. A dozen more of the fighters will be delivered over the next two years, all part of a $1.8 billion deal. The delivery of the F-16s was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic and a shortage of computer chips.
Slovakia had grounded its aging fleet of Soviet-made MiG-29s in 2022 when Russian technicians who serviced them left the country following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Last year, Slovakia, a member of NATO, donated the MiGs to Ukraine. Since then, Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary have joined in to guard Slovak skies.
Slovakia is getting the Block 70 model of the F-16, built by Lockheed Martin. The planes are equipped with the Northrop Grumman APG-83 AESA radar and the Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System (Auto GCAS), which Lockheed says has helped save the lives of 13 F-16 pilots since it was introduced ten years ago.
The F-16 deal has been complicated by the sometimes-turbulent state of Slovakian politics. Peter Pellegrini was the prime minister when the agreement was signed in 2018. In 2021, government auditors concluded that the purchase of the planes was inefficient, citing the fact that the most expensive military purchase in Slovakian history was not debated in parliament.
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Last year, Robert Fico became prime minister after campaigning on an anti-American platform. Fico is opposed to sending weapons to Ukraine, and wants an investigation into the donation of the MiGs. Pellegrini, a close Fico ally, is now the country’s president. He attended the F-16 arrival ceremony and said the planes would “significantly contribute to the increase of defense capabilities of our country.”
Earlier this month, a US Air Force team installed a barrier arresting kit at a Slovakian air base. The BAK-12 system is designed to ensure that jets such as the F-16 can be safely stopped if they need to make an emergency landing.
That was part of an agreement reached in 2022, when the parliament approved a plan to let the US military use two air bases for ten years. In return, Slovakia would receive $100 million to modernize the bases. The deal is similar to one the US has with 23 other NATO members.
Fico’s election – the fourth time he has become prime minister – raised concerns that that he would weaken Slovakia’s ties with NATO and abandon its general pro-Western course. He promised to follow what he called a “sovereign” foreign policy.
Still, it was all smiles earlier this year when US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin III met with his Slovakian counterpart, Robert Kalinak. Austin praised Slovakia for modernizing its military, and for its support of Ukraine – despite Fico’s opposition to providing weapons to Kyiv.
