South Korea Orders 40 F-35 Fighter Jets

South Korea will buy 40 F-35A fighter jets from Lockheed Martin and is expected to sign a deal worth an approx $7.04 billion this month, several news agencies in Seoul and Washington reported today.

“After negotiations in the past months on technology, price and trade-off conditions, we have agreed to acquire 40 jets within the total budget and reflect all the terms negotiated during the 2013 competition," South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said in a statement on Wednesday.

Lockheed Martin is expected to transfer F-35A production technologies that are to be used for South Korea’s indigenous next-generation fighter jet, DAPA said.

DAPA also finalized a plan to produce an indigenous next-generation fighter today.