TSAMTO, March 1. The Singapore government is exercising an option to purchase eight additional F-35B multirole fighters in the version with a shortened take-off and vertical landing (STOVL) in addition to the first four aircraft.
According to Jane's Defense Weekly, this was announced by the country's Defense Minister Ng Eng Hyun at a meeting of parliament on February 24 after the announcement of the country's budget for 2023. It is assumed that the budget of the Ministry of Defense for 2023 will be slightly less than $ 18 billion, which is 5.6% more than in 2022.
According to the Minister, the decision was made after an extensive evaluation procedure conducted by the national group of the F-35 project, which includes specialists from the Air Force and the defense Science and Technology agency DSTA (Defense Science and Technology Agency).
The Group was given access to information intended only for F-35 users to conduct a comprehensive assessment, including discussing technical and engineering aspects with the manufacturer and other F-35 users.
Singapore's Ministry of Defense announced for the first time in March 2019 that it would purchase four F-35Bs with an option to purchase eight more. The first aircraft will be deployed to the United States for training and evaluation, and the Singapore Air Force will receive them in 2026.
The F-35B will replace the obsolete F-16s, which will be gradually withdrawn from service from the mid-2030s. It is assumed that eventually the Singapore Air Force fighter fleet will consist of F-35 and F-15SG.
As reported by TSAMTO, in March 2019, based on the results of the assessment, the Ministry of Defense of Singapore decided to purchase a batch of four fifth-generation F-35 Lightning-2 fighters with an option to purchase 8 additional aircraft.
In January 2020, the US State Department approved the potential supply of up to 12 F-35B aircraft to Singapore under the Foreign Military Sales program (a firm order for 4 aircraft with an option to purchase 8 additional ones) and related equipment worth up to $2.75 billion. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2026.
The delivery of the first batch of F-35B, in particular, will allow a comprehensive assessment of the possibility of operating aircraft in hot and humid tropical climates, determine whether there are any adverse effects on the radio-absorbing coating of the aircraft, work out cost-effective preventive maintenance and repair measures.
In 2020, Singapore signed a letter of offer and acceptance of an offer to supply the F-35 and after that received expanded access to information intended exclusively for operators of a low-profile fifth-generation fighter. Singapore specialists had the opportunity to interact with states that have already received the F-35, visited their facilities and took part in exercises in Fort Worth (pcs.Texas), used simulators to study the capabilities of the aircraft.
In 2023, Singapore is to move its F-16 training unit from the USAF base "Luke" in Phoenix (Arizona) to the Air National Guard Base "Ebbing" in Fort Smith (Arkansas). Eventually, after the delivery of the first F-35B aircraft, the Singapore Air Force training unit will switch to training only this type of fighter.
