Lockheed Martin on Nov. 22 received three contracts worth almost $60 million for upgrades and modifications to Moroccan, Taiwanese, and Singaporean F-16s. The company received a $16.3 million modification to a previously awarded contract to upgrade F-16s for Morocco, with work expected to last until June 2019, according to a Pentagon announcement. Lockheed also received a $12.3 million modification to a previously awarded contract to provide equipment to sustain 144 Taiwanese F-16s, along with familiarization training on ground software for maintenance. The contract lasts until May 2022, according to the announcement. The third contract is for a $27 million modification to upgrade F-16s for Singapore, with work expect to last until June 2023.
Depot-level maintenance took longer than expected for nearly three-quarters of Air Force aircraft from fiscal 2019-2024, according to a new report, as unplanned repairs rise across the aging fleet. The report, from the Government Accountability Office, also found that the extent of the delays has been masked because officials often revise their target timelines after unplanned work occurs.