Second – hand F-16 jets to fly Romania's way in 2015 after pilot training and infrastructure upgrade

Romania will receive in 2015 the second - hand F-16 planes bought from Portugal and the US, and until then, Romanian pilots will be trained in the US to fly these planes, while infrastructure will be modernized to be compatible with the jets. In a first stage, 12 planes will be brought to Romania. “Even if we brought the planes today, we would have to keep them on the airport, because pilots need training, and training will take place in the US, on the very plans we are buying,” said Defense Minister Mircea Dusa. Romania will buy 12 second – hand F-16 planes from Portugal and the US, and will pay some EUR 638 million for the acquisition. Romania's plan to buy second – hand F-16 multi-role planes has previously been a public topic, with previous information pointing to a plan to buy from the US initially, then from Portugal and maybe Greece. Romania has to buy second – hand planes, which will be however prepared to last for another 20 years, as it cannot afford to buy new ones. The acquisition of F-16 jets was also discussed by Romanian President Traian Basescu and US President Barack Obama when Basescu made a visit to Washington DC. A plan including Romania, Croatia and Bulgaria, all to purchase such planes, was yet to be finalized at the time. The regional plan would have reduced the costs of the project for both the planes themselves and the pilots' training. In 2010, the Romanian Government canceled purchase plans for the 24 F-16 used planes from the US. The country's Supreme Defense Council had approved a purchase plan of EUR 1.3 billion, but Romania decided to temporarily halt it due to lack of funds. Earlier this year, news surfaced that Romania was negotiating with Greece and Portugal to buy used planes from them. editor@romania-insider.com