Singapore to acquire eight F-35A fighter jets from US

The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) will acquire eight F-35A fighter aircraft, complementing the previously announced purchase of 12 F-35Bs, Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said on Wednesday.

If the parliament approves the budget, the jets, made by US manufacturer Lockheed Martin, will arrive in Singapore around 2030, he said.

Minister Ng stressed that F-35 variants have different strengths that will bolster the RSAF’s capabilities, elaborating they are designed for greater endurance and have the ability to carry payloads of higher capacity.

Together with F-15SGs which attained full operational capability in 2013, the air force will have a fleet that is able to perform the full suite of missions required to defend Singapore’s skies.

Last year, the Singaporean Defence Ministry announced its decision to buy eight F-35Bs after an initial purchase of four ones in 2020. Delivery of the first four F-35Bs is expected in 2026 and the other eight in 2028.

They will replace the RSAF’s ageing F-16 jets, which have been in service since 1998. Several F-16s have progressively been upgraded with modern sensors and weaponry to keep them operationally ready until the mid-2030s.

Singapore is an important customer of weapon companies in the world in the context that the Southeast Asian is investing in new technologies and upgrade military equipment. The country’s defence budget for this financial year is SGD20.2 billion ($15 billion), up 2.5% from the previous year.