{"id":37771,"date":"2026-09-18T09:53:05","date_gmt":"2026-09-18T06:53:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/?p=37771"},"modified":"2026-09-18T09:53:07","modified_gmt":"2026-09-18T06:53:07","slug":"us-approves-24-3-billion-sale-of-48-f-35-stealth-fighter-jets-to-saudi-arabia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/us-approves-24-3-billion-sale-of-48-f-35-stealth-fighter-jets-to-saudi-arabia\/","title":{"rendered":"US approves $24.3 billion sale of 48 F-35 stealth fighter jets to Saudi Arabia"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

5 minute read<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. State Department has approved a potential $24.3 billion sale of 48 Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, clearing a major hurdle in Riyadh\u2019s long-running effort to acquire the advanced stealth aircraft.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposed deal still requires a 30-day congressional review before it can move forward. The package would include 48 F-35 Lightning II aircraft, 49 Pratt & Whitney F135-PW-100 engines, communications equipment, spare parts, software, electronic warfare equipment, training and other support.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The approval could deepen the U.S.-Saudi defense relationship while raising questions in Washington and Israel over the protection of sensitive F-35 technology and Israel\u2019s military advantage in the Middle East.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Saudi Arabia Seeks Advanced Fighter<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saudi Arabia has sought the F-35 for years as part of its effort to modernize its armed forces. The kingdom currently operates a mixed fighter fleet that includes US-made F-15s and European Eurofighter Typhoons and Tornado aircraft. The F-35 would add fifth-generation stealth capabilities to the Royal Saudi Air Force.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aircraft is designed to reduce its radar signature and combine stealth with advanced sensors, communications, and electronic warfare capabilities. If the sale is completed, Saudi Arabia would become the first Arab country to operate the F-35.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The State Department said the proposed sale would strengthen Saudi Arabia\u2019s ability to deter current and future threats and improve its interoperability with U.S. forces and other regional partners. It also said the transaction would not alter the military balance in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"U.S.<\/a>
F-35A Lightning II aircraft receive fuel from a KC-10 Extender from Travis Air Force Base, Calif., during a flight from England to the U.S. (Image Credit: U.S. Air Force photo\/Staff Sgt. Madelyn Brown)<\/sup><\/em>

<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Israel\u2019s Military Advantage<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposed sale has particular importance because of Israel\u2019s existing F-35 fleet. Israel has operated the aircraft for about a decade and is currently the only Middle Eastern country with the F-35. Israeli plans to acquire another squadron would increase its fleet to 100 aircraft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

U.S. arms sales to countries in the Middle East are also subject to Washington\u2019s policy of maintaining Israel\u2019s \u201cqualitative military edge.\u201d The policy is intended to ensure that Israel retains military advantages over other countries in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Saudi purchase would therefore require the U.S. to consider how the aircraft and their capabilities are configured and supported while maintaining that policy. The State Department has said the proposed sale would not change the regional military balance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Security Concerns<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposed sale has also raised concerns in Washington over Saudi Arabia\u2019s growing defense and technology relationship with China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A U.S. intelligence assessment reportedly examined the possibility that Chinese intelligence services could gain access to sensitive F-35 technology through espionage or military cooperation with Saudi Arabia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The assessment reportedly looked at Chinese access to Saudi military facilities and the kingdom\u2019s use of Chinese technology in parts of its telecommunications infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

U.S. officials have raised concerns that these connections could create security vulnerabilities around facilities used to operate and maintain the F-35.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"F-35<\/a>
Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jet. (Image Credit: Australian Department of Defence\/Lockheed Martin)<\/sup><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat from Illinois, has opposed the proposed sale. He warned that the agreement could put sensitive U.S. military technology within China\u2019s reach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The concerns have become an important issue as Saudi Arabia has expanded its military and economic ties with China while continuing to rely heavily on the U.S. for advanced defense systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Congress Has 30 Days to Review<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The State Department\u2019s approval does not mean that the sale has been completed. The proposed Foreign Military Sale has now entered the congressional review process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Congress has 30 calendar days to examine the notification and could attempt to block the transaction through a joint resolution of disapproval.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The deal would then continue through the Foreign Military Sales process if Congress does not prevent it. The proposed package would involve Lockheed Martin Aeronautics and Pratt & Whitney as the principal contractors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Deepening US-Saudi Defense Ties<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The F-35 proposal is part of a broader expansion of US-Saudi defense cooperation under President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Trump first announced plans for Saudi Arabia to receive the F-35 in 2025, ahead of a meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The two countries also agreed to a separate defense package worth about $142 billion in 2025, which the White House described as the largest defense cooperation agreement in U.S. history.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"U.S.<\/a>
U.S. F-35 Stealth Fighter Jet. (Image Credit: Lockheed Martin)<\/sup><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The Biden administration had also discussed the possibility of providing F-35s to Saudi Arabia as part of wider negotiations involving security cooperation and potential Saudi normalization of relations with Israel. Those efforts did not produce an agreement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The latest proposal separates the fighter sale from those earlier diplomatic efforts and moves the aircraft deal forward through the U.S. arms-sales process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Sale Comes Amid Regional Tensions<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The proposed F-35 sale comes as Saudi Arabia faces renewed security challenges involving Yemen and the Iran-backed Houthi movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saudi and Houthi forces have exchanged attacks in recent days, with the Houthis expanding their operations along parts of Yemen\u2019s Red Sea coast and Saudi Arabia carrying out strikes against Houthi positions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The regional situation has added pressure on Riyadh as it seeks to protect its territory and critical infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The F-35, however, would represent a major step beyond simply replacing older aircraft. Its stealth, sensors, and networked capabilities would give Saudi Arabia a new type of combat aircraft alongside its existing F-15 and European fighter fleets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If approved and completed, the $24.3 billion deal would make Saudi Arabia the first Arab operator of the F-35 and deepen its military relationship with Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The aircraft would also give the Royal Saudi Air Force access to one of the most advanced fighter platforms in the U.S. inventory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For now, the State Department\u2019s decision clears the latest major step toward the sale, but the outcome depends on the congressional review and subsequent stages of the Foreign Military Sales process.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\"F-35A<\/a>
U.S. Air Force\u2019s most advanced 5th-generation multi-role stealth fighter, the F-35A Lightning II. (Image Credit: U.S. Army)<\/sup><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The U.S. State Department has approved a potential $24.3 billion sale of 48 Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets to Saudi Arabia, clearing a major hurdle in Riyadh\u2019s long-running effort to acquire the advanced stealth aircraft.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16275,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[44,1,125],"tags":[256,45,75,252,286,372,356,5,101,113,7,114],"class_list":["post-37771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-middle-east","category-news","category-united-states","tag-aircraft","tag-china","tag-conflict","tag-f-35","tag-fighter-jet","tag-houthi","tag-middle-east","tag-military","tag-saudi-arabia","tag-security","tag-u-s","tag-yemen"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p7jJWb-9Pd","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/US-Air-Force-F-35-jets.jpg?fit=690%2C370&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=37771"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37771\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37776,"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37771\/revisions\/37776"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16275"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=37771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=37771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ir-ia.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=37771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}