Washington, March 28, 2005, Ashish Kumar Sen

The Bush administration’s decision to sell F-16s to India and Pakistan comes as a welcome news to the struggling Bethesda-based manufacturer of the fighter jets.

Mike Nipper, a spokesman for Lockheed Martin, told The Tribune on Friday afternoon that the defence contractor had been “closely following” news of the sale of F-16s to Pakistan but had not received any “official notification on the sale from the Bush administration.”

Lockheed Martin, which manufactures the F-16 and F-18 at its plant in Fort Worth, Texas, reported $ 35.5 billion in sales in 2004 and a backlog of $74 billion.

Company officials say the firm was in “desperate need” of orders for the F-16 failing which it would have been forced to close some of its operations, an action that would lead to the loss of a few thousand jobs.

Lockheed Martin has produced more than 4,000 F-16s in over 110 different versions. The F-16 is one of the world’s most sought-after multi-role fighters.

The F-16 is a revolutionary fighter when first introduced and has continuously evolved to meet global needs. Twentytwo nations have chosen the world’s first fourth-generation fighter; 14 of those nations have made subsequent purchases of new aircraft; and six have acquired US Air Force inventory aircraft through purchase or lease.

Deliveries have been made from five production lines.

Mr. Nipper said an F-16 — a single-engine, land-based fighter jet — would cost upwards of $ 35 million. “The cost varies significantly depending on the accessories and how they are equipped,” he said. It takes about three years to build an F-16.

The F-18, a more advanced fighter, is a double engine, carrier-based aircraft, which is up to 30 per cent heavier than the F-16. “The cost of the F-18 is considerably higher,” Mr. Nipper said, explaining that the jets sell “by the pound.”

Asked about the economic impact of the Bush administration’s decision to sell the jets to Pakistan and India on the US companies, a senior state department official in Washington replied: “They like it.”