The F-35 in Saudi Arabia: A gamechanger in the region?

Before the visit of Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to Washington DC had even begun, US President Donald Trump on Monday announced his plans for the US to sell the F-35 fighter plane to the Kingdom.

“They want to buy it, they’ve been a great ally,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. He then added: “Yeah, I will say that we will be doing that. We’ll be selling F-35s.”

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On Tuesday, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent voiced support for the sale during an interview with Fox News, praising Saudi Arabia as a “valuable” ally in the region.

While many details have yet to be revealed about the deal and while the sale is still subject to approval by the US Congress, here’s what we know about the F-35 jets.

Under the radar

Built by US aerospace and defense company Lockheed Martin, the F-35 Lightning II, more commonly known as the F-35, is a fighter plane produced since 2004. It entered US service in 2015. There are three different subtypes: the F-35A Lightning II, the F-35B Lightning II and the F-35C Lightning II.

With speed levels of 1.6 Mach (about 1.200 mph) with full internal weapons load, a combat radius of 450 nautical miles (833 km) to 600 nautical miles (1,100 km), and ranges from 900 nautical miles (1,667 km) toto 1,200 nautical miles (2,200 km) according to its producer Lockheed Martin, it is among the fastest and most far-reaching of its generation.

In addition to speed and weapons capabilities, the F-35 has the ability to avoid and complicate detection by enemy radar due to its shape and internal sensors, earning it the nickname “the stealth jet.” Furthermore, it functions as an airborne data hub collecting and sharing battlefield information due to advanced sensor fusion automatically analyzing data from sensors and merging it into relevant information for pilots.

With costs between $80 million and $110 million, it is among the most expensive fighter aircraft currently in service.

Breaking the monopoly

In addition to US service, the F-35 is operated by several American allies and partners, including Belgium, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Finland, Israel, Japan, Poland, Romania, Singapore, South Korea and Switzerland.

Lockheed Martin has a long business history in the Middle East and sold defense equipment to allies and partners across the region, including Saudi Arabia.

For now, Israel has exclusive access to the F-35 in the Middle East. Delivering F-35 fighter aircrafts to Saudi Arabia would therefore usher in a new area of US weapon sales to the country and further strengthen the Kingdom’s already well-equipped and efficient armed forces.

Read more:

US treasury secretary backs sale of F-35s to Saudi Arabia

‘They’ve been a great ally’: Trump says US will sell F-35s to Saudi Arabia