DEFENSE / Only some of 66 fighter jets ordered from U.S. may be delivered on time: Koo

Taipei, Nov. 3 (CNA) Defense Minister Wellington Koo (顧立雄) said Monday that the delivery of Taiwan's order of 66 American-made F-16 Block 70 fighter jets has been delayed due to production problems, but some of them may be delivered on time next year.

Fifty of the F-16 Block 70 fighter jets, produced by the American company Lockheed Martin, are currently being assembled in the United States, Koo said during a hearing of the Legislature's Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee on the delays in the delivery of Taiwan's order.

By the end of this year, 10 of the fighter jets -- also known as F-16Vs -- are expected to roll off the assembly line, after which they will undergo test flights before being delivered to Taiwan, Koo said in response to questions by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker Loh Mei-ling (羅美玲).

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In total, 50 of the 66 F-16Vs ordered by Taiwan are being assembled, Ko told the lawmakers, including Chen Chun-yu (陳俊宇) of the ruling DPP and Huang Jen (黃仁) of the opposition Kuomintang (KMT), who were asking questions about the delayed delivery schedule.

"We want the public to know that this is not a situation of 'no progress,'" Koo said. "The work is moving ahead at full speed, with extra hours and two shifts covering 20 hours a day."

"If the tests go well, I think we can expect some of the F-16Vs to be delivered next year," he added.

The 66 fighter jets ordered by Taiwan were scheduled to be delivered by the end of 2026, but the U.S. is unlikely to meet that deadline due to disruptions in the production process, according to lawmakers.

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Air Force Chief of Staff Lee Ching-jan (李慶然), who was also at the hearing, pointed out that "delivery does not equate to flying the jets back to Taiwan."

Taiwan will send personnel to the U.S. to inspect and take delivery of the jets, after which a contingent will remain there to undergo the necessary training before the aircraft are flown back to Taiwan, Lee said in response to Huang's question about the delivery schedule.

Pressed by Huang on whether the U.S. might deliver only one F-16V next year, Lee said it would be "more than that," citing the latest U.S. report on the matter.

On the question of whether safeguards were in place to prevent Taiwan from overpaying amid the production delays, Koo said Taiwan has withheld payments since the first quarter of 2024 due to the delays.

"We have made payments for the establishment of the production line and sourcing of materials, but since the jets could not be delivered on schedule, we have reached an agreement with the U.S. to defer subsequent payments," Koo said.

According to KMT lawmaker Ma Wen-chun (馬文君), Taiwan to date has paid around US$4.87 billion of the total estimated cost of US$8 billion for the 66 fighter jets.