United Arab Emirates to Buy Up to 80 F-16s

The United Arab Emirates is expected to announce today that it has chosen Lockheed Martin Corp.’s F-16 fighter over competing European aircraft in a deal worth up to $6 billion, according to industry and government sources. The deal could cover as many as 80 F-16s, which are made at a plant in Fort Worth. The choice of the F-16 is a huge boost for Bethesda, Md.-based Lockheed Martin because the U.S. Air Force has largely concluded its purchases of the plane, which will be replaced in the next century by the Joint Strike Fighter.