The first two of 66 new F-16V Block 70 fighters Taiwan ordered from the United States have reached Guam. Serials 6727 and 6728 are waiting on a weather window for the last hop to Chihhang Air Base in Taitung County, according to Taiwanese military sources quoted by local media.
U.S. pilots are flying the jets. They left Lockheed Martin’s Greenville, South Carolina, line on August 17, stopped in Hawaii on August 21 and arrived in Guam on August 25. Conformal fuel tanks and three external tanks are fitted for the Pacific crossing, which requires aerial refueling. Taiwan News reported that U.S. Air Force markings will be removed and Republic of China Air Force insignia shown before the aircraft are formally handed over.
A Long-Delayed 66-Jet Order
The pair is the first delivery under the NT$247.3 billion (about US$7.76 billion) Peace Phoenix Soaring buy, approved by Washington in 2019. Original plans called for first deliveries around 2023 and the full batch by the end of 2026. A production-line move from Fort Worth to Greenville, supply-chain disruption and software work pushed the schedule into 2027–2028 for the remaining aircraft.
Once they arrive, the jets are expected to join the Air Force’s 7th Tactical Fighter Wing, which covers Taiwan’s eastern approaches. Ground inspections and conversion training come first. Lockheed Martin has added a second production shift to accelerate later deliveries.
What Block 70 Adds
Block 70 is the current export configuration of the F-16. New-build airframes get an active electronically scanned array radar, a modern mission computer, improved electronic warfare gear and a strengthened structure with more thrust than Taiwan’s older Vipers. The island already upgraded 140 F-16A/Bs to the F-16V Block 20 standard; these are factory-new jets rather than rebuilds. See the encyclopedia entry for the F-16 Fighting Falcon.
Arrival in Taiwan is not guaranteed on the first weather window. Sources told the South China Morning Post the jets could reach Taitung by August 27 if conditions allow, or slip past August 30 if typhoons block the route.