US offers Thai Air Force funds to buy a full fleet of F-16 jets
Thailand will have to shoulder high interest if it goes for this deal, says the defence minister, adding RTA is also considering Sweden’s Gripen jets
The US government has offered the Royal Thai Air Force (RTA) a loan to buy an entire fleet of F-16 fighter jets, Defence Minister Sutin Klungsang said.
Sutin said US Ambassador Robert Frank Godec conveyed the offer at a meeting at the Defence Ministry on Thursday morning.
He said the envoy had told him that the US was willing to lend enough funds for the RTA to acquire an entire F16 fleet in one go, instead of buying a few planes at a time.
However, Sutin did not disclose the amount offered.
He added that if the Thai government does take the offer, it will have to shoulder a high-interest cost, adding that other countries had also offered Thailand similar loans to purchase fighter jets.
The United States reportedly made the offer after the RTA announced early last month that it has set up a selection panel to decide whether it should buy Gripen fighter jets from Sweden or F-16s from the US.
RTA commander-in-chief ACM Phanphakdee Phattanakul said the air force has earmarked 19 billion baht to buy four new fighter jets and the panel would consider both models.
Meanwhile, Sutin said the US has also offered a special data link system that can be used as a command centre for the F-16 fighter jets and the system will also support communications with aircraft from other manufacturers.
