Iraq has signed a $118-million agreement with Vectrus Systems to provide operational and life support services for its fleet of F-16 fighter jets.
The contract, part of the US foreign military sales program, includes base operations and related services, with an initial payment of $57.8 million fully covered by the Iraqi government.
The support work will be conducted at Martyr BG Ali Flaih Air Base in southern Iraq and is expected to continue through November 2026. According to Shafaq News Agency, Iraq currently operates 34 F-16C/D fighter jets from Lockheed Martin, with heavy reliance on American contractors for maintenance.
Following the US personnel withdrawal in 2020, the number of mission-ready F-16s dropped from 20 to just five. Iraq originally purchased 36 F-16 Block 52+ jets under two foreign military sales agreements between 2014 and 2017, with two aircraft lost in training incidents in the US.
