At Lockheed Martin’s headquarters in Greenville, South Carolina, the unveiling ceremony for the world’s first F-16 Block 70, which will be for the Royal Bahrain Air Force, took place today.

The Kingdom of Bahrain has a unique history with the F-16. It was the first F-16 operator in the Gulf Cooperation Council in the early 1990s, and now receives the first F-16 Block 70.

First F-16 Block 70 had its rollout ceremony

Six countries have selected Block 70/72 aircraft. In addition to the current official portfolio of 127 aircraft to be built at Greenville, Jordan signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) for 12 aircraft. Bulgaria also signed an LOA for eight additional Block 70/72 aircraft for its fleet. Once finalized, the order book will total 147 units..

«The F-16 celebrated today was built by our talented, committed workforce in Greenville,» said Danya Trent, vice president, F-16 Programs and Greenville site leader. «We are proud to call Greenville the global home of the F-16 and look forward to continuing to produce jets serving missions around the world».