SAO PAULO —The Argentine government has completed the purchase of 24 F-16 fighter jets from Denmark, Argentina’s president and defense minister announced Tuesday during a live broadcast.
The deal for the Block 15 aircraft was finalized during Defense Minister Luis Petri’s visit to Denmark, alongside the chief of the General Staff of the Argentine Air Force, Maj. Gen. Fernando Luis Mengo, and a government delegation.
The contract, which is worth $320 million, also includes reconnaissance pods and training armaments, such as AIM-9X and AIM-120 missiles. The U.S. government previously approved the aircraft transaction.
“You are moving the country forward, you are taking Argentina out of decades of decline and are carrying the flags of freedom to all corners of the world, and this is also felt here in Denmark,” the minister said during the broadcast. “As of today, Argentines once again have forces from the sky to protect us, under the leadership of President [Javier] Milei and with the support of allies like Denmark and the United States.”
Danish Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen described the sale is part of a restructuring of his country’s Air Force, which is replacing its fighters with F-35s, in addition to donating some of the equipment to Ukraine. Ukraine is currently fighting off a Russian invasion.
“In close cooperation with our allies, we have donated 19 F-16s to Ukraine’s fight for freedom, and now we have sold 24 aircraft to Argentina in a good process that has created valuable ties between our two countries,” he said.
Pedro Pligher is a Latin America correspondent for Defense News. He has reported on politics, economics and the Brazilian small arms industry.
