Turkey will receive its first F-35 Lightning II Fighter jet on 21 June

Turkey will receive its first delivery of a US-made Lightning II Fighter jet on June 21

Right now Two fighter pilots from the Turkish Air Force are getting special training in the US, where the delivery of the first plane to Turkey is planned to be completed with a ceremony. The F-35 jets are planned to be brought to Turkey in September 2019. The trained pilots will fly the two F-35s from the US, accompanied by a refueling plane.

The delivery of the first F-35 fighter jets will take place in spite of a number of US congressmen who have urged the Trump administration to suspend the procurement because of Turkey’s decision to buy Russian S-400 advanced air defense systems.

“If they take such a step at a moment when we are trying to mend our bilateral ties, they will definitely get a response from Turkey. There is no longer the old Turkey,” Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu told the private broadcaster, CNN Turk, in an interview.

In 2014, Turkey placed an order for the first two F-35 jets for the projected fleet of 100 F-35A aircraft. Turkey has planned to deploy these F-35 at the 7th Main Jet Base Command in Turkey’s eastern Malatya province

The F-35s will replace the aging fleet of F-4 and F-16 aircraft.