Washington clears possible sale of 48 F-35 jets to Saudi Arabia

The United States State Department has approved a possible foreign military sale to Saudi Arabia covering the purchase of F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter aircraft and related equipment, with the estimated total cost put at $24.3 billion. The approval was reported by Axios correspondent Barak Ravid, who published the department's determination as it was announced.

The package covers 48 aircraft, according to Israel Hayom, which described the step as clearing one of the most significant formal hurdles on the path to completing the sale. Ynet reported that the American administration informed Congress the sale would not change the military balance in the Middle East, and put the value of the deal at more than $24 billion, including engines and additional equipment.

What a State Department determination actually is

A Foreign Military Sale, usually shortened to FMS, is the channel through which the United States government sells defence equipment to foreign governments, rather than a manufacturer selling directly to a customer. A State Department determination of this kind is an approval that a possible sale may proceed to the next stage; it is not a signed contract and not a delivery. The step is accompanied by a formal notification to Congress, which has a window in which lawmakers may seek to block or condition the transfer. Nothing in the reports indicates that a purchase agreement has been concluded or that any aircraft have been ordered.

What the package contains

The Telegram channel Abu Ali Express, which monitors Arabic-language and regional military affairs, listed the components of the notified package: 48 F-35 Lightning II aircraft in the conventional take-off and landing configuration, and 49 Pratt & Whitney F135-PW-100 engines, 48 of them installed and one held as a spare. The same account said the package includes secure communications systems, navigation equipment, encryption, electronic warfare support, spare parts, training, simulators and technical documentation.

The F-35 is a stealth fighter built by Lockheed Martin and operated by the United States and a number of allied air forces. Joe Truzman of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a Washington think tank, described the approval as covering 48 stealth fighters and related equipment for about $24.3 billion.

Why this matters to Israel

Israel is the only country in the Middle East currently operating the F-35. The Israeli Air Force flies a version known locally as the Adir, a Hebrew word meaning mighty or magnificent, and the aircraft has been central to Israeli planning for long-range and contested-airspace missions.

American arms sales in the region are governed by a legal commitment known as Israel's qualitative military edge, or QME, under which Washington must assess that a transfer to another country in the region will not erode Israel's ability to counter threats with fewer numbers. The notification to Congress addressed exactly this point, with Ynet reporting that the administration said the sale would not change the regional military balance. Israel Hayom framed the same decision differently in its headline, saying the clearance could end Israel's regional air advantage. The two descriptions reflect the administration's stated assessment on one side and a characterisation of the potential consequence on the other; the reports do not offer a shared conclusion.

The political backdrop

Israel Hayom reported that United States President Donald Trump announced the intended sale last year, meaning the State Department determination formalises a policy already stated at the political level rather than introducing it. Saudi Arabia and Israel do not have diplomatic relations, and the kingdom is not a party to the Abraham Accords, the set of normalisation agreements between Israel and several Arab states. The reports reviewed here do not link the aircraft sale to any normalisation process.

What the reports do not say

The material does not give a delivery timetable, a production schedule, or the configuration of the aircraft beyond the conventional take-off and landing variant. It does not say whether any capabilities would be modified or restricted for the Saudi version, a question that has featured in past discussion of American fighter exports to the region. It does not record an Israeli government response, nor any statement from the Israeli Ministry of Defense or the Prime Minister's Office.

Nor do the reports state what conditions, if any, Congress may attach, or whether lawmakers intend to challenge the notification. The figure for the total cost is an estimate given in the State Department determination, and estimated FMS values routinely differ from the value of any contract that follows. Ynet gives the figure as more than $24 billion while other reports cite $24.3 billion; these are consistent rather than conflicting. Israel.com has not independently confirmed the contents of the congressional notification.