S Korea to finalise F-35 jet fighter deal this year

[SEOUL] South Korea plans to finalise the purchase of 40 next-generation F-35 jet fighters from US aerospace giant Lockheed Martin later this year, Seoul's military procurement agency said.

"We will . . . push to sign the contract in the third quarter . . . after testing and further negotiations," Jung Kwang-Sun, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration's aircraft department director, told reporters in a briefing late Monday.

The South's air force has been looking to upgrade its ageing fleet of Boeing F-4 and F-5 fighters in the light of North Korea's growing nuclear threat.