Lockheed tapped for Taiwan F-16 sensors

Colin Demarest

Gray fighter jet with pilots on runway seen through bus window, with passengers inside photographing the aircraft. — A Taiwan Air Force F-16V taxis past a media bus at Chiayi Air Base in January. Photo: I-Hwa Cheng/AFP via Getty Images

Lockheed Martin will provide Taiwan IRST21 Legion-ES sensors for their F-16s in a U.S. government deal worth $329 million.

Why it matters: The arrangement could improve Taiwan's ability to keep tabs on Chinese aircraft.

Driving the news: Lockheed's Patrick McKenzie discussed the contract and technology Monday at the Warfare Symposium in Colorado, weeks after word of the deal emerged.

"If you are flying through the air, you're creating heat through skin friction, and this sensor will detect and be able to track that heat," he told reporters.
"It'll improve some situational awareness, increase reaction time and then support survivability in those contested environments."

Zoom out: The People's Liberation Army entered Taiwan's air defense identification zone 3,075 times in 2024, according to the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

What we're watching: The Davidson window.

Go deeper: Secretive Lockheed RQ-170 drones used in Maduro raid

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Lockheed tapped for Taiwan F-16 sensors

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