The United States of Lockheed Martin through its...

Editor's note: ...front sales office at the US State Department does a deal with the Saudi petro kingdom for $24 billion in F-35 sales. There are a very strange set of business circumstances here because war is business. The Lockheed Martin sale of F-35 aircraft to the Saudi petro kingdom flush with cash, yet the US won't assist the Saudi kingdom in pushing back Houthie gains against the Saudi kingdom in Yemen. Then there is the Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf who said, "the era of US F-35 and F-15 jets being hunted down has already begun", pointing to mounting pressure and damage on the US military roughly seven months into the war with Iran (much of it is media-driven). Ghalibaf's remarks followed comments by US Joint Chiefs Chairman General Dan Caine, who acknowledged American forces now face a battlefield where they can be hunted by autonomous systems, jammed, and tracked in real time. Ghalibaf framed this as "a new reality the US must accept." Again, we are seeing everyone threatening each other with annihilation while the Pakistanis move to support the Saudi kingdom understanding of course the "government backed Saudi forces" fighting the Houthies are mostly mercenaries from Pakistan. It looks like the Saudi kingdom can use $100 million advanced F-35 fighters to attack Houthie machine-gun mounted Toyota trucks racing across the deserts of Yemen.
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State Department Approves Massive $24 Billion F-35 Sale to Saudi Arabia

The kingdom is also requesting additional air defenses from its allies amid the war with Ansar Allah

by Kyle Anzalone | September 17, 2026

The State Department approved a $24.3 billion sale of F-35s to Saudi Arabia. The announcement comes as the Gulf kingdom is requesting military assistance from its allies as it fights a war against Ansar Allah in Yemen.

The sale includes 48 F-35s and 49 engines (48 equipped with one spare), cryptographic equipment, electronic warfare support, training and logistics packages, according to the notification to Congress. The proposed sale is now subject to congressional review, although Congress rarely succeeds in blocking major arms sales.

Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company and Pratt & Whitney Military Engines are the primary contractors on the deal. The State Department statement says, "The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the military balance in the region."

However, Israel has previously objected to sales of F-35s to Gulf states and Turkey, arguing that it upsets the balance of power in the Middle East. Tel Aviv often invokes Washington's policy of ensuring that Israel maintains a Qualitative Military Edge over other countries in the region. The F-35 is the most advanced aircraft in the Israeli fleet.

The State Department announced the sale a day after Ansar Allah claimed to have downed a Saudi F-15 over Yemen. Yemen’s SABA news agency on Wednesday published what it said were photos of a US-made Saudi F-15SA fighter jet that was shot down by Ansar Allah over the Yemeni province of Marib.

In addition to attacking Saudi-backed forces in Yemen, Ansar Allah has targeted military and energy facilities in Saudi Arabia. The kingdom has also come under fire from Iran and militants in Iraq. Last week, a drone launched from Iraq hit Saudi's East-West pipeline.

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