The U.S. State Department has approved a $644 million emergency sale of precision-guided munitions to the United Arab Emirates for its F-16 Block 60 fleet. The package includes 1,500 GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bombs, 900 KMU-556 JDAM kits for GBU-31 bombs on Mk-84 bodies, and 300 KMU-557 kits for BLU-109 penetrator warheads, along with three inert GBU-39 practice bombs and tactical training rounds.
Additional components cover FMU-139 fuze systems, DSU-42 and DSU-40 laser target detectors for laser-augmented guidance, Link 16 support, KG-250 encryptors, AN/PYQ-10 key loaders, Joint Mission Planning System software, spare parts, training, and logistics services. Lockheed Martin in Greenville, South Carolina, serves as the principal contractor. The approval, notified on March 19, 2026, uses emergency authority to expedite delivery without standard congressional review.
These munitions enhance the UAE’s 80 F-16E/F Desert Falcon aircraft, equipped with APG-80 AESA radar and advanced systems, for stand-off strikes against dispersed and hardened targets. The sale occurs amid ongoing Iranian missile and drone attacks on the UAE since February 28, 2026, which have included thousands of launches intercepted by UAE defenses using U.S.-supplied THAAD and Patriot systems.