Defence`s Feeds

On 8 October 2026, Trial Chamber III of the International Criminal Court (ICC) made public its decision (dated 28 September 2026) in which it decided that Mr Duterte is fit to stand trial. In that decision, the Chamber also adopted necessary measures to facilitate the Accused's participation in his trial. The opening of the trial in the Duterte case is scheduled on 30 November 2026.

As preparations get under way for the tenth "Davos in the Desert" to be held in Riyadh from 26 to 29 October, its organiser, Richard Attias, is already thinking about what comes next. At the helm of his Richard Attias [...]

The high profile arrest on 6 October of August Hanning, the head of Germany's BND foreign intelligence service from 1998 [...]

U Win Zeyar Tun, the chargé d'affaires at Myanmar's embassy in London, contacted several British MPs both before and after [...]

The Philippine government is considering transferring responsibility for the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) from the transport ministry to the defence [...]

Multiple US government agencies are distancing themselves from the digital forensics firm Oxygen Forensics, after two of its owners were [...]

On 7 October, five French presidential advisers organised a cocktail reception in Paris to present the details of an upcoming “hackathon” on disinformation and democratic sovereignty. The event itself is set to take place at the Grand Palais in the French capital from 2 to 4 December.

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The aircraft, a two-seat F-16D, is not only the first of Morocco’s new Vipers to fly, but also the first new-build F-16 Block 72 to take to the air.

The first F-16D Block 72 destined for the Royal Moroccan Air Force (RMAF) has conducted its maiden flight. Lockheed Martin announced the milestone on Oct. 6, 2026, saying that the aircraft completed its first flight from the company’s F-16 production facility in Greenville, South Carolina.

Notably, the aircraft is not only the first of Morocco’s new Vipers to fly, but also the first new-build F-16 Block 72 to take to the air. Morocco became the launch customer for the Block 72 variant when the U.S. government approved the proposed Foreign Military Sale (FMS) in March 2019.

Morocco’s first @LockheedMartin F-16 Block 72 aircraft has taken flight in Greenville, South Carolina. The milestone marks another step toward delivering the most advanced F-16 configuration to the Royal Moroccan Air Force.

— Lockheed Martin News (@LMNews) October 6, 2026

This first flight now marks a major milestone in Morocco’s effort to expand and modernize its F-16 fleet, including both new-build and upgraded Block 72s. The aircraft will now undergo further flight testing before being delivered to Morocco.

A seven-year wait for the Block 72

Morocco’s acquisition dates back to March 2019, when the U.S. State Department approved a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) covering 25 new F-16C/D Block 72 fighters for an estimated $3.787 billion. The FMS notice did not specify how many twin-seater F-16Ds were included in the 25-aircraft total.

The proposed package included 29 Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229 engines, of which four are spares, as well as 26 AN/APG-83 AESA radars, 26 modular mission computers, Link 16 systems, LN260 embedded navigation systems and Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing Systems. The package also included weapons and targeting equipment, including AIM-120C-7 AMRAAMs, GBU-38 JDAMs and GBU-54 Laser JDAMs, GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs, GBU-49 Enhanced Paveway II laser-guided bombs and AN/AAQ-33 Sniper targeting pods.

A Royal Moroccan air force F-16 flies above Morocco during Exercise African Lion April 20, 2018. | Source: U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Malcolm Mayfield

The Block 72 is part of the latest-generation F-16 Block 70/72 family, which incorporates a major modernization of the aircraft’s avionics, sensors, mission systems and cockpit while retaining the basic F-16 airframe. The distinction between the two configurations is primarily the engine.

In fact, the F-16 Block 70 is powered by General Electric’s F110-GE-129, while the Block 72 uses Pratt & Whitney’s F100-PW-229. The two versions otherwise share the same systems, mirroring the earlier Block 40/42 and Block 50/52 families.

The choice of the Block 72 is particularly relevant to Morocco because the RMAF already operates F-16C/D Block 52+ aircraft powered by the Pratt & Whitney F100 engine family. Using the same engine family on the new aircraft provides a degree of commonality in maintenance, logistics and personnel training, especially with the planned upgrade of the existing aircraft to the F-16V Block 72 configuration.

Expanding Morocco’s F-16 fleet

The 25 new F-16s Block 72 are only one part of Morocco’s broader F-16 modernization effort. In fact, alongside the purchase of the new-build aircraft, Washington approved a separate package in 2019 to upgrade Morocco’s existing F-16C/D Block 52+ fleet to the F-16V Block 72 configuration.

Four Royal Moroccan Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft fly in formation with a U.S. Air Force B-52 Stratofortress aircraft assigned to the 23rd Expeditionary Bomb Squadron during a Bomber Task Force mission over Morocco, May 23, 2025. | Source: U.S. Air Force photo by Staff Sgt. Bryan Guthrie

Among the new systems installed during the upgrade we can find the APG-83 AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) radar, a new Center Pedestal Display (CPD), the AN/APX-126 Advanced IFF (Identification Friend or Foe), Link 16 datalink, full NVIS (Night Vision Imaging System) and JHCMS II (Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing System II) compatibility, a new Embedded GPS/INS (EGI), a modern commercial off-the-shelf (COTS)-based avionics subsystem, a high-volume, high-speed data bus and the Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System (Auto GCAS).

The combination of new-build aircraft and upgraded fighters is intended to give the RMAF a much more homogeneous and capable F-16 fleet. The service initially received 24 aircraft ordered in 2009, with the new order now doubling the fleet.

South Korea launched its homegrown Nuri space rocket Wednesday on its fifth flight, carrying 15 satellites into orbit, including five intended for the country's first domestically launched microsatellite constellation.

China remains firmly opposed to U.S. arms sales to China's Taiwan region, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Tuesday, stressing that the country's position is clear.

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U.S. Democratic Senator Chris Murphy said Tuesday that the Pentagon blocked him from visiting a key military base in Qatar during his Middle East visit, accusing the White House of hiding the costs and implications of its war on Iran.

The Government proposes allocating 191,7 billion Norwegian kroner (NOK) to the defence sector in the 2027 national budget.

The Air Operations Service of the National Army detected an unauthorized flight in the national airspace this morning. It occurred amid the Russian Federation's massive attacks on Ukraine, according to Moldpres.

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Today marks three years since Hamas' horrific terrorist attack against Israel on 7 October 2023. The attack claimed the lives of 1,200 people, and 251 people were taken hostage. Norway condemned the attack in the strongest possible terms. There can be no justification for terrorism, attacks on civilians, sexual violence or hostage-taking.

Prime Minister Andy Burnham's statement three years on from the October 7th attacks.

Iran-backed Houthi rebels said they targeted King Khalid International Airport in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, with a ballistic missile on October 7, as the group launched a fresh wave of attacks on Saudi Arabia and Yemen's government-held south.

Parliament elected Justina Shiroka Pula as Kosovo's new president early on October 7 following a last-minute political deal that secured lawmakers' approval of legal changes restricting the powers of a Hague-based war crimes court.