Malaysia to purchase U.S. Superhornets

Malaysia to purchase U.S. Superhornets

MALAYSIA: Kuala Lumpur plans to buy U.S. Superhornet FA-18F fighter jets to upgrade its air power, Defense Minister Najib Razak said on Saturday in a national news agency report.

Malaysia will also buy radar systems and guided missile launchers from the United States, Bernama news agency quoted Razak as saying.

Najib did not say how many Superhornets Malaysia was buying, or how much the purchase was worth. He said defense officials of both countries were finalizing details and hoped to conclude a deal by the end of this year.

Malaysia has made several major defense purchases this year, spending about 6 billion ringgit (US$1.6 billion) on European and Russian-made hardware ranging from rifles and missiles to its first submarines. --AP