Taitung:The Ministry of National Defense has released footage and photos of an F-16V Block 20 and Brave Eagle advanced jet trainers escorting two newly arrived F-16V Block 70 aircraft, which Taiwan received a day earlier.

According to Focus Taiwan, the footage displays four aircraft, including the new Block 70 jets numbered 6727 and 6728, flying above the clouds and the open ocean. The images appear to have been taken from the cockpit of one of the Brave Eagles accompanying the new jets, which are the first batch of 66 approved for sale to Taiwan by the United States in 2019.

Additional photos depict all five aircraft flying in various formations. The F-16V Block 70s touched down at Chihhang Air Base in Taitung County on Friday after departing from Hawaii and making a stop in Guam.

The United States had approved the sale of 66 F-16Vs and related equipment to Taiwan in 2019 for approximately $8 billion. While delivery was initially expected to commence in 2023 and conclude by 2026, it has been delayed due to technical issues. Defense Minister Wellington Koo assured reporters that more than two jets would be delivered this year.