The Singapore Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Monday placed an order for 12 additional F-15SG fighter aircraft from Boeing [BA], raising the total number of these multirole jets that it is procuring to 24.

This order is a follow-on tasking to the original batch of 12 F-15SGs that Singapore ordered in December 2005 for the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) to replace its retired A-4 Skyhawk fighter jets (Defense Daily, April 21, 2006). Delivery of those initial 12 is scheduled before the end of the decade. The 12 in the follow-on buy are anticipated in the inventory from 2010, the MoD said in a statement Oct 22.

“This acquisition of 12 more F-15SGs is part of the RSAF’s continuing effort to renew its fighter fleet,” reads the statement.

The MoD said the additional 12 aircraft are being acquired in two separate transactions: exercising the option in the original contract for eight more aircraft, and a new tasking for the four remaining jets. The additional F-15SGs will be equipped with sophisticated avionics and weapon systems, it said.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The F-15SG is a derivative of the F-15E Strike Eagle flown by the U.S. Air Force. The aircraft is capable of executing simultaneous air-to-ground and air-to-air missions during day or night, in virtually all weather conditions, according to Boeing. It can fly at speeds of more than Mach 2, the company says.

“We are proud that Singapore has chosen to acquire additional F-15SGs,” Chris Chadwick, Boeing’s vice president and general manager for Global Strike Systems, said in the statement that the company issued Oct. 22. “The Strike Eagle is a combat-tested fighter with the most technologically advanced systems, and we are confident the F-15SG will meet the defense needs of Singapore.”

Integration and flight-testing of the F-15SG will be performed at Boeing facilities in St. Louis, Mo., and Palmdale, Calif., beginning in November, the company said.

Boeing said it has produced more than 1,500 F-15s. In addition to the U.S. Air Force and RSAF, the air force of Israel, Japan, Saudi Arabia and South Korea operate fleets of them.