Czechs close to selling L-159 planes to US

The Czech military is close to a deal on selling 28 L-159 combat aircraft to a US company, the Defence Minister Vlastimil Picek told reporters on Friday. The potential buyer is Draken International, a Florida-based firm which provides aviation training and other services for the US Air Force. The Czech army has been trying to sell the L-159 planes ever since it became apparent it only needed a third of the 72 planes it ordered in 1997 at a total cost of over 50 billion crowns.