The World - News from Sept. 1, 1986

After months of maneuvering by American and French manufacturers, Indonesia signed a contract to buy 12 advanced U.S. F-16 jet fighters. A U.S. Embassy spokesman said the sale, already approved by Congress, totals $337 million, including spare parts, maintenance and training. The signing of the contract ended a bitter competition for the sale between General Dynamics, maker of the F-16, and the French company Dassault-Breguet, which builds the Mirage 2000 fighter. Dassault-Breguet had offered a deal that would require France to buy Indonesian exports worth 80% of the planes’ price. Terms of the U.S. contract were not detailed.