ANKARA, Nov 27 (Reuters) - Turkey has reduced its

planned $23 billion acquisition of an F-16 fighter jet package

from the United States, scrapping the purchase of 79

modernisation kits for its existing fleet, Defence Minister

Yasar Guler said late on Tuesday.

NATO member Turkey earlier this year secured a deal to

procure 40 F-16 fighter jets and 79 modernisation kits for its

existing F-16s from the United States, after a long-delayed

process.

"An initial payment has been made for the procurement of

F-16 Block-70. A payment of $1.4 billion has been made. With

this, we will buy 40 F-16 Block-70 Viper and we were going to

buy 79 modernisation kits," Guler told a parliamentary hearing.

"We gave up on this 79. This is why we gave up: Our Turkish

Aerospace Industries (TUSAS) facilities are capable of carrying

out this modernisation on their own, so we deferred to them," he

said.

The sale of the 40 new Lockheed Martin F-16 jets and

ammunition for them will cost Turkey some $7 billion, Guler

added.

Turkey placed its order in October 2021, two years after the

United States kicked the country out of the fifth-generation

F-35 fighter jet program over its procurement of a Russian

missile defence system.

Turkey wants to re-join the F-35 programme and buy 40 new

F-35 jets, Guler also said.

Turkey is one of the largest operators of F-16s, with its

fleet made up of more than 200 older Block 30, 40 and 50 models.

Ankara is also interested in buying Eurofighter Typhoon

fighter jets, built by a consortium of Germany, Britain, Italy

and Spain.

It is also developing its own combat aircraft, KAAN.