A $3.4 billion Taiwanese program to upgrade its F-16A/B Fighting Falcons got underway this week with the first four aircraft flown to a plant in Taichung.

The retrofitting of the aircraft to a "V" configuration is being performed by Taiwan's Aerospace Industrial Development Corp. in Taichung with Lockheed Martin, manufacturer of the aircraft.

According to the Taipei Times, the four aircraft will complete the upgrade process by the end of this year. About 25 to 28 planes of the air force's F-16A/B fleet will undergo modernization each year until 2023.

Taiwan has a total of 144 Fighting Falcons.

Upgrades under Taiwan's Phoenix Rising Project includes fitting of the aircraft with active electronically scanned array fire-control radar, which enables F-16Vs to detect stealth aircraft.

The Taiwanese fighters are also to be equipped with advanced avionics, including a new flight management system and a helmet-mounted display system.