Oman has agreed to buy 12 Eurofighter Typhoon fighters and eight Hawk advanced training jets from the UK’s BAE Systems.

The £2.5bn ($4.07bn) deal includes the delivery of the jets starting in 2017, as well as in-service support for the Royal Air Force of Oman.

The deal coincided with a visit to the sultanate by UK Prime Minister David Cameron on his way back from Afghanistan on 21 December.

Cameron met Sultan Qaboos to discuss “ongoing cooperation between both countries in several fields in light of their good relations and the mutual interests of their friendly people”, Oman news agency ONA said.

“BAE Systems has a long history of working in Oman and we are delighted this contract will enable us to continue to work together. We believe that Oman has now added the most advanced fighter jet and proven training aircraft, available in the world, to its military portfolio,” Guy Griffiths, Group Managing Director for BAE Systems’ international business, said in a statement on the company’s website on 21 December.

Oman becomes the seventh country in the world, and the second in the Middle East, to operate the Typhoon joining the air forces of the UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, Austria and Saudi Arabia, according to BAE Systems.