Swarming Drone Test Fired From Flare Dispensors used Perdexes

In the middle of June 2015, a U.S. Air Force F-16 fighter took off from an air base in Alaska and flew over a military training range at 430 miles per hour. On command, something burst from the fighter’s flare dispenser — a drone roughly the size of a soda can and weighing just one pound.

The tiny, orange- and black-colored robot fluttered toward the ground trailing a parachute. After a few seconds, the ‘chute separated from the drone, the robot’s wings — which had folded into the body for compactness — extended outward. An inch-wide propeller began spinning, propelling the diminutive machine forward.

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US Air Force is NOT Looking to buy 72 new 4th Generation Fighters

The US Air Force has denied any plans to purchase another tranche of Lockheed Martin F-16 or Boeing F-15 combat jets following reports it could seek bids for up to 72 new aircraft.

According to comments attributed to a senior US Air Combat Command official at an international fighter conference in London last week, the current Lockheed F-35 procurement plan could prove unaffordable, and another fighter wing of F-15s, F-16s or perhaps even F/A-18s is being considered to supplement the current fleet – which will serve into the 2040s as F-35s are delivered.

The air force is seeking 1,763 F-35As through 2038, and in the interim it intends to modernise and upgrade its F-16s and F-15s with new active electronically scanned array (AESA) radars and electronic warfare systems.

Asked to categorically confirm or deny any new fighter purchase, a spokesman for the service’s acquisition office says: “At this time the air force has no plans to acquire 72 new F-15s or F-16s, although the air force is always looking at options to be prepared for a dynamic global security environment.”

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Despite Potential Su-35 Deal, Lockheed Confident of F-16V Sale to Indonesia

A possible contract from Indonesia may extend F-16 manufacturing into 2018, says Lockheed Martin, as the company works on filling an Iraqi order that may be the last for the biggest-selling fighter in current production.

Although Indonesian Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu said in September that the country had chosen the Sukhoi Su-35 for its next fighter order, the deal has not been signed. The F-16 remains a contender, according to Randall Howard, Lockheed Martin’s business development director for the type.

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The F-35/F-16 Dogfight Debacle

The news has been running around for a number of days.  I've not posted it because I've been trying to stick to my blog post draw down schedule and there are other potential topics which are not getting as much "air time" in the blogosphere.  However, here's where I give in.

David Axe, a complete F-35 hater and then some, was passed a report on how badly a F-35 faired when dogfighting F-16s: it had its lunch eaten and then some.  The fact came out that the plane is really, really underpowered, not to mention has serious ergo problems with the helmet-canopy combo and not to mention canopy-fuselage combo.

There have been several reactions.  Bill Sweetman's response is probably the most all encompassing. It has the best quote about the entire debacle:

“People all need to look at what F-35 really is,” another aviator comments. “A stealth A-7 bomb truck, capable of first-night suppression of enemy air defenses, with limited self-escort. It is, as software-configured right now, not a light air-combat-maneuvering-capable platform. This is what we saw with the early F/A-18E/F blocks: millions of lines of code, and in need of constant update. But, in this case, it’s becoming increasingly easier to rewrite the code laws to allow for those changes.”

Lockheed responded to the whole event by stating dogfighting is obsolete and the F-35 is meant to fire from a distance taking advantage of stealth and long range missiles.

Via Breaking Defense, the US Air Force responded.  The short version is the F-35 is not an F-16 and should not be seen as such.  It is not a dogfighter.  If you need a dogfight, you send in...wait for it...an F-22.  Y'know, that fighter we only bought 180 odd because we didn't need it.  Oops.

Its looking minimally like F-35 needs a new engine.  Wait.  The US Air Force has already started that: its called ADVENT.

Second Hand F-16 Fighters Might end up in China

Ma Zhiping, the general manager of China National Aero-Technology Import & Export Corporation, said in an article in China Aviation News that as F-16s are being decommissioned world wide, refurbished Fighting Falcons could be sold to China’s traditional markets.

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Indonesian Air Force Take Delivery of First Three F-16C/D

The Indonesian Air Force (Tentara Nasional Indonesia - Angkatan Udara, TNI-AU) received the first three of 24 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D aircraft on 25 July.

The F-16s, which are being upgraded from Block 25 to Block 52 standard by the US Air Force (USAF) at Hill Air Force Base's (AFB) Ogden Air Logistics Complex (ALC) in Utah, are former USAF and Air National Guard units that were transferred to Indonesia as excess defence articles under a contract signed in January 2012.

The Indonesian government is paying about USD670 million to upgrade the aircraft with new avionics, engines, wings, landing gear and other components. According to official US Air Force media the USAF handed over one F-16C and two F-16Ds on 14 July. The remaining 21 aircraft are scheduled to be delivered to the Indonesian government by Ogden ALC by the end of 2015.

The three aircraft landed at Iswahjudi Airbase in Madiun, East Java, after flying from Alaska via Guam. In August, six Indonesian Air Force instructors will begin F-16C/D conversion training under the tutelage of a four-man USAF Mobile Training Team. The 24 aircraft will be split between Squadron 3 at Madiun and Squadron 16 at Pekanbaru.

Local Indonesian media have reported that the refurbishment includes service life extensions, including the overhaul of the wings, landing gear, and engines, as well as capability enhancements to avionics. These include an upgraded AN/APG-68 (V) fire control radar and Block 52 Link 16 datalink, AN/ALQ-213 Electronic Warfare Management System, ALR-69 Class IV Radar Warning Receiver, and ALE-47 Countermeasures Dispenser Set.

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Very Low (needing blink tag low) Flyby of Turkish F-16 at Brits Airshow

Belgium Offers RFI for F-16 Replacement

The Belgian Ministry of Defence (MoD) has issued a request for information (RFI) to five foreign government agencies regarding various aircraft that could replace the national air force's ageing F-16 Fighting Falcon fleet.

Several defence ministry officials were quoted by Belga News Agency as saying that the RFI does not commit to a future purchase nor to the selection of a specific aircraft, but "aims to gather information" beyond the open-source data used for initial evaluation.

One of the sources said that the RFI was issued following approval from the outgoing defence minister Pieter De Crem, and does not mention the number of aircraft to be acquired.

Issued to the Joint Program Office (JPO), the Navy Integrated Program Office (NIPO), the Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) of the French Ministry of Defence, the Swedish Defence and Security Export Agency (FXM) and the UK Ministry of Defence, the RFI marks the first step in a process that will lead to the acquisition of a new fighter before the retirement of the F-16s starts in 2023.

While JPO is in charge of Lockheed Martin's F-35 Lightning II programme, the NIPO, DGA, FXM and UK MoD look after Boeing F/A-18F Super Hornet, Dassault Rafale, Saab JAS-39 Gripen, and Eurofighter Typhoon multi-role combat aircraft, respectively.

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First Iraqi F-16C Block 52 Takes Flight

The first of 36 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Block 52 Fighting Falcon multirole combat aircraft for the Iraqi Air Force (IqAF) has made its maiden flight, the company announced on 7 May.

The twin-seat F-16D conducted the flight out of the Fort Worth production facility in Texas, although Lockheed Martin disclosed no further details.

Iraq is set to shortly begin receiving its first batch of 18 aircraft, which will bridge the top-end capability gap that the IQAF has had since it was reconstituted in 2003 following the overthrow of Saddam Hussein.

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South Korea Considering Leasing 20 F-16 Fighters From US Air Force

South Korea is considering leasing second-hand F-16 fighter jets from the United States to fill a potential vacuum in its air power from delays in aircraft acquisition and development, a senior Air Force official here said Wednesday.

Seoul recently confirmed a plan to buy 40 F-35s by Lockheed Martin from 2018-21, scaling down from the initial program for 60 advanced combat aircraft, while pushing to develop midlevel fighter jets with a goal of deploying them between 2023 and 2025.

The move, however, falls short of replacing the aging fleet of 160 F-4s and F-5s, which are expected to be phased out in the next five years.

By 2019, about 60 FA-50 light fighter jets and the early batch of F-35s will be added to the existing fleet, which leaves about 80 jets falling short of the appropriate number of jets, according to the state-run Korea Institute for Defense Analyses (KIDA).

"The Air Force is considering leasing used combat jets as part of ways to provide the interim defense capability because replacement of aging F-4s and F-5s wouldn't take place in a timely manner," a senior Air Force official said, asking for anonymity. "As midlevel combat jets are mostly in shortage, the Air Force is considering renting 16 to 20 used F-16s from the U.S. Air Force."

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