Ukraine discusses F-16 modernization
23 November, 2023 F-16 fighter jet. Photo from open sources. Ukraine is looking for opportunities to modernize the F-16 fighter jets planned for transfer.
MP Oleksandra Ustinova shared this in an interview with the European Pravda. Ustinova noted that Ukrainian representatives, including the Ministry of Defense, are actively discussing with international partners the modernization of fighter jets planned for transfer. "We are negotiating the modernization of the F-16s that we were promised to receive.
Because we need more powerful radars and better missiles for them. It makes no sense to just give us an aircraft with a 60-kilometer radar, like MiGs have," the MP said.
The onboard radar of an F-16 fighter jet. Photo from open sources.
She emphasized that only modernized aircraft will be able to counter Russian aviation on the front line and influence the course of hostilities.
"This is the only way we will be able to detect their planes, which are throwing 500-kilogram bombs at our guys on the front line. At the moment, they're flying a plane, launching a guided bomb, and we don't see it," she says. The MP did not provide immediate details of the negotiations with the partners.
However, it is clear that the aircraft's modernization will require cooperation with the American industry. According to Ustinova, the new fighter jets can be expected at best by the end of spring. This is due to the long training period for pilots, most of whom will be ready in the first half of 2024.
Theoretically, the time spent on pilot training should be enough to modernize some of the aircraft scheduled for transfer to Ukraine. As part of the military aid, Ukraine is to receive from its European partners F-16 Block 20 MLU fighter jets, which were modernized under the Mid-Life Update program in the early 2000s. However, the general condition of European fighter jets amid other modernizations is not very consistent with current requirements.
F-16 fighter jets of the Netherlands Air Force in Romania, November 2023. Frame from Valahia News video
Modernization with the installation of a modern AN/APG-83 active electronically scanned array fire control radar may be a promising option for Ukrainian F-16s.
The new radar will increase the range of target detection and provide a higher probability of detecting low-altitude and small-sized objects.
The new modernization should, in particular, also include adaptation for the use of American JASSM cruise missiles, more advanced short-range AIM-9X air-to-air missiles, and new American medium-range AIM-120D air-to-air missiles with a range of more than a hundred kilometers.