Bahrain's new F16 Blk70 | World Defense

Bahrain's new F16 Blk70

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Bahrain currently operates 20 F16 Blk40's. These will be upgraded to Blk70specs, and will be joined by 16 new units.

Blk40
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New Blk70
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Bahrain – Upgrade of F-16 Block 40 Aircraft to F-16V (blk 70) Configuration

Transmittal No:
16-59
WASHINGTON, Sep. 8, 2017 - The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Bahrain for upgrade of F-16 Block 40 aircraft to F-16V configuration. The estimated cost is $1.082 billion. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale today.

The Government of Bahrain requested to upgrade its existing twenty (20) F-16 Block 40 aircraft to the F-16V configuration. The requested sale comprises of twenty-three (23) F-110-GE-129 engines (includes 3 spares); twenty-three (23) APG-83 Active Electronically Scanned Array Radars (includes 3 spares); twenty-three (23) Modular Mission Computers (includes 3 spares); twenty-three (23) Embedded Global Navigation Systems/LN260 EGI (includes 3 spares); twenty-three (23) Improved Programmable Display Generators (iPDGs) (includes 3 spares); forty (40) LAU-129 launchers; twenty-five (25) AN/AAQ-33 SNIPER Pods; two (2) AIM-9X Sidewinder Missiles; two (2) AGM-88 High-speed Anti-Radiation Missiles (HARM); two (2) WGU-43 Guidance Control Unit (GBU) Guidance Control Unit (GCU) (for GBU-24 Paveway III); two (2) BSU-84 Air Foil Group (AFG) (for GBU-24 Paveway III); five (5) KMU-572 Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) Tailkits (for GBU-38 JDAM and GBU-54 Laser JDAM); two (2) GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs (SDB) Guided Test Vehicles (GTV); two (2) AGM-84 Harpoon Exercise Missiles; three (3) MAU-210 ECCG (for GBU-50 Enhanced Paveway II); three (3) BLU-109 Inert Bomb Bodies; four (4) MK-82/BLU-111 Inert Bomb Bodies; and two (2) GMU-152 or FMU-139 Fuzes.
This sale also includes one (1) Joint Mission Planning System, one (1) F-16V simulator, twenty (20) AN/ALQ-211 AIDEWS Systems, one (1) avionics level test station, six (6) DB-110 Advanced Reconnaissance Systems, two (2) LAU-118A Launchers, forty-five (45) AN/ARC-238 SINCGARS Radio or equivalent, twenty-three (23) Advanced Identification Friend or Foe (AIFF) systems or equivalent; twenty-three (23) cryptographic appliques; two (2) CATM-9L/M, two (2) AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM) Captive Air Training Missiles (CATM), three (3) MXU-651 AFG (for GBU-50 Enhanced Paveway II), four (4) DSU-38 Precision Laser Guidance sets (PLGS) (for GBU-54 Laser JDAM), four (4) AGM-154 Joint Stand-Off Weapon (JSOW) Captive Flight Vehicles (CFV), three (3) MK-84/BLU-117 Inert Bomb Bodies, two (2) FMU-152 D-1 Inert Fuzes, three (3) BRU-57 Bomb Racks, two (2) BRU-61 Bomb Racks for SDB, two (2) ADU-890 SDB adapter cable for CMBRE, two (2) ADU-891 AMRAAM/AIM-9X adapter cable for CMBRE, Telemetry for all flight test assets secure communication equipment, spares and repair parts, support equipment, personnel training and training equipment, publications and technical documentation, U.S. Government and contractor technical support services, containers, missile support and test equipment, integration test, site survey, design, construction studies/analyses/services, associate operations, maintenance, training, support facilities, cybersecurity, critical computer resources support, force protection, and other related elements of logistics and program support. The total estimated program cost is $1.082 billion.

This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve the security of a major Non-NATO ally which has been and continues to be an important security partner in the region. Our mutual defense interests anchor our relationship and the Royal Bahraini Air Force (RBAF) plays a significant role in Bahrain's defense.

The proposed sale improves Bahrain's capability to meet current and future threats. Bahrain will use this capability as a deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen its homeland defense. The upgraded F-16Vs will provide an increase in the capability of existing aircraft to sustain operations, meet training requirements, and support transition training for pilots to the upgraded aircraft. This upgrade will improve interoperability with U.S. forces and other regional allies. Bahrain will have no difficulty absorbing this upgrade into its armed forces.

The proposed sale will not affect the basic military balance in the region.

The prime contractor will be Lockheed Martin. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.
Implementation of this proposed sale will require the assignment of at least five (5) additional U.S. Government representatives to Bahrain.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

 

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Bahrain – F-16V Aircraft with Support


Transmittal No: 16-60

WASHINGTON, Sep. 8, 2017 - The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Bahrain for F-16V aircraft with support. The estimated cost is $2.785 billion. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale today.

The Government of Bahrain has requested a possible sale of nineteen (19) F-16V Aircraft; nineteen (19) M61 Vulcan 20mm Gun Systems; twenty-two (22) F-16V F-110-GE-129 Engines (includes 3 spares); twenty-two (22) APG-83 Active Electronically Scanned Array Radars (includes 3 spares); twenty-two (22) Modular Mission Computers (includes 3 spares); twenty-two (22) Embedded Global Navigation Systems/LN260 EGI (includes 3 spares); twenty-two (22) Improved Programmable Display Generators (iPDG) (includes 3 spares); and thirty-eight (38) LAU-129 Launchers. This sale also includes nineteen (19) AN/ALQ-211 AIDEWS Systems, thirty-eight (38) LAU-118A Launchers, forty-two (42) AN/ARC-238 SINCGARS Radio or equivalent, twenty-two (22) AN/APX-126 Advanced Identification Friend or Foe (AIFF) system or equivalent, twenty-two (22) cryptographic appliques, secure communication equipment, spares and repair parts, personnel training and training equipment, simulators, publications and technical documentation, U.S. Government and contractor technical support services, containers, missile support and test equipment, original equipment manufacturer integration and test, U.S. Government and contractor technical support and training services, site survey, design, construction studies/analysis/services, associated operations/maintenance/ training/support facilities, cybersecurity, critical computer resources support, force protection and other related elements of logistics and program support. The total estimated program cost is $2.785 billion.
This proposed sale will contribute to the foreign policy and national security of the United States by helping to improve the security of a major Non-NATO ally, which has been and continues to be an important security partner in the region. Our mutual defense interests anchor our relationship and the Royal Bahraini Air Force (RBAF) plays a significant role in Bahrain's defense.

The proposed sale improves Bahrain's capability to meet current and future threats. Bahrain will use the capability as a deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen its homeland defense. This purchase of F-16Vs will improve interoperability with United States and other regional allies. Bahrain employs 20 older F-16 Block 40s and will have no difficulty absorbing these aircraft into its armed forces.

The proposed sale of these aircraft will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

The prime contractor will be Lockheed Martin. There are no know offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.
Implementation of this proposed sale will require the assignment of at least ten (10) additional U.S. Government representatives and approximately seventy-five (75) contractor representatives to Bahrain.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

 

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Bahrain – Weapons to Support F-16 Block 70/F-16V Aircraft Fleet

Transmittal No: 18-20

WASHINGTON, May 3, 2019 - The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to Bahrain of various weapons to support its F-16 Block 70/F-16V aircraft fleet for an estimated cost of $750 million. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale today.

The Government of Bahrain has requested to buy thirty-two (32) AIM-120C-7 AMRAAM missiles; one (1) AIM-120C-7 AMRAAM guidance section; thirty-two (32) AIM-9X missiles; twenty (20) AGM-84 Block II Harpoon missiles; two (2) ATM-84L-1 Block II Harpoon missiles; forty (40) AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) All-Up-Rounds; fifty (50) AGM-88B High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles (HARM); four (4) AGM-88 HARM training missiles; one hundred (100) GBU-39 250 lb Small Diameter Bomb (SDB-1) All-Up-Rounds; four hundred (400) MAU-209 C/B Computer Control Groups (GBU-10, -12); eighty (80) MAU-210 Enhanced Computer Control Groups (GBU-49, -50); three hundred forty (340) MXU-650 Air Foil Group (GBU-12, -49); one hundred forty (140) MXU-651 Air Foil Groups (GBU-10, -50); seventy (70) KMU-557 GBU-31 tail kits (GBU-31 JDAM, GBU-56 JDAM); one hundred twenty (120) KMU-572 tail kits (GBU-38, -54); one hundred (100) DSU-38 proximity sensors (GBU-54); four hundred sixty-two (462) MK-82 or BLU-111 500 lb Bomb Bodies (Supporting GBU-12, GBU-38, GBU-49, GBU-54); two hundred ten (210) BLU-109/BLU-117 or MK-84 2000 lb Bomb Bodies; (Supporting GBU-10, GBU-31, GBU-50, GBU-56); ten (10) practice BLU-109/BLU-117; six hundred seventy (670) FMU-152 fuses (supporting GBU-10, -12, -31, -38; -49, -50, -54, & -56). Also included are LAU-118 launchers; BRU-61 racks; general purpose Air Foil Groups; tactical training rounds; combat arms training and Maintenance Assets; nose support cups; Swivel/Link attachments; DSU-38/40/42 proximity sensors; Repair and Return services; studies and surveys; weapons system support and test equipment; publications and technical documentation; Alternate Mission Equipment (AME); mission system spares and munitions spare parts; software maintenance and support; missile support and test equipment; common munitions bit/reprogramming equipment; missile and munitions containers; personnel training and training equipment; site surveys; U.S. Government/Contractor technical, engineering, and logistical support; and other related elements of logistics and program support. The estimated cost is $750 million.

This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by helping to improve the security of a major non-NATO ally which is an important security partner in the region. Our mutual defense interests anchor our relationship and the Royal Bahraini Air Force (RBAF) plays a significant role in Bahrain's defense.

The proposed sale improves Bahrain's ability to meet current and future threats. Bahrain will use these capabilities as a deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen its homeland defense. These weapons support the new procurement of F-16 Block 70 and upgrades of existing F-16V aircraft, providing an increase in the capability of existing aircraft to sustain operations, meet training requirements, and support transition training for pilots to the upgraded aircraft. This proposed sale and upgrade will improve interoperability with U.S. forces and other regional allies. Bahrain will have no difficulty absorbing this equipment into its armed forces.

The proposed sale will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

The principal contractors for this effort will be Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company, Fort Worth, TX; Raytheon Missile Systems, Tucson, AZ; and Boeing Corporation, Chicago, IL. There are no known offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.

Implementation of this proposed sale will require the assignment of at least two (2) additional U.S. Government representatives to Bahrain.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

 

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Bahrain – Munitions

Transmittal No: 17-37


WASHINGTON, May 18, 2018 - The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to Bahrain of General Purpose (GP) and Penetrator Warhead bomb bodies for an estimated cost of $45 million. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale on May 17, 2018.

The Government of Bahrain has requested three thousand two hundred (3,200) General Purpose (GP) and Penetrator Warhead bomb bodies to include: one thousand five hundred (1,500) MK-82 (500lbs) GP bomb bodies, six hundred (600) MK-83 (1,000lbs) GP bomb bodies, six hundred (600) MK-84 (2,000lbs) GP bomb bodies, and five hundred (500) BLU-109 (2,000lbs) Penetrator Warhead bomb bodies. Also included are spares and repair parts, support equipment, personnel training and training equipment, shipping and logistics services, publications and technical documentation, U.S. Government and contractor technical support services, containers, munitions components, test equipment, and other related elements of logistics and program support. The estimated total cost is $45 million.

This proposed sale will enhance the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by helping to improve the security of a major non-NATO ally which is an important security partner in the region. The purchase of these munitions will bolster the Royal Bahraini Air Force’s ability to conduct and sustain air operations with its F-16 combat aircraft. Our mutual defense interests anchor our relationship and the Royal Bahraini Air Force plays a significant role in Bahrain's defense.

The proposed sale will improve Bahrain’s capability to meet current and future security threats. Bahrain will use these munitions as a deterrent to regional threats, strengthen its homeland defense, and execute counter-terrorism operations. The GP bomb bodies would also better equip Bahrain to operate with U.S.-led and U.S.-supported coalition operations. Bahrain will have no difficulty absorbing these munitions into its armed forces.
The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

There is no prime contractor planned for this effort; the munitions will be provided by the U.S. Government out of stock. There are no offset agreements proposed in connection with this potential sale.

Implementation of this proposed sale will not require the assignment of any additional U.S. or contractor representatives to Bahrain.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

This notice of a potential sale is required by law and does not mean the sale has been concluded.

 

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Lockheed Martin Awarded Contract to Build F-16 Block 70 Aircraft for Bahrain
World's first Block 70 aircraft will be built in Greenville, South Carolina

FORT WORTH, Texas, June 25, 2018 - Lockheed Martin (NYSE: LMT) received a $1.12 billion contract from the U.S. government to produce 16 new F-16 Block 70 aircraft for the Royal Bahraini Air Force. The Undefinitized Contract Action award represents the first F-16 Block 70 sale and the first F-16 production program to be performed in Greenville, South Carolina.

The Kingdom of Bahrain is the first customer to procure the F-16 Block 70, the newest and most advanced F-16 production configuration.

 

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The following article sheds some light on the new capabilities the Blk70 has:

Detailed: Lockheed Martin’s F-16 offer to India

by Saurabh Joshi • May 12, 2018


Graphic: Lockheed Martin

Robert ‘Elvis’ Balserak of Lockheed Martin spoke to StratPost at DefExpo 2018 and explained in detail, exactly what their F-16 offer to India looks like.
The U.S. defence and aerospace company is offering the F-16 Block 70 in response to the Indian Air Force (IAF) Request For Information (RFI) for 110 fighter aircraft, issued last month. While the earlier Lockheed Martin F-16 offer for the IAF’s Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA) contest was based on the Block 60, the Block 70 is an evolution of the Block 50 fighter variant.


Block 50 & Block 60 versus Block 70

Balserak first explained how the Block 70 was different from the previous Block 50 and Block 60 versions of the fighter.

“What makes a Block 70 a 70? Let’s start with structure first. So the Block 70, structurally, is based on a Block 50, with one exception. We’ve incorporated full-scale durability testing results into the design of the Block 70 to change the service life from 8000 hours to 12000 hours. So structurally, it is physically different from a Block 50,” he said.

‘Elvis’ explained further, “It is not a Block 60. A 60 is only operated by one customer (U.A.E.) and there are specific structural differences between a 50, a 60 and a 70. It was specifically designed for that customer and specifically designed to accommodate a GE-132 engine. It was also designed to house a customer-unique electronic warfare and radar suite — liquid-cooled AESA radar.”

“If you look at the U.A.E. customer’s airplane, you’ll see that it’s got air scoots and pumps that aren’t present in normal F-16s. And the reason those are there is to accommodate the electronic warfare suite and the liquid cooling for the AESA radar,” he said.

Paint-job

The Block 70 also has a distinctive paint-job called Uniform HAVEGLASS that serves two purposes.

“One of the things they did on the Block 60s — was they did a coating on the Block 60 that’s got the texture of about 40 grit sandpaper — 60 grit sandpaper. It’s very, very rough. It was designed for RCS (Radar Cross Section) reduction. Since then for the Block 70 what we’ve done — from the exterior, if you look at the normal F-16 — most of the world’s F-16s — although they have country-unique paint jobs and in this case we made up an Indian paint-job, one of the thing the United States Air Force — particularly our Air National Guard, has started to implement is this coating called Uniform HAVEGLASS,” said Balserak.

“And the Uniform HAVEGLASS does two things. What Uniform HAVEGLASS does — it is also a radar cross section reducing coating to go on to the outside of the airplane — that’s number one. But the number two reason — and the reason the Guard really likes this is that it’s significantly less maintenance intensive than the old traditional coatings. And that’s why they started to do it. So if you look at — if you go online and look at some of our Air National Guard airplanes a lot of them are starting to put this paint scheme — this Uniform HAVEGLASS on the airplane and this is what we intend to offer India,” he explained.

The Block 70 also features advancements in radar, mission computer, data transfer and display.


Graphic: Lockheed Martin

“Inside the airplane there are things that make a Block 70 a Block 70. Things that you can’t see. We’ll start with the radar. So on the front end of the airplane is this APG83 — it’s an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar. Unlike the Block 60 airplanes, that are liquid-cooled, this is air-cooled, so there’s no need for all that plumbing that the Block 60 has. If you notice there’s no mechanical feature to this. There are transmitter-receiver modules all over the array and they can do multiple things all at once. So I can do air-to-air, air-to-ground, electronic warfare, synthetic aperture radar maps all at the same time. It is a significant difference in capability than what we had before,” said Balserak.

“To put it in comparison, the airplanes that I flew with the legacy APG68 radars — compared to this, it’s the difference between a rotary telephone and a smartphone. It’s that different. I can see from significantly further away — I can target multiple targets and I can do multiple tasks all at the same time. That’s a huge difference in capability,” he explained.


Graphic: Lockheed Martin

“One of the things you can’t really see here, but inside the structure — we have a new mission computer. So the new mission computer is significantly faster than the old mission computers that are in any other F-16 and they are connected via Ethernet into the airplane so what that means is no more 1553 buses — it means we can send very large amounts of data very, very quickly throughout the airplane. The big difference in the cockpit is the Center Pedestal Display — it’s essentially a high definition television set. It is not a touchscreen. And that was deliberate because in this configuration touching the screen when the pilot is maneuvering around manipulating things — you could actually physically touch and move something you don’t want. That was on purpose.

Air-to-Ground configuration


Graphic: Lockheed Martin

“So let’s talk about air to ground,” begins Balserak, pointing to a 3D graphic of the aircraft weapons configuration playing on a screen.

“The versatility of the airplane — you see the hardpoints — the physical hardpoints on the airplane — in this configuration what we have here — I wanted to show some versatility — there are literally a thousand combinations you could do but in this circumstance, we have a center-line fuel tank, we have conformal fuel tanks on the top — these are small diameter bombs — 250 pounds a piece — these are laser-guided bombs. These are satellite guided bombs. These are Python 5 air-to-air missiles — and these are AMRAAM 120 missiles,” he listed.

“But the really neat thing about the airplane is that — alright you say ‘Well, this is cool if I don’t have to go very far’, but you can go quite a way even in this configuration. You can remove the weapons in there and hang fuel tanks on — so there are 370 gallon wing tanks, 300 gallon center-line tanks and the Indian Air Force has specifically asked for 600 gallon tanks. So this means I can go a long, long way and stay a long, long time. We have only a few customers that fly with 600 gallon tanks — the United States Air Force does not fly with 600 gallon tanks, to put it in perspective. So that’s air-to-ground,” explained Balserak.
Air-to-Air configuration


Graphic: Lockheed Martin

Balserak also says the Block 70 will have the ability to carry ten air-to-air missiles.

“This is the one that I really like — for the Indian Air Force we’re offering what are called triple rail launchers. So the standard F-16 that I flew in an air-to-air configuration or any other F-16 on the planet can carry only six missiles. That’s all you have. Just six. In this configuration you can carry ten air-to-air missiles. So, what does that mean in air-to-air combat?” he asked.

And answered, “Any other F-16 on the planet (including Pakistani) can only carry 6 missiles right now. This will enable you to have ten missiles. You have a radar that far outdistances any other F-16 radar out there — so I can see you first, I can shoot you first, I kill you first — it’s a significant difference in capability from any other F-16.”
Engine

Lockheed Martin is also offering the Block 60 GE 132 engine for the Indian Block 70.

“A Block 50 baseline has either one of two engines — you either have a Pratt and Whitney — it’s called Pratt and Whitney 229 — that’s called the Block 52 — the airplanes that are powered by GE 129 engines — are called Block 50s. We originally wanted to offer the Indians the 129 engine. They had some performance requirements that required a little bit more thrust. So we’re going to put the engine that was in the Block 60 into the Block 70. So we’re going to put the GE 132 inside the Block 70. It will be — and this is from a man who has flown every version of the airplane there is and every motor we’ve ever put in the airplane — this airplane will be a rocketship. It will be an absolute rocketship,” he emphasized.
Block 70 different from the MMRCA F-16IN

So how is the current Block 70 offer different from what Lockheed Martin offered in the IAF’s MMRCA contest?

“The IN configuration was based on a Block 60 not on a Block 50. It was a different airplane. Many of the requirements from the IN configuration back in MMRCA were applying to this – there were some specific things that they asked for in MMRCA. Some auto-throttle improvements, auto-pilot improvements, some — the Indian Air Force calls them carefree handling capabilities — so there are some differences from the original offering,” explained Balserak.
Auto GCAS


Graphic: Lockheed Martin

A final feature Balserak wanted to touch upon was the Auto GCAS in the F-16.

“The United States Air Force — we created a system — and we started this a long time ago — but we implemented this system in the airplane called Automatic Ground Collision Avoidance System. And what Auto GCAs does is when you do mission planning — inside that data transfer cartridge, you load a digital base of wherever it is you’re flying around — right. And what Auto GCAS does is — in circumstances where the pilot’s not paying attention or the pilots incapacitated — let’s say G-induced loss of consciousness — and the airplane is pointed to the ground — imminently getting ready to hit the ground. Auto GCAS calculates the aircraft’s nose position, airspeed, angle of attack, current G and the digital terrain beneath it on its own and will initiate a recovery above the ground before the airplane and the pilot impacts the ground,” he said.

“Today, if I have the number right, the United States Air Force has recorded seven ‘saves’ from Auto GCAS. Seven. That’s in the two-ish plus years since we implemented it in the airplane. That’s amazing. It gives me goosebumps because in my career, I’ve lost a couple of students because of G-induced loss of consciousness,” explained Balserak.

“I wouldn’t call G-induced loss of consciousness common, but it does happen, which is why we put it on the airplane. The airplane is very, very high performance — 9Gs does significantly challenging things to your body and if you’re not prepared when you pull on the airplane you can go ‘night-night’ — you can ‘G-induced loss of consciousness’ yourself and if nobody’s flying the airplane then the airplane will go in the last place you led it — and if that happens to be straight down, then you’re going to hit the ground,” he elaborated.

“It’s unfortunate. One of our customers recently lost two airplanes and unfortunately they elected not to have that in their airplanes — that customer by the way has since decided that they want that in their airplanes and we are putting it in their airplanes now,” he said, explaining further, “They’re retrofitting it in their airplanes now. It’s a software fix. So all you have to do is plug the software in the airplane — it communicates with the flight controls. We’re in the process of doing that right now.”

 

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Bahrain approved for F-16V weapons procurement
Gareth Jennings, London

06 May 2019

Bahrain has been cleared to procure weapons to support its recent contract for Lockheed Martin's Block F-16V Fighting Falcon combat aircraft.
The US State Department has cleared the Foreign Military Sales purchase of air-to-air and air-to-surface weaponry for Bahrain's 36 new and remanufactured F-16Vs valued at USD750 million.

Announced by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on 3 May, the approval covers 32 Raytheon AIM-120C-7 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles; 32 Raytheon AIM-9X short-range air-to-air missiles; 20 Boeing AGM-84 Block 2 Harpoon missiles; two ATM-84L-1 Block 2 Harpoon missiles; 40 Raytheon AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapons; 50 Raytheon AGM-88B High-Speed Anti-Radiation Missiles; 100 Boeing GBU-39 250 lb Small Diameter Bomb; and items for GBU-10, GBU-12, GBU-31, GBU-49, GBU-50, GBU-54, and GBU-56 precision-guided bombs.

The approved sale must now be authorised by Congress before being finalised.

The State Department's weapons approval comes 11 months after Bahrain signed a USD1.12 billion contract for 16 new F-16V Fighting Falcons. The Royal Bahraini Air Force (RBAF) will also upgrade its 20 Block 40 F-16C/D aircraft to this latest standard.

Also referred to as the F-16 Block 70/72, the F-16V features the Northrop Grumman AN/APG-83 active electronically scanned array radar (derived from the F-16E/F Block 60 AN/APG-80 and also known as the Scalable Agile Beam Radar), a new Raytheon mission computer, the Link 16 datalink, modern cockpit displays, an enhanced electronic warfare system, and a ground-collision avoidance system.



 

ali razza

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whts with different orders
bahrainis have no problem in congress then why worry small batches
 
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