Four F-16 Falcon fighters join PAF
The Post Report/Agencies

SARGODHA: The Pakistan Air Force received four refurbished F-16 fighter jets from the United States on Saturday at a simple but impressive ceremony at the PAF Mushaf Base.

Pakistan, a major non-NATO ally of the US, received two of these jets earlier this year and another four last month. Two more planes would be delivered next month, according to private television cannels.

The fighter jets are part of a consignment of 12 refurbished planes that Pakistan would receive from the US. Air Marshal Rao Qamar Suleman, deputy operations chief of the air staff, received the fighting falcons from US Air Force Commander Lt General Gary L North.

The batch of the aircrafts has the same operational capability as of the already possessed F-16 aircraft by the PAF and will significantly augment its combat capability in defending the aerial frontiers of the country.

A contingent of high ranking air force officials from Pakistan and the US were also present on the occasion. The government also signed an agreement with the US in 2006 for purchase of 18 new F-16-C and F-16-D aircrafts.

In the start, Islamabad had decided to buy 36 of these aircraft at a total cost of 5.1 billion dollars. These included associated weapons, spares and upgrading of a fleet purchased in the 1980s. But later they halve its order due to financial constraints.

However, Pakistan will still have to spend 1.3 billion dollars on mid-life update and modification of the F-16A/B aircraft, which was purchased earlier. Engine modifications and purchasing some new equipment for the old fleet will cost Pakistan an additional 151 million dollars.

The new aircrafts will have facilities of carrying nuclear and non-nuclear weapons. The F-16 is a single-engine, supersonic, multi-role tactical aircraft and the jests were designed to be a cost-effective combat workhorse that can perform various kinds of missions and maintain around-the-clock readiness.

The F-16 is much smaller and lighter than its predecessors, but uses advanced aerodynamics and avionics, including the first use of a relaxed static stability/fly-by-wire flight control system, to achieve enhanced manoeuvre performance. Highly nimble, the F-16 can pull 9-g manoeuvres and can reach a maximum speed of Mach 2+.

Source: http://thepost.com.pk/MainNewsT.aspx?bd ... p;catid=14

Batch of Four F-16s joins PAF
June 28, 2008

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Of2laUsofY

Does anyone find it odd that they are all station wagons?

Purple

No - If the PAF wants to train new drivers, or "upgrade" the skills of existing ones the logical place to do it is in the family model.

Also (and I'm taking a WAG here) the D's may need less in the way of upgrades/mods to make them operational - hence they can get into service faster.

I think we just got rid of them due to more maintenance effort and less range. We very rarely took a two seater into combat due to the range, so let's pawn them off and make a buck.

No D-model Vipers here - only B's

Interesting video. The handover sequence is worth watching as the order of serials was:

1. 90615
2. ?
3. 92621
4. 92618

PAF to get 4 Refurbished Aircraft by the end of this Month
July 10, 2008

By Naveed Miraj

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Air force will be receiving four overhauled and refurbished F-16 from USA by the end of this month.

These aircraft are the last four out of the 12 such fighter planes that had to be given to Pakistan by the US. Eighteen overhauled planes were provided to Pakistan under the EAD programme.

Pakistan Air Force Chief Tanveer Ahmad played a key role in early delivery of the planes as there were pressures within US political circles to suspend Pakistan's aid.

The story of F-16 between Pakistan and US is weird and long. In December 1981, the government of Pakistan signed a letter of agreement for the purchase of up to 40 F-16A/B (28 F-16A and 12 F-16B) fighters for the Pakistan Air Force. The first aircraft were delivered at Fort Worth in October 1982 and the first F-16 was flown home by Squadron Leader Shahid Javed that landed in Pakistan at Sargodha Air Base on January, 15 1983 as part of a package of six 'Peace Gate I' aircraft (2 A's and 4 B's).

The remaining 34 aircraft were delivered under Peace Gate II. The Pakistani F-16A/B's are all Block 15 aircraft, the final version of the F-16A/B production run, and are powered by the Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-200 turbofan. All 40 'Peace Gate I & II' aircraft were delivered between 1983 and 1987. Seven years after the first order, in December 1988, Pakistan ordered 11 additional F-16A/B Block 15 OCU (Operational Capability Upgrade) aircraft (6 Alpha and 5 Bravo models) under the Peace Gate III programme.

In September 1989, Pakistan ordered another 60 F-16A/B's. A contract was signed in the same year under the Peace Gate IV Foreign Military Sales Programmes, for the delivery of 60 F-16s for US$1.4 billion or approximately US$23 million a piece. By March 1994, 11 of these planes had been built and were directly flown into the Sonoran desert where they joined the 11 Peace Gate III aircraft in storage. A further six aircraft were stored by the end of 1994, so that a total of 17 aircraft (7 F-16A's and 10 F-16B's) of the Peace Gate IV ordered are now stored. The Brown amendment later eased the restrictions on weapon exports to Pakistan, but specifically excluded the F-16s from this release. Pakistan had already paid $685 million on the contract for the first 28 F-16s (11 Peace Gate III and 17 Peace Gate IV), and insisted on aircraft delivery.

In March 1996, nine aircraft out of those which had already been manufactured for Pakistan were sold to Indonesia. However, Indonesia cancelled this order on June 2, 1997. This 'unexpected' trouble with the Indonesian F-16 deal created a bigger problem to the Clinton administration both with respect to Pakistan and Indonesia. President Clinton had pledged to the late Pakistan Prime Minister Ms Benazir Bhutto, that the money paid for the F-16s by Islamabad would be reimbursed if the equipment could not be delivered. In trying to come to terms with Islamabad's demand that Washington would return the money, the Clinton administration went on to see if the planes could be sold to a third country and the proceeds transferred. Interested buyers included amongst others the Republic of China.

At the end of 1998, the United States announced it would pay Pakistan $326.9 million in cash and up to $140 million in other compensation to settle the eight-year dispute. The $140 million included about $60 million in US white wheat that Pakistan received during that year. The remaining $80 million in compensation was also adjusted later.

On March 25, 2005 the US government announced that it had agreed to Pakistan's request to sell new F-16s. Initially, Pakistan has requested an additional 24 new Block 50/52 F-16C/Ds (with option for as much as 55 aircraft). The deal was expected to be concluded by September or October of 2005. As part of the package, it was also agreed that the current fleet of older A/B models would get the MLU update.

As a sign of good gesture, the US agreed to supply Pakistan with a number of F-16s who where build under the Peace Gate III/IV programmes. Up to now 2 have already been delivered.

Finally, after long series of negotiations, on September 30, 2006 the contract was signed between the Pakistani and US government for the acquisition of 18 new F-16C/D block 52 aircraft and an option for another 18 more. In the deal the re-delivery of the 26 remaining Peace Gate III/IV aircraft was also agreed and the upgrade of those aircraft - and the remaining F-16A/B fleet - to MLU standards.

source: http://thepost.com.pk/MainNewsT.aspx?bd ... p;catid=14

Four more F-16s to Join PAF Soon
July 17, 2008

By Hanif Khalid

ISLAMABAD: Four more F-16 fighter aircraft will join the Pakistan Air Force on July 28, 2008. For this purpose, a ceremony for handing over of the planes to the Pakistan Air Force will be held at the PAF Base Mushaf.

The four F-16 planes, which are going to be handed over to Pakistan in the last week of the current month, have been upgraded and modified to the extent that they will perform just like new F-16s.

Last month, the Deputy Chief of Air Staff (Operations), Air Marshal Rao Qamar Suleiman, had received four Fighting Falcons from Lt Gen Gary L North, Commander 9th Air Force, and the USAF Central Command while four were received last year. These refurbished F-16s have the same operational capability as of those already possessed by the PAF and will significantly augment its combat capability.

Meanwhile, state-of-the-art JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft will be inducted as regular squadron of the Pakistan Air Force by the end of the current year. The small batch production of the JF-17 Thunder multi-role aircraft is in progress both in China and the Kamra Aeronautical Complex. Pakistan Air Force is in the process of completing the testing and evaluation of aircraft jointly produced by Pakistan and China. After completion of the evaluation, the new aircraft will be certified by international monitors to become operational in the air forces of the world.

Serial production of the JF-17 Thunder will also start in Pakistan soon. In the first phase 40%, in the second 60%, in the third phase 80% and in the last phase 100% JF-17 Thunder warplanes will be built at the Kamra Aeronautical Complex. Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Tanveer Mehmood, is personally supervising the task of inducting new platforms in the PAF.

source: http://thenews.jang.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=124674