basher54321 wrote:Hi there
Good question,
Regarding the MLU that might be a case of the source you are looking at, MLU F-16AM or Block 20 is the most common.
They were mostly manufactured as Block 1, 5 ,10, 15 and 15 OCU and the ones left in service are mostly 15 OCU airframes without looking.
Block 20 might be more relevant because the MLU upgrade coincided with the change from manufacture of Block 15 OCU to Block 20 in the mid 1990s and both MLU / Block 20 had a C type cockpit with upgraded avionics - even though there are still many differences in each.
Not certain on the sub blocks in manufacture - I think the Big Inlet may have come in at Block 30D but no idea whether that is related to the change at 30D or not.
Thanks for that. I know the 30 is the 'power house' of the range, due to the powerful GE motor and lighter airframe. I do recall reading something about early 30s having the PW still, as I think their production started when the GE/PW options appeared. I could be mixing that up though.
I thought MLU/OCU was (related to) the same thing? I thought an Operational Conversion Unit was an active squadron doing Mid Life Updates to their active viper fleet? Regarding 15 or 20s, I'm fairly confident the BAF MLUs are block 15 airframes, but again, I could be wrong.
EDIT: Seems I need to brush up a little on my F-16 version knowledge. Indeed, you are correct, but so am I. There are two meanings to the abbreviation 'OCU': Operational Converstion Unit, and Operational Capability Upgrade, the latter being the one you were referring to. It seems that halfway through the 15 productions, aircraft went from being As to Cs. After delivery of the last 15Y, all 15s were made to OCU standards, essentially as Cs. Am I getting it now?
From the F-16 15OCU section:
Block 15 OCU at F-16.net wrote:Block 15OCU
214 aircraft from Block 15Y onwards received upgraded systems starting late-1987. Designated Block 15OCU (Operational Capability Upgrade), these aircraft are powered by the more reliable F100-PW-220 turbofan. These aircraft also have structural strengthening and are provided with the enlarged HUD that was first introduced on the F-16C/D. Also incorporated are the capability to fire the Norwegian Penguin Mk.3 anti-shipping missile (built by Kongsberg, US designation AGM-119) and the AGM-65, provisions for the AIM-120 AMRAAM, radar altimeter, expanded computer capacity, data transfer unit, wide-angle HUD, AN/APX-101 IFF, Tracor AN/ALE-40 chaff/flare dispenser and provisions for the AN/ALQ-131 ECM pod. These modifications increased the max. TO weight to 37,500lbs (17,010kg). The first Block 15OCU was delivered in January 1988, and from 1988 onwards, all Block 15's were built to OCU specifications.