Forum: General F-16 forum

Hi,

I've just been reading about the F-16 Block 60 sale to the UAE and how the US agreed to supply them with F-16 source codes. I read an article here : <a href="http://www.clw.org/pub/clw/cat/scarticles.html">http://www.clw.org/pub/clw/cat/scarticles.html</a>, which only gave a general description of the codes. So my questions are:

What (in more detail) are the source codes? Are they to do with avionics/programing software or something?

Which traditional allies do have access to them?

How restricted are F-16 owners who don't have access to them?

Thanks (' Smile

')

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Pete,

Source codes are very important for all jet aircraft. They make the programming software of all the hardware. Without it, a fighter can't do anything besides standing on the ground.

Why are they so important. First, they provide you with the necessary data to employ certain weapons. If an F-16's mission software doens't have the source codes to fire AMRAAM's, the plane can't fire them. That's as simple as that. Second, if a country has the availability of the source codes, they can develop their own weapon systems and integrate them on the F-16.

Who has access to them. Normally the EPAF countries and Israel have almost automatic access. The latter for it's very tight ties with the US and the first for the cooperation program that was started in the '70. The EPAF countries also have a permanent commitment in the F-16 programming office, which makes them first to initiate F-16 related programs.

Although nothing can be taken for granted. Albeit Belgium is one of the EPAF countries and sits in the F-16 programming office, they had to lobby a lot in the early '90 to get the source codes for the jamming equipment. Belgium decided to buy the French CARAPACE system instead of the American Rapport III (ALQ-178) system. The Americans weren't very happy with that decision, but the Belgian's were in need of these source codes, otherwise the CARAPACE equipment couldn't be integrated on the F-16.

This is a practical example why these source codes are so important and it also shows they make, more than the fighter sale itself, a very powerfull political weapon related to weapon sales. The Americans can decide which software, and accordingly which capabilities, the countries to which they sell weapons to have at their disposal.

Greets,

Thanks for the informative answer Bjorn. Sounds like not having the codes can potentially really limit a country's use of the aircraft. So it would be impossible for a country without the source codes to discover them from studying the aircraft themselves?

The reason I ask is that China is said to have stolen some F-16A/B source codes from the US. They already had access to Pakistani F-16A's so espionage was obviously a better option than finding out from the Pakistani F-16's they had at their disposal!?

Thanks again Smile

Source code refers to the computer programs, written in JOVIAL, which are compiled to build the Operational Flight Programs (OFP) that are actually loaded onto the aircraft. No source code is on the actual aircraft, just the executable OFPs. The Zeroize switch in the cockpit wipes out (erases) the OFP if that need should ever arise. Zeroize is also triggered by the ejection sequence.

GregD

Forum: General F-16 forum

F-16 Source Codes