News

The Venezuelan Air Force (Fuerza Aeréa Venezolana) is trying to buy 2 F-16 to replace aircraft lost on accidents in 1995. The planes' sale became possible in August, when the Clinton administration lifted a 20-year ban on major weapons sales to South American nations.

Greek fighter jets and a transport plane have landed at an air base on the divided island of Cyprus in a move condemned by Turkey and the breakaway Turkish Cypriot government in the north.

The Air Force and the Pentagon, citing testing problems, are delaying full production of The Boeing Co. 's top smart bomb by a year - a move that could slow orders to the tune of as much as $3 billion, according to Air Force officials and documents. The Pentagon delayed the full-rate production decision for the high-profile Joint Direct Attack Munition, or JDAM, to April 1999 from this April after tests showed severe shock waves hammering and cracking the bomb's tail kit as it hangs from the wing of a Navy F-18 fighter. The bomb, guided by Global Positioning System satellite links, is designed to be dropped from many Air Force and Navy aircraft, including theB-2 bomber, and F-16, F-15 and F-18 fighter aircraft. The problem is confined to one bomb rack location on the F-18.

Hughes-Danish Aerotech Open Missile Center The U.S. Hughes group and Danish Aerotech A/S said Tuesday (Sept 16) they had together opened a missile maintenance and test center at the Danish air force's Karup air base. A joint statement said the center would be the only one in Europe allowed exclusive commercial use of the Hughes-designed Advanced Missile Test System for the Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missile (AMRAAM). It added that Denmark had ordered AMRAAM for its F-16 aircraft and 10 other European countries had also selected the missile.

A tender to replace Hungary's outdated fighter aircraft fleet will probably be announced in the second half of 1999, Prime Minister Gyula Horn said on Tuesday. A consortium of British Aerospace and Sweden's SAAB, with its Grippen fighter, is one of four Western plane makers currently lobbying Hungary in anticipation of the tender for the purchase of some 30 new fighters worth a total of around $1 billion. The other prospective contenders are Lockheed-Martin with its F-16, France's Dassault with the Mirage 2000, and Boeing with the F/A-18 Hornet. An offset agreement - under which the prospective bidders invest in Hungarian industry or sign deals for Hungarian products equivalent to the cost of the planes - remained a basic condition. All prospective bidders have signed such an agreement with Hungary. U.S. engine maker General Electric, which supplies the Grippen, the F16and the F/A 18, has also signed an offset deal.

U.S. pilots delivered to Jordan on Wednesday a first batch of F-16 fighter planes to modernize Jordanian air power. The four F-16s, which landed at Mufaq Salti desert base (near Azraq), are the first group of 16 fighter bombers, worth a total $220 million, to be delivered by February.

Six Belgian F-16s from the 10thTactical Wing at Kleine Brogel left for Villafranca (Italy) on October14th. They will join the DATF (Deployable Air Task Force) and participate in Operation Allied Force.

The U.S. Air Force has formed four air expeditionary wings should NATO call for air strikes later this week. The units were formed primarily to support the possibility of air operations over Serbia.

Norway is expected to officially issue a request for proposal to Eurofighter and Lockheed Martin for new fighter aircraft in February 1999. Deadline will be set at the end of 1999. Norway needs about 30 to 40 new fighters and is considering the Eurofighter Typhoon and the LMTAS F-16 Block 50N.

Denmark said on Friday it would contribute four F-16 jet fighters in the event of allied military action against Serbia over the Kosovo crisis. Denmark last sent two F-16 fighters to participate in NATO exercises in June in the Balkans, designed as a show of strength to deter Yugoslav repression in Kosovo. NATO defense ministers may hold a special meeting next week to discuss allied military intervention in the Kosovo crisis, diplomatic sources in Brussels said earlier on Friday.

The Belgian AF has received the first of eight ordered recce pods from Per Udsen (Denmark). The first two Modular Recce Pods (MRP) are configured for low-level recce, the six others will be configured for medium-altitude reconnaissance. Interesting to note is that the pods are equipped with the camera's from the retired Mirage aircraft. The pods will be used on Belgian F-16A/Bs and future F-16MLU's.

More than 5, 000 troops backed by air power have begun an assault against Kurdish guerrillas in a mountain stronghold in eastern Turkey, security officials said on Thursday.

Both the Czech Republic and Hungary have officially announced that they cannot afford new fighter aircraft.

The New Zealand Govt has just announced that it will lease-buy the28 Pakistani F16s. New Zealand's minority government on Tuesday opted to acquire 28 barely used fighters from the United States, saying it would make a huge savings by leasing planes unwanted by the Pentagon. The 10-year lease for the F-6A/B fighters costs about NZ$200 million ($105 million). The Vipers have to replace New Zealand's 19 aging, subsonic A-4 Skyhawk strike planes. This move should save NZ$431 million over the cost of buying new planes next century. The government opted to acquire the F-16s under a lease-buy deal, with payments spread over 10 years and delivery starting in 30 months. Pakistan originally paid Lockheed Martin for the supersonic fighters in1990, but Congress blocked delivery over concerns about that country's developing nuclear capacity.

Six Kunsan F-16s deployed to Peya Lebar Republic of Singapore Air Force Base, Singapore, last month in support of Commando Sling, an ongoing cooperative effort of air combat training between the U.S. and Republic of Singapore Air Forces.