Israel gets new F-16I fighter/bomber

Jerusalem Post ^ | Nov. 14, 2003 | ARIEH O'SULLIVAN

[yonif]

Pilots of the newest F-16I long-range fighter/bomber which is to roll off the assembly line in Texas Friday are itchy to get their hands on the $45 million jet.

Aerospace giant Lockheed Martin delivers the first F-16I at its plant here Friday to an Israeli delegation led by Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz, fresh from his talks in Washington.

The rollout ceremony marks the interim phase in this $4.5 billion dollar deal, the largest arms deal ever taken in the history of the state. Lockheed Martin won the tender, beating rival Boeing, in 1999 to supply 102 of the advanced fighter jets which are aimed at strengthening the IAF's long reach, being able to reach nations like Iran and Libya.

The aircraft have been supplemented to Israel's specifications and are different from any other F-16, even in the service of the US Air Force. They are being paid for from the annual US military grants given to Israel, which this year stands at about $2.2 billion.

The next phase is transporting the jets to Israel. The first is expected to arrive next month and gradually the whole squadron will be in place at the Ramon base deep in the Negev. A total of three squadrons will be delivered by 2008.

"We have not flown them yet," said Lt.-Col. A., commander of the "Negev" squadron "We went through a conversion course in the United States and we flew the simulator. But we will only fly the real thing when it comes to the country. But after we flew the simulator we got real itchy to get in the cockpit and fly it already."

Lt.-Col. A. was plucked from his command of an F-15 squadron to command the new jet squadron. He said the Air Force gave him top priority in assembling the IAF's top aviators and ground crews to receive the new jets.

'This is a jet that doesn't exist elsewhere. We did not buy a jet that has experience in the US air force. This means that we will reach maturity in stages and it will take a while for the squadron to ripen and the jet reaches its full capacities," the 36-year-old squadron leader said.

"We don't' think about the price of the jet in terms of dollars, but in the defense of the state of Israel," he told The Jerusalem Post. "We do understand how much the country is investing in this and not just the platform, but also in the development of the south (where the F-16I squadrons will be based and families relocated)

"My hope is for us to be the spearhead of the IAF," Lt.-Col. A said.

With the arrival of the 102 F-16Is, Israel will have a total of 362 of the jets – the largest fleet in any country in the world behind the United States. The F-16s are the backbone of the IAF, but these new "I" models will give added punch to the long-range capabilities of the IAF and will complement the squadron of F-15Is Israel received in the end of the 1990s.

The Air Force has nicknamed the F-16I as "Sufa," or thunderstorm. It has a 820 non-refueling radius of operation.

[yonif]

IAF's new F-16I "Sufa" (Thunderstorm)

Photo: IDF

[John Beresford Tipton]

ARIEH O'SULLIVAN writing in the Jerusalem Post

Now that's a name!

[RedBloodedAmerican]

1129's?

[Seselj]

I hate Lockheed Martin. I sent them my resume and didn't even get a call.

[Charlotte Corday]

IDF rocks! Bump

[Pukin Dog]

I hope most of the crews come from existing F-16 squadrons.

The transition from a hydralic bird like the Eagle to a FBW bird is not an easy one. Very light stick forces in the Falcon can load Gs on the airframe almost instantly.

[Seselj]

I thought all modern fighter jets (everything since the Phantom) were FBW?

[Servant of the 9]

Nice plane, but perhaps obsolescent when the first metal was cut for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter yesterday.

So9

[Pukin Dog]

No, just the F-16 Falcon, F-18 Hornet, F22 Raptor, B-2 and F-117 Stealth aircraft are FBW. The Eagle, Tomcat and A-10 are hydralic birds.

[Renfield]

The A-10 was not FBW, and I think the F-14 wasn't either, at least not fully. The F-15, F-16, and subsequent planes were.

[RedBloodedAmerican]

We won't give them anything that would be better than what we ourselves have. Plus they get a good deal on F16's, keeps costs down since they already have the tools and training for the new model. But it is better than anything their neighbors own. Personally, I still liked the Lavi, best.

[Bobby777]

did you get your F-16 slot?

[Akira]

...being able to reach nations like Iran...

No wonder they're so excited.

HBey Iran, keep building those plants and keep letting Rafsanjani run his mouth off. The IDF will be there shortly.

[Pukin Dog]

Not yet. My cast doesnt come off for another week, then I have 3 weeks to pass a physical to go on the list, then we will see.

[Bobby777]

Good luck ... don't the FBW bird's computers back off the G-load after a point? (I mean severe like 10G's or so) ...

I liked the cranked wing F-16 of a few years back ... I thought (maybe) it was a derivative of that licensed to the Japanese to build ...

[Ronaldus Magnus]

The math is simple:

(102 Israeli F-16 I's) + (210 Saudi F-15-S's) = (102 Israeli F-16 I's)

[Pukin Dog]

There is an automatic G-limiter to protect the airframe from overstressing, but as long as the pilot pulls, the computer will try to respond, up to a stall condition. I was a fan of the F-16XL myself. Had it been built, there would not have been a Strike Eagle, which arguably does a better job, due to having room for a much better radar.

[Pukin Dog]

I'm sorry, but the Saudi Eagles would blow the F-16's out of the sky with ease. The F-16's could not get close enough to tangle with Eagles. The F-15's could sit on them from 50 thousand feet up, and bounce the F-16's off the ground with AIM-120's or even Sparrows. No contest. That is why Israel has their own Eagles. The F-16's are used for ground attack, not Air Superiority.

[Pukin Dog]

The F-14 and F-15 are not FBW. The F-16 was the first to incorporate that system.