IAF FRUSTRATED OVER U.S. RADAR FOR F-16I

[gf0012-aust]

TEL AVIV [MENL] -- The Israel Air Force has quietly expressed frustration over its decision to accept a U.S.-origin radar for the new F-16I multi-role fighter.

Defense officials and military sources said the choice of Northrop Grumman's AN/APG-68[V]9 synthetic-aperture multi-mode radar has dismayed both the service and the Defense Ministry. They said an evaluation by Israeli air force pilots of the U.S. radar showed it to be inferior to an indigenous Israeli radar designed by Elta Electronic Industries. Israeli pilots flew the F-16I in test flights in 2003 in the United States.

"This was the most political decision ever made by the air force and we'll be paying for this for years to come," a senior officer said.

The military sources said the Defense Ministry agreed to a U.S. radar as part of the request for 102 F-16 Block 50 aircraft from the United States in 1999. The U.S. Defense Department refused to allow Israel to install the Elta SAR radar on the F-16, the staple of NATO air forces.


The Israeli's have a reputation for retro fitting better systems, I don't know why they just don't remove the '68 and install their own systems.

 

[big_evil]

[Admin Edit: There is no mention of Israeli WMDs in this thread, there is no mention of other political problems that US has with Israel so its better not to introduce them where they do not belong, understand? When you learn to reply to a topic according to what its intended subject is than we may not edit your post. So, think before you reply and know what you are replying to. This isn't your "cry over Israeli" policies thread. Its about F-16i and its radar system.

Thanks for understanding, enjoy!!! ]

 

[webmaster]

big_evil read the warning above and keep in mind when replying/posting. Also don't forget to read the rules since you are new:

http://defencetalk.com/forums/rules.php

 

[umair]

Er Gary! would'nt this thread feel more at home in Military Aircraft forum.Btw why in blazes did IAF go for the APG68(V) when they could have gone on to aquire the AESAS used in block 60
Just my 2 cents!

Admin Note from Gary: I'm assuming that you moved it then? I thought I had, obviously a snafu on my part. sorry!

[Mod note from shamayel: I was the one who moved it. ]

 

[Aussie Digger]

Well Gf, I should imagine that retrofitting 102 brand new fighters with an indigenous radar would be a very expensive exercise. The APG 68 radar can't be all that bad, the IAF apparently had a great amount of say in the design specs for this radar...


Here's an article I read about this radar;

The Israeli Soufa F-16I, and Hellenic F-16 Block 52s are equipped with the latest version of Northrop Grumman APG-68 radar, the (V)9 multimode fire control radar that offers improved detection range and resolution. Only the Block 60 aircraft, destined for the UAE, are to be equipped with a more advanced version – the Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar. Initially, the Israelis favored the local Elta EL/M-2032 fire control radar originally developed for the IAI Lavi, but encountered financial and political obstacles. The IAF decided to use an improved model of the F-16 radar, and was involved in the specifications definition phase of the new version. It was later been selected by most of the latest acquisitions – by Poland and Greece. The new version uses new, Commercial Off The Shelf (COTS) technology that provided faster processors that provide increased throughput, with x5 faster processing speed and x10 growth in memory capacity over the current version. With the powerful processing capability, the new system has a high resistance to electromagnetic interference and countermeasures and future growth potential. The system offers new and improved capabilities in both air/air and air/ground modes, primarily in the operation at long range (BVR) and target rich airspace. The APG-68(V)9 offers 30 percent increase in detection range, improved search-while-track mode (four vs. two tracked targets) and larger search volume and improved track while scan performance. Its single target track performance has also been improved.

On air/ground missions, the new radar becomes an effective sensor, utilizing its high-resolution synthetic aperture radar mode, which allows the pilot to locate and recognize tactical ground targets from considerable distances. Although previous radars had some Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) capabilities, the new version generates imagery-class (2 feet resolution) high resolutions pictures, comparable to pictures delivered by the most modern commercial satellites. These pictures can be acquired from very long range, at all weather conditions and provide an effective, real-time source for the targeting of long range, precision guided weapons. The radar also has increased detection range in sea surveillance mode, and enhanced ground moving target identification and mappinc capability. The radar features an inertial measurement unit that improves dynamic tracking performance and provides an auto-boresight capability, which increases accuracy.

http://www.defense-update.com/products/a/apg68-v-9.htm

 

[fieldmarshal]

Israel receives new-generation F-16I fighter jets

Israel receives new-generation F-16I fighter jets

The Israeli air force took delivery on Thursday of the first two of more than 100 US-built F-16I jets, a new generation of warplane which will soon make up the backbone of Israel’s fleet.

Experts say the ultra-sophisticated development of the battle-tested F16 Fighting Falcon, to be named Sufa (Storm in Hebrew), sports a much-increased range of 1,500 kilometres without needing in-flight refuelling, allowing them to reach anywhere in the Middle East.

Media reports said this new capability could allow the Israeli Air Force (IAF) to hit suspected nuclear targets in Iran, as it did in Iraq in June 1981 when it bombed the Osirak reactor near Baghdad.

Built by US aerospace giant Lockheed Martin, the two planes left the contractor’s plant in Fort Worth, Texas late on Wednesday and landed at the Ramon air base in the southern Negev desert on Thursday afternoon after a stopover in Portugal’s mid-Atlantic Azores islands.

The two planes were officially handed over at a ceremony at the base attended by Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz, army chief Moshe Yaalon and his IAF counterpart Dan Halutz and former premier Ehud Barak.

"In spite of the demands of war against terror, the army must still be ready for a (conventional) war," Mofaz said at the ceremony. Yaalon said that the new aircraft were "a response to the threat of ground missiles and non-conventional weapons" facing Israel.

The procurement of 102 of the two-seater jets at an estimated cost of 4.5 billion dollars is the biggest defence deal in Israel’s history. For its part, Lockheed Martin is committed to 2.6 billion dollars worth of reciprocal procurements, of which 1.1 billion has already been made.

Funding for the contract comes from US military aid to Israel which totals around two billion dollars per year. With the 102 new Sufa jets, and another 230 Fighting Falcons, Israel will command the second largest F-16 fleet in the world behind the United States.

Although the IAF refuses to give details of the new jet’s range, it describes it as "very significant". Powered by a Pratt and Whitney F100-PW-229 engine, many of its multiple systems are produced by the Israeli aerospace industry.

 

[Red aRRow]

fieldmarshal as a rule you have to put the link of the article with the article. Please keep that in mind next time. Thanks.

 

[general]

I guess Israel is looking at the UAE air force as a threat and want better equipment themselves. They should have tested the plane before buying it and not to complain after that

 

[gf0012-aust]

I guess Israel is looking at the UAE air force as a threat and want better equipment themselves. They should have tested the plane before buying it and not to complain after that

Thats not the way that the purchasing process works.

Israel has made it clear to the US that it wants to install its own systems in any platforms that they purchase. The US (this time) has declined to do so.

The radar system as fitted is considered to one of the best in the world - Israel considers that its own system is better.

They are probably right. The Israeli modified F15's and F16's are almost universally accepted as being superior platforms than their US equivalents.

 

[mysterious]

I agree witht that...Israelis have done this quite often...modifying their purchases from the US or even other countries and they almost alwayz are right about their equipment being superior.