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| Afghanistan/South Asia | |
| Pakistan seeks as many as 75 new F-16 warplanes | |
| 2005-05-27 | |
| WASHINGTON - Pakistan has asked about buying as many as 75 new F-16C/D Falcon fighter aircraft since the Bush administration announced it would resume sales, the head of the Pentagon agency handling the matter said on Wednesday. Pakistan also has asked about buying 11 used F-16s, said Air Force Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kohler, head of the Defence Security Cooperation Agency, which runs US government-to-government arms sales. Many experts had expected Pakistan to seek only about two-dozen F-16s, said Richard Aboulafia of Teal Group, a Virginia-based aerospace consultancy. The numbers cited by Kohler show Pakistan wants to make the F-16 a mainstay of its combat aircraft fleet, he said, terming this "very ambitious in terms of regional strategy and very costly."
Kohler, in an interview with Reuters, said Pakistan had requested prices for F-16 Block 50/52 aircraft, the most modern F-16s flown by the United States and the current production standard. Similar aircraft have been exported to Poland, Greece, Chile, Oman and Israel. Only the United Arab Emirates flies a more advanced variant, Block 60, with improved radar, defences and range. Asked about any Pakistani interest in the Block 60 model, Kohler said: "They did not ask for it and I don't think they could afford it." Kohler held arms-sale talks with defence ministry officials in Pakistan and India last month. "I think when we go back and talk to them about the cost of the new systems my guess is that they will downsize slightly the (request for) new and they may increase slightly the used," he said. The Bush Administration announced on March 25 that it would resume sales of F-16s to Pakistan after a nearly 16-year break. The about-face was widely seen as a reward for Pakistan's support in the US-led global war on terrorism. At the same time, the administration said it would let Boeing Co. and Lockheed compete for a potential $9 billion market in India for as many as 126 combat aircraft. Lockheed is pitching India the same F-16 Block 50/52 and Boeing is offering its dual-engine F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, the most modern combat US aircraft currently in full-rate production. The F-16C/D Block 50/52 sells for $40 million to $45 million each, depending on options. Boeing's Super Hornet is expected to go for $50 million to $55 million, based on the price of the US Navy's next production batch, Kohler said. India has not yet asked about acquiring state-of-the-art F-16 Block 60 aircraft, he said. He said India was seeking to co-produce or co-assemble domestically the majority of the aircraft it eventually buys. It also apparently had invited bids from Sweden, France and Russia, Kohler said. For Pakistan, US government officials were still weighing the weapons systems, targeting pods, radars and electronic warfare equipment that would be offered as part of a package. A deal could perhaps be notified to Congress toward the end of the summer, the first step in a process that could lead to deliveries three years after an agreement is signed, Kohler said. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #7 Pakistan claims the weapons are needed for the war on terror on its western border. Thus the latest TOW missiles (designed to penetrate the ERA blocks on T90s and T72s) are actually meant for al qaeda house-busting. The Harpoon missles and CIWS are meant against an al qaeda naval threat. All quite hilarious (but paid for by the american taxpayer). |
| Posted by: john 2005-05-27 17:58 |
| #6 Why in the hell are we arming Packistan with weapons it can use against India? It should be the other way around as far as I can tell. |
| Posted by: Secret Master 2005-05-27 17:43 |
| #5 Nice. Pakistan gets (a) two thousand TOW missiles to neutralize any Indian T72 Tank assault (b) One dozen Phalanx CIWS and two hundred Harpoon missiles to neutralize threat from Indian Navy (c) 75 F-16s and advanced BVR missiles to neutralize Indian Air Force (d) 70 (night capable) helicopter gunships and training in airborne assault from US Special forces to neutralize any Indian special ops in Kashmir. (e) Aerostat radar systems to look deep into Indian territory and neutralize any surprise attacks. All almost totally paid for from US military aid funds. Perv has a good thing going... |
| Posted by: john 2005-05-27 15:12 |
| #4 "The F-16C/D Block 50/52 sells for $40 million to $45 million each, depending on options" What, like manual or automatic? Standard AM/FM/CD or 6 disc changer? :-) |
| Posted by: IG-88 2005-05-27 13:49 |
| #3 Trade them one for one for Pakistani nuclear bombs and manufacturing sites. And key people, including Khan. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2005-05-27 12:17 |
| #2 Steve, we also have to make sure the new Mk V Kill-Switch feature is installed. (Now with remote self-destruct sattelite activation!) |
| Posted by: sparks 2005-05-27 09:25 |
| #1 We can't let him have them. His military might use them to continue to blow up Shi'ite mosques, thus leading to more Koran Desecrations... (Hey, if anyone wanted us to take the bitching seriously, it's going to have a lot of ramifications on our behavior... it would mean our having to respect Islam, even when the so-called Islamic World is shitting on it by blowing up Shi'ites at prayer.) |
| Posted by: Phil Fraering 2005-05-27 08:30 |