by Kris Osborn, Warrior
The F-16 has become somewhat of a classic fighter jet in use by more than 24 countries, as it is a revered platform described as the most widely used in the world. This comes as no surprise, given the success of the platform and the massive extent to which the aircraft has been upgraded, sustained and tailored by Lockheed and other industry partners for a wide range of international customers.
Part of the F-16s international reach includes a lesser known, yet extremely significant variant of the aircraft used by the Israeli Air Force tailored specifically for the requirements of the IDF.
As is the case with the Israeli F-35i Adir, the IAF’s F-16 is modified with a number of cutting edge specific technological systems tailored for Israeli use. Some of these are similar to F-16 variants tailored for international customers such as the F-16v, F-21 built for India and even the US upgraded F-16. The US Air Force upgrades to the F-16, largely related to what the service calls a Service Life Extension Program, are a series of wide-ranging adaptations designed to add thousands of flight hours to the aircraft’s service life. They include new avionics, weapons interfaces, computing, EW and even integration of some F-35 technologies such as Active Electronically Scanned Array radar.
Israel’s F-16I “Sufa”
What about the Israeli variant? How is it tailored for the IDF? Certainly Israel is conscious of its regional threats and concerns and is quite adept at integrating its own technical systems. An interesting essay in Air Force Technology magazine details a wide-ranging series of IDF modifications made to its F-16i Sufa variant. Many of these include electronic, EW, sensing and avionics engineered by Elbit, yet one of the most significant adaptations could be described as “conformal fuel tanks.”
Conformal fuel tanks are tactically interesting, as they were built into the F/A-18 by the US Navy years ago as an experimental effort; the concept is quite clear, as they are smoothly aligned with the fuselage for the distinct purpose of adding fuel and extending mission dwell time. Equipped with large extra fuel-carrying “conformal” structures blended into the airframe, an Israeli F-16i can perform longer missions and position itself to adjust to new targets as they become available. Another often lesser recognized element of conformal tanks is that they are shaped in a smooth, rounded, blended shape to lower the radar cross-section of the aircraft. Certainly an F-16 would not be considered stealthy per say, yet it makes sense that modifications to the aircraft would seek to decrease its detectability to some extent by smoothing over some of the sharp edges and external contours of the aircraft likely to generate a return signal to ground-based radar.
Stealthy Conformal Fuel Tanks
Also, the conformal fuel tanks increase the weapons capacity of the F-16, as explained by Air Force Technology.
“The fitting of conformal tanks makes the two wing inner store stations normally used for external tanks (stations 6 and 4, each rated at 4,500lb capacity) available for weapon carriage, doubling the aircraft’s air-to-ground weapons capacity,” the magazine explains.
The Israeli acquisition of F-16s goes all the way back to 2001, yet the IDF has spent years working with its industrial partners such as Elbit systems to further enhance the platform. The modifications are extensive as they include the addition of an Elbit-systems built Dash IV display enabling pilots to more quickly and effectively “lock-on” to a target by simply “looking” at a target. The US F/A-18 and F-35 have a similar kind of helmet-“cueing” technology.
Other modifications include digital moving maps, enhanced navigational systems and a 3rd-generation Forward Looking Infrared sensor for long-range, high-resolution target imaging. Not surprisingly, the fighter-jet is also integrated with advanced radar, EW and precision-guided short and long-range missiles.
Kris Osborn is thePresident of Warrior Maven – Center for Military Modernization. Osborn previously served at the Pentagon as a highly qualified expert in the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army—Acquisition, Logistics & Technology. Osborn has also worked as an anchor and on-air military specialist at national TV networks. He has appeared as a guest military expert on Fox News, MSNBC, The Military Channel, and The History Channel. He also has a Masters Degree in Comparative Literature from Columbia University
