TSAMTO, July 1. On June 30, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) announced a contract recently signed with the Ministry of Defense of Sri Lanka worth $ 50 million to modernize the Kfir aircraft of the Air Force of this country.
The agreement includes the replacement of the basic avionics of the aircraft with modern equipment of generation 4 + fighters, which will allow integrating improved radars, sensors, communication systems and new helmets in the future. The modernization process will also include the transfer of technology and repair skills to Sri Lankan Air Force personnel. The modernization will be carried out jointly with representatives of the Sri Lankan Air Force and at their facilities.
According to the Flightglobal.com, the Sri Lankan Air Force has 5 Kfir C2 / C7 / TC2 aircraft purchased in 2000. Since mid-2017, the fighters have been stored at the Bandaranaike International Airport (Colombo).
As noted, the successful completion of such a procedure by the Colombian Air Force largely contributed to the adoption of a positive decision on the modernization of the Kfir aircraft of the Sri Lankan Air Force.
The Colombian Air Force operates 19 Kfir Block aircraft.60. Another operator of Kfir is the American company Airborne Tactical Advantage, which uses them in training to simulate an "aggressor".
As reported by TSAMTO, IAI began negotiations on the modernization of Sri Lankan Air Force aircraft after the completion of the modernization of the Colombian Kfir in 2017.
Representatives of the IAI company suggest that the deal with the Ministry of Defense of Sri Lanka may be the first step in preparing for the modernization of aircraft to the Kfir NG (KNG) standard. For the first time presented in 2019, the KNG modernization variant will feature a fully restored airframe, detection equipment, avionics (comparable to the F-16).52) and an improved set of weapons, a more powerful General Electric F414 engine instead of the outdated GE J79, a radar with an active antenna array with electronic scanning, improved communication means.
