TSAMTO, September 16. The first pair of F-16C/D fighter jets, upgraded to the latest F-16V standard by Lockheed Martin, has arrived in Greece.
The US Embassy in Athens announced the delivery on September 12, publishing footage of the acceptance ceremony of the first aircraft at the Tanagra Airbase (in central Greece).
According to the plans, four more F-16C/D fighters of the Greek Air Force should be upgraded by the end of the year.
As reported by TSAMTO, in April 2018, the Greek government officially approved an agreement with the United States to modernize up to 85 of the 154 available F-16 fighters of the country's Air Force, the total cost of which is estimated at 1.2 billion. euro ($1.45 billion).
Previously, in October 2017, the US State Department approved the supply of equipment and services to Greece under the Foreign Military Sales program for the modernization of F-16 fighters in service to the F-16V version, including the purchase of 125 APG-83 active antenna array radar (AESA), 123 on-board computers, 123 Link-16 MIDS-JTRS data exchange systems, 123 LN260 integrated GPS/inertial navigation systems, 123 advanced Programmable Image Generators (iPDG), other equipment and services with a total cost of up to $2.404 billion.
In December 2018, the US Air Force Command signed a contract with Lockheed Martin to upgrade the F-16C/D Fighting Falcon fighters of the Greek Air Force to the F-16V 84 standard as part of the Foreign Military Sales program. The cost of the agreement was $996.775 million. The work should be completed by June 30, 2027.
At the moment, the first two aircraft have been upgraded in the USA. Flight tests of the first upgraded at the Lockheed Martin facility in Fort Worth (pcs.Texas) the fighter passed in January 2021. The remaining aircraft will be upgraded in Greece by Hellenic Aerospace Industry (HAI) at the facilities in Tanagra.
Currently, various versions of the F-16 are in operation in Greece, including the "Block.30", "Block.50", "Block.52" and "Block.52+". Initially, the Greek Air Force planned to modernize 123 F-16 fighter jets, including 38 aircraft of the "Block.50". This project was estimated at 1.966 billion in 2017. euro, but it was decided to abandon it due to the high cost.
The implemented program will expand combat capabilities and extend the operational life of 54 F-16C/D "Block.52+" fighters purchased under the Peace Xenia III program and 30 F-16C/D "Block.52+ Advanced", acquired under the Peace Xenia IV program.
Given the aggravation of relations with Turkey in recent months, the General Staff of the Greek Air Force also assesses the possibility of returning to the issue of modernization of 38 F-16 "Block.50" fighters.
The F-16V version (also known as the Block.70/72) is equipped with AN AN/APG-83 radar with an active phased array antenna of Northrop Grumman Corporation, a new on-board computer manufactured by Raytheon, a Link-16 data transmission channel, modern multifunctional displays in the cockpit, an improved electronic warfare system and a collision avoidance system.
