DAYTON, Ohio — A series of planned modernizations to the U.S. fleet of F-16 fighter jets has the Air Force looking for more depot space to make these upgrades, the F-16 program manager said Wednesday.

The service last December released a request for information (RFI) regarding industrial depot capacity that will help take some weight off of space and personnel as it expects to keep the F-16 fleet flying through 2046, said Col. Jeff Gates at a program executive office fighter/bomber briefing at the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center’s (AFLCMC) third annual Life Cycle Industry Days conference here.

The Air Force's F-16D fighter jet. Photo: Lockheed Martin.
The Air Force’s F-16D fighter jet. Photo: Lockheed Martin.

“We are looking at so many [modifications] that I am going to max out the capacity at Hill Air Force Base [Utah],” where F-16 depot-level maintenance and modifications are performed, he said.

“I would like to … set up a speed line where I could fly an aircraft in, have the whole army attack it, do as much as they could to it in a short span of time, 15-20 days, and then return it,” Gates said later during a media interview. A request for proposals for the contract is expected by the end of the calendar year, and work could begin in 2021, he added.

Although the work may be temporary as the Air Force moves through its series of modifications, contractors will also have the opportunity to work on some foreign military sales (FMS) cases, Gates noted.

“There are some crash-damaged aircraft that have been sitting in boxes for years that the depot couldn’t get to, so we’re offering some of that to entice” industry, he added.

To keep the fleet of 939 F-16 Fighting Falcons — first delivered in 1978 by General Dynamics [GD], now developed by Lockheed Martin [LMT] — flying for several more decades, the Air Force must perform a series of radar, communications and other systems upgrades that increase its connectivity, target ability and agility.

A new active electronic scanned array (AESA) radar is at the top of the priorities list. The Northrop Grumman [NOC]-developed APG-83 scalable agile beam radar (SABR) will provide the F-16 fleet with greater bandwidth, improved target detection and tracking ability, enhanced combat ID and new maritime modes, according to the company. The Air Force awarded Northrop Grumman a contract in 2017 for the radar upgrade.

The service is also looking to add a new digital radar warning receiver onto the aircraft, along with a modular mission computer upgrade that is expected to be awarded in fiscal year 2020, Gates said. That computer will improve throughput for the aircraft to communicate among its new AESA radar, the receiver and a Link 16 capability, he noted.

The Air Force plans to invest over $5 billion over the next five years to keep its F-16s in the air into the 2040s, Gates said. The FY ’19 defense appropriations conference report, released Thursday, included over $303 million for modifications to the aircraft, a slight decrease from the service’s initial request of $324 million.