USAF stops F-16 upgrade that was to be a hedge against F-35 delays

Recently the top USAF leadership stated that FY2016 could see all F-16s go away if the funding situation doesn't improve. This scenario would be under the same bad thinking that may see the elimination of the A-10, U-2 and possibly even the KC-10 tanker.

With that possibility in hand, the USAF has put out a stop-work order to Lockheed Martin in relation to an F-16 upgrade that was in progress, reports Inside Defense ( subscription ).

The combat avionics programmed extension suite (CAPES) upgrade detailed in 2012 was to see USAF Block 40,42,50 and 52 F-16s upgraded by the end of the decade. The first kits were to be procured in fiscal year 2017 with installations starting in 2018.

The purpose of CAPES was a USAF acknowledged stop-gap need because of F-35 delays. CAPES along with a service life extension program for select airframes, would have given the F-16 fleet viability for another 15 years after the upgrade.

CAPES would give USAF F-16s AESA radar, a new combat processing computer which would fuse information into modern display and the Terma ALQ-213 electronic warfare system.

In recent fiscal years, older USAF F-16s have already started retirement. If this new USAF plan goes through, the end of the decade could see the service with no F-16s and no credible F-35s.

This is the thinking of a madman.

Recently I found out about a retired A-10 pilot that died because of an inoperable disease. He had lots of hours in the aircraft including instructor training and tactics training.

As we see people like this pass on, it seems the USAF, as an institution, is dying.

The cause? Suicide by poor leadership.

Case in point: the head of the USAF’s Air Combat Command, Gen Michael Hostage said he would “fight to the death” to preserve F-35 funding.