The US State Department has approved a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to Poland of F-16 Viper Mid-Life Upgrades (MLUs), the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced on 23 October 2024.
The proposed sale, which is worth an estimated USD 7.3 billion (EUR 6.75 billion), has been passed to the US Congress for final approval.
The Polish Air Force operates an F-16 fleet consisting of 36 F-16C single-seat fighters plus 12 F-16D twin-seat conversion trainers delivered from 2006.
Specifically, Poland has requested to buy 58 AN/APG-83 active electronically scanned-array (AESA) Scalable Agile Beam Radars (48 installed, 10 spares); 58 Improved Programmable Display Generators (48 installed, 10 spares); three AGM-158 Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile (JASSM) flight test vehicles (captive carry); three Small Diameter Bomb II (SDB II) GBU-53/B guided test vehicles (GTVs); eight SDB II GBU-53/B captive carry reliability trainers; two SDB I GBU-39(T-1)/B GTVs; 58 Embedded GPS inertial navigation systems (EGIs) with Selective Availability Anti-Spoofing Modules (SAASMs) or M-Code capability and Precise Positioning Service (48 installed, 10 spares); 60 Modular Mission Computer (MMC) 7000AH upgrades or equivalent (48 installed, 12 spares); 60 Next Generation Mission Computers or next-generation equivalent (48 installed, 12 spares); 73 AN/ALQ-257 Integrated Viper Electronic Warfare Suites (IVEWS), or 73 AN/ALQ-254V(1) Viper Shield advanced electronic warfare (EW) suites, or equivalent (63 installed, 10 spares); two AIM-9X Block II Sidewinder Special Air Training Missiles; two AIM-9X Block II Sidewinder captive air training missiles; various non-Major Defense Equipment items; spares; aircraft components, parts, and accessories; technical documentation; plus various aspects of engineering, technical, logistic and programme support.
“The proposed sale will allow Poland to modify and upgrade its existing F-16 aircraft to the new Viper configuration,” the DSCA stated. “The F-16 Viper Midlife Upgrade (MLU) will bolster Poland’s air defense and surveillance capabilities, support national security, and strengthen Poland’s defense and contributions to NATO.”
The principal contractor for the Polish F-16 Viper MLU will be Lockheed Martin out of its facilities in Greenville, South Carolina.
