The United States government has recently authorized the potential sale of new and modern AIM-9X Sidewinder Block II and AIM-120C-8 AMRAAM air-to-air missiles to partially equip the Turkish Air Force’s fleet of F-16 fighter jets. This was revealed through recent notifications sent by the U.S. Department of State to Congress for the approval of two Foreign Military Sales (FMS) transactions, with a combined estimated value exceeding US$300 million.
Since their introduction in the late 1980s, F-16s have become one of the main combat platforms of the Turkish Air Force. The fleet is made up of Block 30 and Block 50 C and D variant aircraft, which have undergone various modernization programs. Given this background and in an effort to ensure sufficient armament availability for its fleet, the Turkish government requested the purchase of new short-, medium-, and long-range air-to-air missiles from the United States.
According to two announcements released by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) on May 14, the Department of State authorized the sale of a total of sixty (60) new AIM-9X Sidewinder Block II missiles and eleven (11) tactical guidance units, in a deal valued at US$79.1 million.
Additionally, the sale of up to fifty-three (53) AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM), along with six (6) guidance units, was also approved in a separate transaction valued at US$225 million.
For both deals, the Department of State stated that the sales are consistent with U.S. foreign policy objectives in support of a key NATO ally, and that Turkey will have no difficulty integrating these new capabilities to sustain its fleet of F-16s.
Images used for illustration purposes: Turkish Ministry of Defense.
