A formation of F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 421st Fighter Squadron, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, depart the snow-laden state en route to San Diego, Calif., Jan. 18, 2013.

A formation of F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 421st Fighter Squadron, Hill Air Force Base, Utah, depart the snow-laden state en route to San Diego, Calif., Jan. 18, 2013. Photo by Master Sgt. Ben Bloker

Sell India F-16s — and Build Them Abroad

It’s the right move for the United States, even if it makes the Trump administration uncomfortable.

Earlier this month, a delegation of U.S. government and business officials flew to New Delhi. Its mission: to reassure the Indian government that the U.S. really wants them to replenish its fighter fleet with F-16s. It’s the right move for a lot of reasons — some of them potentially uncomfortable to the new Trump administration.

The Indian Air Force is working to replace its aging fleet of third-generation, Soviet-era jets with up to 250 fighters that could defend its interests against China and Pakistan should a conflict arise. Late last year, India agreed to purchase 36 French Rafales, but most of its new fighter-jet orders will be filled through a competition between the Swedish JAS 39 Gripen and America’s F-16 Fighting Falcon.

Performance and cost will help determine the outcome, but the Indian government has also stipulated that the winner will also have to commit to producing the fighter in India. It’s a precondition that may not sit well with Trump administration officials focused on preserving American jobs. But sealing a fighter deal would be an important step in strengthening U.S.-India ties. That’s desirable because the two countries share both democratic values and a growing geopolitical concern about China.

Last year, President Obama declared India its first “Major Defense Partner,” the latest development in a defense relationship that grew steadily closer over the past two U.S. administrations. Selling them the F-16 would be another concrete demonstration of America’s commitment to this vital strategic relationship. And solidifying India’s role as a major defense partner will go a long way toward keeping that region of the world in balance.  

Performance and Cost

The original JAS 39 Gripen, designed by SAAB in the 1980s and initially fielded in the late 1990s, was a fourth-generation multirole fighter. The JAS 39E, which first flew in 2008, is a significantly improved version. The E-model boasts an Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar, a robust sensor package that includes Infrared Search and Track (IRST), and a processor that allows real-time data fusion. The jet reportedly costs $85 million a copy, roughly the same as the projected price tag for the stealth F-35A when it enters full-rate production.

The Gripen’s competition is Lockheed’s 4+-generation F-16 Block 70, a variant of the Block 60 developed for and sold to the UAE. Thanks to more than $3 billion in UAE-funded research and development, the new F-16 has a fiber-optic data bus that can handle a thousand times more information than its predecessor. With an estimated price tag of $55 million, the Block 70 also has an AESA radar, an internal IRST, and fuselage-hugging conformal fuel tanks that free up wing stations for more weapons.

Other factors that India will consider include cost per flight hour and the logistics for acquiring munitions and major subcomponents made outside the country. The Swedish-designed Gripen, for example, is powered by U.S.-made General Electric motors, and its munitions will come from both American and European suppliers. This makes the logistics a bit more complicated for SAAB’s candidate.

But the Gripen costs $4,700 per flight hour, far lower than the F-16’s $7,000 hourly rate. That may be enough to even out the initial price difference between the two competitors over time.

Both jets are solid performers and, like Gripen, Lockheed has offered to produce or even move the F-16 production line to India. In the end, the decision will likely come down to logistics and the military-to-military relationship—both factors that favor the F-16. But the production line move may become a sticking point in the U.S.

Producing the F-16 in India

Both the JAS 39 and the F-16 have already been either assembled or produced outside their countries of origin. But the impending closure of the F-16’s production line in Fort Worth complicates matters. 

The U.S. Air Force bought its last F-16 in 1997. Since then, the production line has been sustained solely by foreign military sales. Unfortunately, those sales have dwindled in the last several years due to global competition and a vacillating U.S. policy on foreign military sales.

Bahrain and Taiwan, which both operate the F-16, have petitioned the U.S. to allow them to buy more, but those sales were thwarted by the Obama administration. With no other purchase in the works, Lockheed Martin plans to shut down the line at year’s end.

Lockheed can’t win the contract unless President Trump, who won his election on a buy-American platform, allows F-16 production to move, at least in part, to India. But if the Trump administration blocks the move, New Delhi will likely buy the Gripen and the Fort Worth production line will close as scheduled — and that will dim the futures of some 450 American manufacturers and businesses that supply F-16 parts.

Maintaining F-16 production in India would help shore up those companies. Over time, some of those jobs may also shift from the United States to India, but the complexities of production and the sheer number of independent suppliers will leave room for negotiations and decision space on the best way for both countries to fulfill this deal.

Finally, New Delhi’s fighter decision will also affect the United States’ global security posture. A U.S. victory would bolster our bilateral alliance and improve India’s military capacity, capability, and interoperability with U.S. forces. This would help balance Chinese assertiveness without requiring a greater U.S. military footprint in the region.

This is a golden opportunity for the new administration. By approving this sale and allowing India to produce the F-16, President Trump would strengthen our global security posture, bolster our relationship with India, and save American jobs that would otherwise be lost if and when the last F-16 rolls off the line in Fort Worth.

X
This website uses cookies to enhance user experience and to analyze performance and traffic on our website. We also share information about your use of our site with our social media, advertising and analytics partners. Learn More / Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Accept Cookies
X
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Do Not Sell My Personal Information

When you visit our website, we store cookies on your browser to collect information. The information collected might relate to you, your preferences or your device, and is mostly used to make the site work as you expect it to and to provide a more personalized web experience. However, you can choose not to allow certain types of cookies, which may impact your experience of the site and the services we are able to offer. Click on the different category headings to find out more and change our default settings according to your preference. You cannot opt-out of our First Party Strictly Necessary Cookies as they are deployed in order to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting the cookie banner and remembering your settings, to log into your account, to redirect you when you log out, etc.). For more information about the First and Third Party Cookies used please follow this link.

Allow All Cookies

Manage Consent Preferences

Strictly Necessary Cookies - Always Active

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data, Targeting & Social Media Cookies

Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, you have the right to opt-out of the sale of your personal information to third parties. These cookies collect information for analytics and to personalize your experience with targeted ads. You may exercise your right to opt out of the sale of personal information by using this toggle switch. If you opt out we will not be able to offer you personalised ads and will not hand over your personal information to any third parties. Additionally, you may contact our legal department for further clarification about your rights as a California consumer by using this Exercise My Rights link

If you have enabled privacy controls on your browser (such as a plugin), we have to take that as a valid request to opt-out. Therefore we would not be able to track your activity through the web. This may affect our ability to personalize ads according to your preferences.

Targeting cookies may be set through our site by our advertising partners. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. They do not store directly personal information, but are based on uniquely identifying your browser and internet device. If you do not allow these cookies, you will experience less targeted advertising.

Social media cookies are set by a range of social media services that we have added to the site to enable you to share our content with your friends and networks. They are capable of tracking your browser across other sites and building up a profile of your interests. This may impact the content and messages you see on other websites you visit. If you do not allow these cookies you may not be able to use or see these sharing tools.

If you want to opt out of all of our lead reports and lists, please submit a privacy request at our Do Not Sell page.

Save Settings
Cookie Preferences Cookie List

Cookie List

A cookie is a small piece of data (text file) that a website – when visited by a user – asks your browser to store on your device in order to remember information about you, such as your language preference or login information. Those cookies are set by us and called first-party cookies. We also use third-party cookies – which are cookies from a domain different than the domain of the website you are visiting – for our advertising and marketing efforts. More specifically, we use cookies and other tracking technologies for the following purposes:

Strictly Necessary Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Functional Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Performance Cookies

We do not allow you to opt-out of our certain cookies, as they are necessary to ensure the proper functioning of our website (such as prompting our cookie banner and remembering your privacy choices) and/or to monitor site performance. These cookies are not used in a way that constitutes a “sale” of your data under the CCPA. You can set your browser to block or alert you about these cookies, but some parts of the site will not work as intended if you do so. You can usually find these settings in the Options or Preferences menu of your browser. Visit www.allaboutcookies.org to learn more.

Sale of Personal Data

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Social Media Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.

Targeting Cookies

We also use cookies to personalize your experience on our websites, including by determining the most relevant content and advertisements to show you, and to monitor site traffic and performance, so that we may improve our websites and your experience. You may opt out of our use of such cookies (and the associated “sale” of your Personal Information) by using this toggle switch. You will still see some advertising, regardless of your selection. Because we do not track you across different devices, browsers and GEMG properties, your selection will take effect only on this browser, this device and this website.