F-16 Modifications

F-16 Modifications is the Air Force's FY2027 procurement line for improving in-service tactical aircraft, within Aircraft Procurement, Air Force; Budget Activity 05, Modification of Inservice Aircraft; and Budget Sub Activity 2, Tactical Aircraft. The F-16 accounts for roughly 40% of the U.S. Air Force fighter fleet and performs counter-air, close air support, interdiction, and suppression or destruction of enemy air defenses. The planned fleet falls from 810 aircraft to 763 by the end of FY2027, including 161 pre-Block 30 and 602 post-Block aircraft. Although the two groups remain interoperable, their hardware, software, and training require some separate work. Modern computing and avionics are intended to keep the aircraft viable into the 2040s.

The FY2027 request chiefly expands the Integrated Viper Electronic Warfare Suite (IVEWS), while also increasing Service Life Extension Program (SLEP) and Communications Suite Upgrade (CSU) installations and accelerating Advanced Identification Friend or Foe (AIFF) Mode 5 purchases and installations. The line supports active and reserve components' homeland defense, domestic emergency response, and military support to civil authorities. It may also address diminishing manufacturing sources (DMS). Air Education and Training Command (AETC) maintenance training-device upgrades are budgeted in program element 0809731F; the other modifications described here are budgeted in 0207133F. The Air Force's wider F-16 program also sustains a foreign military sales community of 29 partners and growing.

MMC and Display Generator Upgrade increases Modular Mission Computer (MMC) throughput and memory and adds an Ethernet High Speed Data Network, including an Ethernet Switch Upgrade, to enable full Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar capability. Remote Interface Panels transfer loaded mission-planning data, while the upgraded Programmable Display Generator supports high-definition multifunction displays, controls, and improved formats during maneuvering. The program plans 603 MMC and 603 display-generator installations; FY2027 includes 124 combined Group A installations, advanced processing cards, and Remote Interface Panel equipment. MMC field installations began in October 2024. Display-generator fielding is expected to begin in April 2027, when its Milestone C recommendation is now scheduled alongside operational flight program M8.2.

F-16 Legacy Structural SLEP repairs or replaces life-limiting Block 40/42/50/52 components identified through full-scale durability testing, extending structural service life beyond 8,000 equivalent flying hours. Without those repairs, structural degradation would continue. Already in full-rate production, the depot-level effort covers 350 aircraft, including four research-and-development installations, and is scheduled through 2038. FY2027 supports 19 installations and additional kits. Work occurs at the Ogden Air Logistics Complex (OO-ALC), in Pacific Air Forces, and in U.S. Air Forces in Europe; greater use of OO-ALC raises the installation-cost basis from FY2027 onward.

Comm Suite Upgrade addresses cryptographic modernization and multiple communications requirements, including Mobile User Objective System satellite communications, NATO SATURN radio, secure voice, and updated cockpit controls. Its derived three-dimensional audio capability reduces electronic noise and spatially separates channels and threat cues so pilots can process more information. The program covers 602 post-Block C/D aircraft and 123 Block 30 C-models, with separately funded Air National Guard kits contributing to post-Block audio coverage. Block 30 fielding began in 2023 and Block 40C and 50C fielding in January 2026; D-model fielding is scheduled later. FY2027 supports 129 communications-suite installations, alongside flight testing and technical-data updates as required.

AIFF Mode 5 upgrades the combined interrogator-transponder system to satisfy National Security Agency Mode 5 and cryptographic-modernization mandates. Using developed APX-125/APX-126 hardware, software, and firmware for integration into the APX-127(V)1, it supports positive identification for air traffic reporting and combat targeting while helping prevent fratricide. The effort covers the remaining 172 Block 40/42 aircraft. Following planned 2026 operational testing, certification, and production decisions, FY2027 funds additional equipment purchases and begins depot installations on 40 aircraft.

M-Code is a FY2027 new start for all 602 post-Block F-16s. It upgrades position, navigation, and timing to mandated M-Code capability, addressing diminishing-source shortfalls in the existing Embedded GPS/Inertial Navigation System and supporting resilient weapons and mission systems. The Air Force identifies this upgrade as necessary for broader computing and communications modernization. FY2027 begins aircraft integration, asset purchases, and testing; flight test is planned for March 2028, followed by Milestone C and full-rate production decisions later that year.

Secure Mission Data Systems replaces unsupportable Advanced Data Transfer Equipment and digital video recorders whose memory, processing, and Ethernet interfaces cannot meet growing mission demands. Its Secure Mission Data Unit, Ground Encryption Device, and removable storage devices provide protected data handling and host Auto Ground Collision Avoidance System algorithms. A digital standby attitude indicator helps pilots recover from an Embedded GPS/Inertial Navigation System failure. Development is complete, with full-rate production planned for late FY2026. For the 602 post-Block aircraft, FY2027 supports 80 depot installations and additional system kits.

IVEWS provides an internal digital radar warning receiver and active jamming suite designed to operate alongside AESA radar and accommodate later capabilities such as a fiber-optic towed decoy and adaptive processing. Its modern data-transfer and storage needs make it dependent on Secure Mission Data Systems. After concluding a rapid-prototyping effort in September 2024 and moving through science-and-technology work, it is planned to transition to an Acquisition Category II program in FY2026. FY2026 mandatory reconciliation funding supports an initial six purchases and later installations. FY2027 procures Group A/B, ALQ-213, and Big Iron kits for 48 aircraft, within a planned 206 production installations, and supports qualification, kit-proof, and software-testing milestones.

Center Display Unit replaces aging analog cockpit instruments with a high-resolution, split-screen display for navigation, targeting, radar, and mapping. It is a prerequisite for presenting full AESA radar and high-resolution targeting-pod capability to pilots. The remaining-aircraft effort covers 179 post-Block F-16s and 280 display kits because some two-seat aircraft require two; previously purchased units came through AESA and Air National Guard funding. FY2027 supports 51 depot installations and purchases that include a Windows 11-compliant situational-display component. Related bezel-display and high-speed-network upgrades provide digital video connectivity, while a power-unit DMS update is planned for future years.

Helmet Mounted Integrated Targeting fields the Scorpion system so pilots can acquire and designate off-boresight air and ground targets by day or with night-vision goggles, display mission data, and transmit target locations over the aircraft data link. Integration with targeting pods and linked information is intended to improve combat and nontraditional intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capability while reducing pilot exposure to threats. Post-Block fielding began in June 2024; the system is already fully fielded on the pre-Block Air National Guard fleet. FY2027 supports 113 installations, commonly bundled with CSU work, and additional kits toward the 462-aircraft effort.

Radio Frequency Capability uses a Sensor Integration Unit (SIU) to replace F-16 analog blanking equipment and establish an Ethernet deconfliction network between AESA radar and critical electronic-warfare sensors. It also supports sensor modeling and can host a Sensor Integration Environment operational flight program. FY2027 purchases SIU equipment for 32 of the 179 post-Block aircraft covered by this line; the remaining post-Block fleet receives the capability under the AESA program. Kit proof was completed in September 2025, with flight testing addressing three aircraft configurations. Development work is funded separately through research and development.

MIDS-JTRS replaces Link 16 Low Volume Terminals with four-channel Multi-functional Information Distribution System Joint Tactical Radio System terminals. The change meets cryptographic-security and frequency-remapping mandates, avoids conflict with future Federal Aviation Administration navigation aids, and offers greater bandwidth, lower latency, and capacity for additional waveforms. The program spans 744 planned installations across pre- and post-Block aircraft. FY2027 supports seven remaining pre-Block installations, the BU3 terminal upgrade effort, testing, engineering support, and technical-data work; Federal Aviation Administration Stage 4 certification is expected in January 2027.

AESA Radars replaces mechanically scanned AN/APG-68 radars to improve air-to-air performance, reliability, and maintainability across F-16 blocks. A 2015 Joint Emergent Operational Need led to 72 radars being fielded by March 2022; Phase III adds full Ethernet-enabled capability for 384 more aircraft. FY2027 supports 77 radar installations and purchases of associated SIUs, Ethernet switches, Remote Interface Panels, and radome shrouds. These components complement center displays and high-speed data networks: the SIU deconflicts radar, warning, and countermeasure signals so advanced radio-frequency systems do not impair one another. Further radar software development toward full capability remains under research and development.

AETC Maintenance Training Device Upgrades keep F-16 maintenance simulators aligned with capabilities available across aircraft blocks, allowing training on current Fighting Falcon configurations. The aggregated modification account also carries a small FY2027 F-16 training-systems activity and a residual Auto Ground Collision Avoidance System entry. Together, the aircraft, supporting interfaces, and training devices form a coordinated effort rather than a single equipment replacement: some modifications supply capabilities that others require, while installation schedules extend beyond FY2027.