USAF F-16 upgrades in detail

Even before delays dogged

the F-35 programme, the
US Air Force had recognised
a need to standardise and
extend the service life of its
vast F-16 fleet. Today, it is a
surprisingly aged fleet that
needs constant care and
attention.
report: Jamie Hunter

nce envied the world

over for its cutting-edge
fighter force, the modernday US Air Force is facing
a situation to which it is
unaccustomed. Its huge F-16
fleet has for the past 30 years provided the
backbone of its combat air force. Most of these
aircraft were acquired in the 1980s, with only
a handful of new F-16s being delivered post1992, even though the production line remains
open to service foreign sales to this day. The
previously youthful USAF Viper fleet, once
barely averaging low-teen years, is now looking
decidedly decrepit.
Despite repeated calls from such as the Air
National Guard for a top-up buy of new Block
60 F-16s, the US Air Force has acquired only

a handful of new fighters since the 1990s,

causing the fleets average age steadily to creep
up. The original F-16A/B models are long
retired, only the later variants from Block 30
onwards being retained. Furthermore, the
1980s strength of approximately 36 fighter
wing equivalents has steadily decreased, the
Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) of 2010
having settled upon a requirement for 16
to 17 fighter wing equivalents. Despite this,
aircraft have been retired to the boneyard at an
astonishing rate, without replacement. This has
resulted in the once-envied Block 40/42/50/52
F-16s becoming the workhorses of the active
Air Force.
Recognising a long-term requirement to
keep its late-model F-16C/Ds operationally
viable until ultimate replacement by the F-35,

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The CCIP upgrade effort has transformed the F-16CJ/

DJ into a true multi-role platform. Jamie Hunter

and with the need for a common approach to

these disparate airframes, the USAF launched
a $2-billion upgrade effort in 2000 known as
the Common Configuration Implementation
Program (CCIP), to provide common hardware
and software capabilities across its remaining
core-fleet F-16C/D Block 40/42/50/52s. CCIP
(pronounced C-sip) is a stepped programme
that initially aimed to bring these aircraft up to
a broadly similar standard to afford maximum
versatility, before embracing a rolling series of
joint upgrades in order to retain potency.
As with many of todays upgrade projects,
these rolling updates have introduced such
new kit as the Link 16 (JTIDS) datalink, Joint
Helmet-Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS),
AIM-9X Sidewinder and various pilot/vehicle
interface improvements.

Tackling CCIP

CCIP was initiated with the Block 50/52

F-16CJs used in the suppression of enemy
air defences (SEAD) role, in recognition
of the narrow focus of these jets mission.
Therefore, CCIP initially set about turning
the CJ into a multi-role aircraft with the
addition of a targeting pod and GPS-guided
weapons.
In July 2001, Lockheed Martin delivered
the first eight kits to the USAF in order to
start modifying aircraft attached to the 20th
Fighter Wing at Shaw AFB, South Carolina.
The Shaw-based squadrons began to receive
their first CCIP Block 52 F-16C/Ds in January
2002. However, the start to CCIP was already
somewhat disjointed, with production
phases ramping up before new technology

was fully ready, this due to a drive to meet

combat operations requirements.
The initial impetus was concerned with
integrating the hardware into the aircraft. Less
invasive software refinements would follow.
Therefore, the first phase added a new Modular
Mission Computer, colour cockpit displays,
and the AN/APX-113 advanced IFF that
provided the ability to autonomously identify
targets and offer significantly improved BVR
(beyond visual range) missile engagement
with the AIM-120 AMRAAM. This early
configuration also marked an initial foray into
the coveted expanded multi-role environment,
with software permitting the type to employ
either the existing AN/ASQ213 HARM
Targeting System (HTS) pod or an alternative
targeting pod on the right inlet chin station,

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Clockwise from right: This F-16C from the 31st FW

at Aviano AB, Italy, carries the new GBU-54 Laser
JDAM on dual ejector rails. USAF
The General Electric F110-GE-100-powered Block
40 F-16CG featured enhanced night/all-weather
capabilities. The CCIP upgrade introduced new
weapons such as the 500lb GBU-38 Joint Direct
Attack Munition (JDAM). USAF
The South Carolina ANG Swamp Foxes operate
the F-16CJ, now known as the CM, and deploy
regularly on combat operations. USAF
The M4.2 software drop allowed the Block 40/42
F-16 to carry the ASQ-213 HARM Targeting
System (HTS), pictured here on the left chin
station. Jamie Hunter

permitting employment of laser-guided bombs.

(The Block 50/52 F-16CJ was already capable
of employing GPS-guided weapons through a
software upgrade introduced in 2000.)
The M2 OFP (Operational Flight Program)
was fielded in July 2003 and introduced Link
16 and JHMCS key upgrade elements for the
USAF at that time. These first two phases of
CCIP were essentially conducted in two main
batches of aircraft, early-standard modified
aircraft having to be re-inducted into the Air
Logistics Complex (ALC) depot at Ogden, Hill
AFB, Utah, in order for the later systems to be
installed.
Hardware modifications were carried out
on 254 Block 50/52s between September
2001 and May 2006, the focus having turned
towards the Block 40/42 fighters from 2005.
The M3 OFP was the first phase for the Block
40/42s, introducing the use of GPS weapons,
JHMCS and Link 16.
Unlike the Block 50/52 modification plan, all
Block 40/42 aircraft had the entire modification
done in a single visit to the Ogden ALC. While
the aircraft was undergoing the CCIP work,
the Falcon STAR (Structural Augmentation
Roadmap) modification was also completed.
Combining these two large-scale modifications
into a single 144-day modification plan
decreased total time in the depot by roughly
45 days. Some 306 Block 40/42 aircraft from

12 different Air Force and Air National Guard

bases were ultimately completed there.
Lockheed Martin and the USAF finished the
main hardware modifications associated with
CCIP on 26 March 2010.

Common people

Post-CCIP F-16s are of a very similar standard,

regardless of Block. Avionics maintainers now
attend a common school, negating the need
for two separate training programmes. These
technicians can also easily move between
Blocks, thereby removing the need to re-train
personnel each time they are re-assigned to a
new base. Logistically, there is no longer a need
to provide two sets of spares. Costs associated
with the off-aircraft repair of components from
multiple systems are significantly reduced.
MSgt Ronald Fischer from the 310th Aircraft
Maintenance Unit at Luke AFB, Arizona,
commented: Not only does it enhance the
Falcons lethality and survivability, it also
makes the F-16 more affordable to maintain
because of the common avionics hardware and
software.
Speaking of the M3 operational test phase,
USAF pilot Maj Don Butler of the 422nd
Test and Evaluation Squadron noted: When
I first started flying the F-16, [it] had a radar
and gun. That early version could launch
AIM-9 missiles and drop some dumb bombs.

The newer weapons come with a whole set

of options. The JDAM, for example, can be
programed just before release to strike a target
at a defined axis, azimuth, angle and speed.
In the old days, we just pickled off a bomb
and waited for it to hit the ground. Today, if a
smart weapon misses its target, the problem
could reside with the weapon, the software,
the interface between the weapon and the
airplane, an input error, or a combination of
those factors.
Link 16 reduces some of the pilot
workload by automating several functions.
Colour displays help a great deal as well.
With the helmet-mounted cueing system,
pilots dont have to look down into a cockpit
display to find a target. They can look out
of the cockpit and see the targeting symbol
overlaid on the ground. The new systems
make an average pilot a lot better. The best
guys in a squadron instinctively know how
to locate a target from information displayed
in the cockpit. They can translate cockpit
displays into situational awareness fast. The
helmet-mounted cueing system displays the
target in the pilots field of view. The system
makes it easier to build a mental picture
of surroundings. In fact, it isnt a mental
picture. The system builds an actual picture
and displays a targeting solution on a visor
right before our eyes.

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A versatile platform

Once the initial hardware integration was

complete, upgrades were more straightforward,
carried out either at depot or unit level often
the latter. From the M4 tape onwards, the
programme became more of a joint progression
for the four Blocks. Integration of the new
Raytheon AIM-9X Sidewinder, a wider range
of JDAM options and a pylon-integrated
GPS weapon dispenser system capability all
followed. The M4+ standard software also gave
CCIP F-16 pilots the ability to use the AIM-9X
in co-operation with the JHMCS helmet. The
F-16 Combined Test Force (CTF) at Edwards
AFB, California, completed the first AIM-9X
launch from an F-16 on 9 April 2004, over the
NAWS China Lake weapons ranges.
M4.1A+ was significant in that it brought
new functionality for the Block 40/42s Link
16 datalink, and more importantly it added the
new GBU-38 500lb JDAM and the AN/AAQ-33
Sniper Advanced Targeting Pod. The primary
focus of this phase of the upgrade was the airto-ground mission and it also included the new
secure line-of-sight AN/ARC-210 radios.
For the Block 50/52, the M4.2+ phase was
something of a watershed. Although seemingly
benign in designation, this software drop
permitted dual carriage of the AN/ASQ-213
HTS and either the Sniper or Litening targeting
pods on chin stations on either side of the

intake. Alternate carriage of either of the pods

on the right chin pylon was the initial fix
earlier in the project, but dual carriage was
the ultimate goal, with the HTS pod switched
to the left chin station and the targeting pod
on the right. Block 40/42s also adopted this
configuration, thus transforming them from
their bomb truck origins to become effective
HARM-shooters as well if the need arose.
M4.2+ had been introduced fleet-wide on the
Block 50/52s by June 2008. It was also at this
juncture that the new (unofficial) F-16CM
designation emerged.
M5+ emerged as a streamlining drop to
improve interoperability with improved
satellite navigation, improved weapons
integration, updated communications and
mission planning capabilities. And so the
rolling evolutions continued.
M6 began in 2012 and is tailored around
Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) integration. The
416th Flight Test Squadron from Edwards AFB
participated in Red Flag 12-2 at Nellis AFB
from 23 January to 4 February 2012 to test the
M6.1+ OFP. This essentially integrates both
the AIM-120D AMRAAM and GBU-39 Small
Diameter Bomb (SDB) and was released to Air
Combat Command for fielding in December
2012. M6 also includes the GBU-54 Laser
JDAM with the new Universal Armament
Interface (UAI), updates to the embedded GPS/

INS navigation system, and integrates the latest

standard of targeting pods.
M7 is now spooling up and will be the first
OFP to be organically developed by the USAF
and Ogden. It is also the first OFP developed
concurrently by the development test and
operational test communities, run principally
from Eglin AFB, Florida. Scheduled for
release in April 2016, M7 capabilities include
AIM-9X Block II, the AN/ALQ-213 Electronic
Warfare Management System in the Block
42, improvements to the embedded GPS/INS
navigation system and updates to the existing

Not only does

CCIP enhance the
Falcons lethality and
survivability, it also
makes the F-16 more
affordable to maintain
because of the common
avionics hardware and
software
MSgt Ronald Fischer, 310th AMU
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Block 52 and 42 Vipers from the 422nd

Test and Evaluation Squadron prepare for
a test mission to put the M5+ OFP upgrade
through its paces. Jamie Hunter

The Northrop Grumman Scalable Agile Beam

Radar (SABR) first flew on an F-16 at Edwards
in January 2010. Northrop Grumman

When I first started flying the F-16, [it] had a

radar and gun. That early version could launch
AIM-9 missiles and drop some dumb bombs.
The newer weapons come with a whole set of
options
Maj Don Butler, 422nd TES

44 www.combataircraft.net

CCIP turned the Block

40 Viper into a true
multi-role platform,
able to undertake the
SEAD mission using the
HTS (HARM Targeting
System) pod, seen
here on the port chin
station. Jamie Hunter

The Joint HelmetMounted Cueing

System (JHMCS) is now
standard across the
USAF F-16 fleet. This
was introduced as part
of the CCIP effort. USAF

radars. the M8 OFP is currently planned for

release in March 2019. Significantly, it will
incorporate the combat
ombat A
Avionics Programmed
extension Suite (cAPeS).

BLOCK 30
The Air National Guard and Air Force Reserve
Command have also been busy implementing
upgrades on 113 F-16C/D Block 25 and 319
F-16C/D Block 30/32 models under the SCU-7
System Capability Upgrade. SCU-7 includes
helmet-mounted integrated targeting (HMIT),
a lower-cost day/night solution compared to
JHMCS; multi-frequency radio and a beyondline-of-sight satcom system; full-colour displays
and a moving map; and improvements to the
Litening and Sniper Advanced Targeting Pods.
Further software enhancements are planned
under SCU-7.1 and SCU-8 programmes. SCU-8
will add JHMCS. Furthermore, SCU-8 will improve
the multi-function display (MFD) to show the full
resolution of an Advanced Targeting Pod and will
also add the Small Diameter Bomb (SDB).

CAPES radar upgrade

the F-16 combat Avionics Programmed

extension Suite (cAPeS) effort will see
Lockheed Martin providing the radar as
contractor Furnished equipment
quipment to the USAF
USAF.
iit will therefore conduct a source selection to
choose the most suitable system. the USAF
plans to update 300 F-16s with the new active
electronically scanned array (A
(AeSA) radar
radar,
centre display unit (cdU)
U) cockpit display
display,
An/ALQ-213 electronic
lectronic W
Warfare Management
System, the integrated Broadcast System and
new cockpit avionics integration. An initial
24 upgraded fighters are due to be declared
operational no later than the end of 2018.
the
he long-running F-16 active A
AeSA radar
project for the USAF pits the Raytheon
Advanced combat Radar (RAcR), which has
completed a series of test flights on an F-16c
c at
edwards AFB, against the northrop Grumman
Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR), which first
flew on an F-16 at edwards in January 2010.
Lockheed Martin is conducting the source
selection, with an anticipated radar selection
date of late summer 2013.
Both Northrop Grumman and Raytheon
are offering new CDU pedestal displays for
the Block 40/42/50/52 fleet. Raytheon

Both northrop Grumman and Raytheon are

also offering new cdU pedestal displays. the
6 8in displays will allow the F-16 pilot better
to utilise the A
AeSA radar and feature fullcolour technology to interleave ground and
air-to-air modes. Raytheon has already won
a contract to commence work related to the
upgrade of the cdUs of Air national Guard
and Air Force Reserve command F-16s. the
initial contract value is $3.1 million for system
integration and pre-production units. the new
Raytheon cdU replaces existing displays with
a single, large Lcd colour display
display.

Structure

As well as technological enhancements,

current efforts recognise the significance of
keeping F-16s in the air and keeping them safe.
A smaller fleet means that utilisation increases.
the F-16 System Program Office (SPO) is
working towards a goal of adding 4,000 more
flight hours to each airframe. Full-Scale
durability t
test (FSdt), a contract for which
was awarded in April 2011 and is estimated
as taking 56 months to complete, is the first
of three major phases making up a major new
Service Life extension Program (SLeP).
the FSdt
dt airframe has been installed in a
newly-constructed test rig and test cycling
began on 13 december 2012. As the airframe
undergoes extensive durability testing, the
total hourly extension of SLeP will become
clearer. the full scope of the upgrades will
not be known until the completion of FSdt
and receipt of data from an engineering,
Manufacturing and development (eMd
M )
Md
phase. Recently, the US Air Force released
a request for proposals for Phase ii of SLeP,
P
P,
which relates to the eMd
M phase. Phase iii will
Md
take in production and modification, which
is estimated to begin with an award of initial
procurement in Fiscal Year 2017, after which
installation of the first modification kit on an
F-16 will occur some time in FY 2018.
Acknowledgments: The author wishes to
thank Lt Col Dale White, F-16 Chief, EPAF
Capabilities Branch at Wright-Patterson
AFB, Ohio, and Jay Topick, F-16 Legacy
Service Life Extension Programme
Manager at Hill AFB, Utah. Thanks also to
Richard Essary, Hill AFB Public Affairs.