Türkiye imposes its conditions… Aselsan radars and local missiles on F-16 Block 70/72 fighters

Arab Defense Website – November 8, 2025: Turkey is moving forward with its efforts to introduce 40 modern F-16 Block 70 fighters – also known as “Viper” – into its air force fleet, while at the same time seeking to integrate locally made radars and electronic systems, and to obtain access to parts of the fighter’s source code. According to the agency BloombergTurkish officials are preparing to hold a new round of discussions with the American company Lockheed Martin to resolve the existing differences that led to delaying the completion of the deal.

Although the US Congress approved the deal last February, Washington has so far rejected Turkey’s request to integrate local systems and obtain the source code, which prevented the signing of the final agreement. According to the report, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan raised this issue directly with US President Donald Trump during a meeting held in September.

It should be noted that the F-16 fighter, which first flew in 1976, is still witnessing continuous development through new versions, as the Block 70 version represents the latest model, equipped with advanced digital Avionics and a high-tech AESA APG-83 radar.

According to the estimate of retired Air Force Lieutenant General Erdogan Karakoş, Turkey aims to integrate its local defense systems and products into the F-16 Block 70 fighters that it seeks to acquire. Karakosh explained that the deal package includes 40 new F-16 Block 70 fighters, in addition to 79 development packages for existing aircraft, spare engines and various ammunition, with a total cost estimate of about 23 billion dollars. He pointed out that Türkiye is seeking to adopt its own systems in these fighters to reduce the cost and ensure data security.

According to his statements, the deal includes equipping the Turkish squadrons with APG-83 AESA radars, AIM-120C8 AMRAAM and Sidewinder AIM-9 air-to-air missiles, GBU-39 bunker-busting bombs, in addition to AGM-88 anti-radiation missiles. Karakush confirmed that the value of the weapon systems alone is estimated at between 7 and 8 billion dollars, noting that Türkiye had previously paid 300 million dollars for only 100 AMRAAM missiles. He added that the cost of one Sidewinder missile exceeds one million dollars, while the price of the anti-radiation missile reaches more than four million dollars, which reinforces the need to use local munitions to reduce expenses.

In this context, Turkey is seeking to use the locally developed Gokdogan and Bozdogan missiles within the Goktog project, after passing the testing stages, in addition to seeking to replace the American radar with the MURAD AESA radar produced by the Aselsan company. Karakoş explained that this approach is not only aimed at saving costs, but is also linked to national security considerations, as Turkey wants to have full control over radar and electronic warfare systems to prevent any attempt at external interference or disruption. He also pointed to the Air Force’s desire to carry out modernization operations inside Turkey and with Turkish expertise, which may reduce the total cost of the deal from $23 billion to only about $12-13 billion, according to his estimate.

The article Türkiye imposes its conditions… Aselsan radars and local missiles on F-16 Block 70/72 fighters appeared first on the Arab Defense website.

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