Pentagon announce $1 billion F-16’s AESA radars order

Pentagon announced that Northrop Grumman has been awarded a $1 billion U.S. Air Force contract modification for development and production of up to 372 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) Fire Control Radars for F-16 fighter aircraft.

The deal covers the acquisition of multi-mission radars that integrates within the F-16’s current structural, power and cooling constraints without aircraft modification. The capabilities of this advanced AESA are derived from Northrop Grumman’s family of highly successful 5th generation fighter AESA radars, the F-22’s APG-77 and F-35’s APG-81.

Work will be performed at Linthicum Heights, Maryland, and is expected to be completed by May 2027.  The total cumulative face value of the contract is $291,167,746.

The defense giant was originally selected by the Air Force for an F-16 radar upgrade in 2017, with the Pentagon dolling out $243.8 million for 72 radars, spare parts and support services.

Northrop Grumman’s AESA radar, known as the ‘AN/APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR)’, can be mounted aboard various fighter aircraft, and its capabilities are said to be derived from the defense giant’s series of 5th gen AESA radars for the F-22 and the F-35.

Production is underway for global F-16 upgrade and new aircraft production programs, as well as for the United States Air National Guard. Northrop Grumman has also successfully installed a production APG-83 SABR on a U.S. Marine Corps F/A-18C Hornet at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California.

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