Özgür project, as the name suggests is there to turn our F16s totally free from US control with respect to avionics and weapons. It also includes having our flight control computer installed in the planes. This way plane becomes
liberated.
It has been completed apart from the Aesa radar Aselsan has been developing. Aselsan had promised early last year that before the end of 2021, it would be in the air attached to a plane. But we have not heard about this happening since.
Since the program was ready to implement, all block-30 planes that have gone through structural upgrades are also being upgraded to Özgür status in terms of their avionics and cockpit electronics. All they need are the Aselsan’s new Aesa radar.
Although there is no concrete proof or document that can verify this, due to the FMS (Foreign Military Sales) conditions with which our ~270 f16s were purchased , they can not be touched for 30 years without the manufacturer’s consent. All block-30 planes are now out of this 30 year period. Some of the block-40 planes are also out of this time limit. Infact all block-40 planes will be out of this time limit by end of 2024. These are the planes we can apply Ozgur modernisation if above supposition is correct.
We have 79 block-50 planes which will be 30 years old by the end of 2029. We need to buy Kits for them from the manufacturer.
When we purchased f16’s under Peace Onyx 1, 2 and 3, we had 240 f16s and 54 Terminator 2020 phantoms. That is nearly a 300 plane inventory. Over the years we have lost many of the f16s and even though we bought 30 new block-50+ planes (now 29 left) there are only 237 or 238 of them left in the inventory. Operational f4s must be around 20. But they should have been retired at least 2 years ago.
Come 2028-29 these numbers can be even lower. So
we need new planes to make up the numbers even if we turn all our f16s in to Özgür status.
The only thing wrong about this project is the fact that it is taking too long to implement and it’s Aesa radar.
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