The US State Department has agreed on a deal worth $634.7m with the Government of Chile for modernisation upgrades to its F-16 fleet.
The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) delivered the required certification notifying Congress of the possible foreign military sale (FMS).
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Chile’s Government sought the purchase of equipment and services, including 19 Joint Helmet-Mounted Cueing Systems (JHMCS), six inert MK-82 (500LB) general-purpose bomb bodies, two MXU-650KB Air Foil Groups (AFG), 44 LN-260 Embedded GPS/INS (EGI), and 49 Multifunctional Information Distribution System Joint Tactical Radios (MIDS JTRS).
The sale also includes avionics and Mode 5 equipment and software upgrades, integration, and test, as well as software and software support.
In addition, ARC-238 Radios, Combined Altitude Radar Altimeters (CARA), Joint Mission Planning System (JMPS) support, and Identification Friend or Foe (IFF) AN/APX-126 Combined Interrogator Transponders will be provided.
The US will also deliver cryptographic appliques, keying equipment, and encryption devices, weapon system spares and support, bomb components, High-Bandwidth Compact Telemetry Modules (HCTMs), secure communications, aircraft displays, spare parts, publications, charts, and technical documentation, integration and test equipment, and F-16 based logistics.
Once delivered, the aircraft will service the Chilean Air Force and enhance its capability to meet current and future threats.
The proposed sale supports the foreign policy and national security of the US by improving the security of a strategic partner in South America.
Lockheed Martin in Bethesda, Maryland, will be the prime contractor for the sale programme.
In September 2018, the CAF received the first batch of three MH-60M Black Hawk helicopters at the Pudahuel Air Base in Santiago, Chile.
