Dutch bid farewell to F‑16s, send jets to Ukraine for new duty
The Dutch Ministry of Defence has published footage of the last flight of eight F-16AM/BM aircraft over the Netherlands. This article presents the performance of these aircraft, which will spend their "retirement" in Ukraine.
On September 27, 2024, the Netherlands officially bid farewell to the F-16 as the guardians of their skies, with the conclusion of 45 years of service marked by the formation flight of eight aircraft over the Netherlands.
However, this is not the end of the story for these machines, which will undergo modifications and then be sent to Ukraine, where they will spend their "retirement" hunting Russian aircraft. Meanwhile, Dutch airspace is already guarded by F-35 aircraft, which recently also received certification for carrying nuclear weapons.
F-16AM/BM — relics of the Cold War that will move to Ukraine
The Netherlands became a user of F-16 aircraft on June 6, 1979, when the first aircraft arrived at Leeuwarden Air Base. The Netherlands ordered the aircraft in the F-16A/B versions, where A represented the single-seat variant and B the two-seat variant. Over the years, these machines protected the airspace of the Netherlands and other NATO countries. Unfortunately, as is always the case, there were accidents, and for the Netherlands, this meant 45 incidents. These led to the irrecoverable loss of 15 F-16 aircraft (some damaged machines were successfully repaired, hence the low number).
There will be 44 accidents with these types of fighter aircraft. Some machines were still refurbished, but 36 turned out to be total losses. In total, the Air Force lost 15 F-16 aircraft in 45 accidents and disasters.
It is worth noting that during their service in the 1990s, the aircraft received the Mid-Life Update (MLU) modernization package. This included mainly the integration of F-16 aircraft with AIM-120 AMRAAM missiles with a range of around 100 km, depending on the version, and the installation of a new radar allowing for their effective use. Such machines were then designated as F-16A/B MLU or F-16AM/BM.
However, this standard does not meet the requirements of the modern battlefield, so the aircraft are being further modified before delivery to Ukraine, and it is likely that some equipment reserved exclusively for NATO countries is being removed. It is unlikely that the aircraft will be sent to Ukraine with, for example, the NATO Identification Friend or Foe system.
Regarding weaponry, there have been reports of the integration of French AASM Hammer guided bombs with the F-16 aircraft, and aircraft in Ukraine have been spotted with AN/ASQ-213 HTS targeting pods. These allow the full potential of such weapons as AGM-88 HARM anti-radar missiles or JDAM-ER or Paveway bombs to be utilized. As a result, the Ukrainians will receive a hybrid with performance between the F-16C/D Block 52+ and the A-16A/B MLU.
