Dude, retro-chic is all the rave in airforces these days. It’s kinda like 80’s music being fashionable over the last couple of years.

First the Brazilians introduce a prop fighter in form of the Super Tucano, and now the Pakistani’s introduce glider fighters.

Next the USAF will introduce AMRAAM armed hot air balloons, after they cancel the horrifically overpriced F-22 and the overweight F-35 Aardpiglet.

Atleast it will be able to take down the LCA gliding anytime :rolleyes:

“Scaled down” version, thats the only info out there i think. Anyone else ?

Two things – The F-16 sale will not be halted.

Secondly, Gary Ackerman is an elected representative and not a lobbyist. He is a member of the Congressional India Caucus. He might likely introduce a bill next week and it will probably hit the floor of the house as an amendment to some other bill and will be quietly defeated because the Bush administration has already got the buy in of majority Republican leaders.

Ackerman and others know this but the bill will be brought to the floor to set a precedent and put the issue on record, in case it is necessary at a later date. Most likely some kind of language would be added to say – “WE don’t object to the F-16s provided the President can certify that Pakistan is cooperating in the war on terror and is not involved in nuclear proliferation and that the F-16s are not used for aggression.”

People forget that when Congress passed the infamous Pressler Amendment, it was in 1985 and it was intended to continue aid to Pakistan but with strings. In 1985, US could not give aid to a nation that was simply developing nuclear fuel but Pressler’s legislation changed that to say aid can be given as long as weapon is not manufactured. The law was used six years later.

For now, the F-16s are a done deal.

Talking about nucleair proliferation again, it seems everyone is doing it nowadays.

U.S. reveals Pakistan and India bought banned parts

New York Times
Apr. 9, 2005 12:00 AM

WASHINGTON – Federal prosecutors investigating the smuggling of nuclear technology disclosed Friday that a South African businessman has pleaded guilty to arranging illegal exports of American-made equipment both to Pakistan and its regional rival, India.

Asher Karni, an Israeli who lives in South Africa, entered the guilty plea in September and has been cooperating with investigators, prosecutors said. The prosecutors kept the proceeding secret until Friday, however, when they unsealed the plea agreement and charges they have brought against Humayun Khan, an Islamabad businessman with longstanding ties to Pakistan’s military. Khan is said to be Karni’s partner.

As part of Karni’s plea agreement, he acknowledged that he also was involved in 2002 in selling sophisticated electronic equipment to government agencies in India, some of which are involved in nuclear-weapons and missile research. It is not clear whether the goods he sold were useful for actually making nuclear weapons.

http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0409nuke-smuggle09.html

from CDF, An Arrestor hook :confused:

Hmm wasn’t Golden Arrow the first non Pakistani guy to say that pakistan was getting F-16s with his Congress sources….. 🙂

Or he just got his Intel from the “hundred” other pakistanis shouting that at pakdef and here.

MA,

I asked a specific question – What are the possible reasons for a larger intake at this late stage and could an engine change be the reason. If you want to avoid that question, fine. Different engines require different intakes and it is one good reason I feel.

Boota came in and said some BS instead of answering the question.

as i said the guy who said that the intakes were going to be changed a bit, also mentioned it was being done to get better performance at M>1.5 :confused: . If it was just another engine, they wanted to a bigger/lesser inflow they didnt need to change the shape if its good.

The problem is, while Pakistan is ATTEMPTING to do this, India HAS ALREADY BEEN DOING THIS for last two decades. Your nationalism has blinded your minds, you fail to see how quickly the world has moved forward leaving you behind.

You should have started with such attempts back in early eighties, today you might have been harvesting first fruits of such effort. But yes, ‘security’ was more important.

what has indian already been doing ? They cant even make up their minds about buying some planes. Now the F-16 sales are cleared they are in a hurry to buy 12 mirages from UAE ? Devlopment of LCA is just as far as the development of the Jf-17. But the induction of the Jf-17 will be much sooner. Seems to me that pakistan gets things done quicker. Till now they didnt have any choice for buying a BVR platform (expensive, sanctions) unlike India who got supplied buy its “allies”.

Nationalism seems to have blinded both sides. So people lets just move on. Instead of exchanging ” our views” focus on reality (indian aswell as pakistanis).

I wonder how you gonna back this BS up… F-16 Block 52 is a totally average fighter aircraft in today’s world, light years away from any quantum leap in capabilities.

Get a life, buddy…

well for pakistan it will be some kind of a leap , a leap into the BVR world. But indeed lets keep it to the news and let land the birds first, nothing is sure till then.