Romanian Army Upgrades Air Forces
The south-eastern Romanian town of Fetesti Friday hosted a ceremony occasioned by the arrival of the first F-16 planes purchased by the Romanian army.
Roxana Vasile, 07.10.2016, 13:33
The Romanian Air Forces have just been strengthened, with the purchase of 12 multirole F-16 Fighting Falcon planes from Portugal, under a 628 million-euro contract. A first squadron of 6 aircraft marked with Romanias national colours landed in the country last week, after having been officially taken over in a ceremony held at the Portuguese air base in Monte Real. Three more fighter jets are scheduled to arrive in December, and the last 3 next year.
The aircraft will be based in Fetesti, south-eastern Romania, and in Campia Turzii, in the centre, with the two air bases revamped specifically in order to receive the jets. Produced between 1981 and 1983, the F-16s have undergone successive upgrade programmes to reach the current stage, termed F-16 Mid-Life Update M52. The remaining service time is on average 4.500 flight hours, that is, more than half of the airplane lifespan. At a rate of about 200 flight hours per year, the planes are expected to be operational for the next 20 years.
So far 80 Romanian troops have completed an F-16 training programme at the Monte Real air base. They are thrilled with the performance of the aircraft, which they describe as “the most successful in the world in its category, and able to accomplish any mission.
In turn, the Romanian Defence Minister Mihnea Motoc says the purchase of these fighter jets means that Romania has joined the “F-16 club and that this may be a new beginning for the Romanian pilot school, one of the oldest in the world, to contribute once again to the training of elite pilots. The 12 multirole fighters in the Romanian-Portuguese contract are also a first step in building a robust air capacity in the region.
At present, Romanias air space is protected by Soviet-made MiG-21 LanceR supersonic aircraft, modernised in a partnership with an Israeli company since 1995. The third-generation MiGs, whose lifespan ends in 2017, will be replaced with the fourth-generation F-16s. The Romanian Air Forces are also equipped with domestically-built IAR-99 Soim and Iak-52 subsonic training aircraft, with C-27J Spartan transport aircraft of Italian production and American C-130 Hercules planes.
The Romanian Army also uses IAR-316 Alouette helicopters and IAR-330 Puma helicopters, with their modernised version, IAR-330 Puma SOCAT. All of them are produced domestically under French license. The Romanian Air Forces equipment also includes AN-30 planes, produced in the former USSR, and used for aerial photography and cartography.
(Translated by A.M. Popescu)
