Tusas Aerospace Industries to upgrade Pakistani F-16s

Turkish Defense Minister Vecdi Gonul was in Pakistan attending the IDEAS 2006 Defense Industry Fair

Pakistan Considers purchase of F-16 fighter jets:

Islamabad, Jan 21, SPA -- The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) is
considering buying a mix of new and used F-16 fighter jets, says Chief of
Air Staff Air Chief Marshal Kaleem Saadat.
Addressing members of the English-speaking Union of Pakistan (EUP), he
highlighted the PAF's high deterrence value and said Pakistan was fully
capable of defending itself hoping that there would be no war.
Air Chief Marshal Saadat said that maintaining a strong and credible defense was expensive, and added that the PAF needed hardware worth $3-4 billion to maintain a minimum deterrence capability.
The PAF chief said that various versions of F-16s were available to PAF from
the United States.
"We are also considering buying used F-16s from elsewhere. However, we will prefer a mix of new and old F-16s fighter planes for the PAF," he said.
He also affirmed that the PAF was focusing on strengthening its reconnaissance and surveillance capability, strike power, detection of enemy aircraft, platform to combat and weapons for defense.
--SPA
11 08 Local Time
08 08 GMT

http://www.spa.gov.sa/English/details.php?id=320137


(21.12.2006)