Why not the F/A-18EF SuperHornet?

[Oldman1]

F-16 is made by Lockheed Martin & F-18 by Boeing. Boeing has very good relations with India. They have bagged orders for C-17, P-8I, Apache, Chinook. GE is also making F-414 engines in India for Tejas. So it is very easy for Boeing to just transfer the assembly line to India & make the body. Electronics can be imported.

Infact given the price of Rafale, India will choose to buy F-18.

Maybe...

 

[Last Samuri]

Why not f18 you ask.

Sanctions

And restrictions imposed by usa India friends. Now

Cost you people have the dollars to buy and operate such s plane.

Your air force prefers light cheap planes ie f7 thunders and used f16(

 

[untitled]

If and if super hornets are approved for pakistan a serious question that can be raised will be then why not blk 60 f16s? Both aircraft have similar capabilities

 

[Paksanity]

It is an exceptional plane, it has proven combat capability in theatres of war, the PAF has extensive experience with US planes and it could not only fill the gap of the PN airwing but also make it an offensive force.
I know the whole thing about sanctions but isn't that the case with any country bar China? Costs wise it could be a stretch. But it has been rejected by several nations of recent time so something could be worked out? Pakistan is also getting hold of the marine Zulus as well.

Folks do keep the comments civil please.

Costs and capabilities outlined in the good link below.

Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet | Info, AN/APG-79, Costs/Budget, Specs

in the

F-18 comes with its own set of problems. F-15 is a better choice. It has a longer range and is optimized for aerial combat. If the purpose is to provide air cover to Navy, F-15 does it better than F-18.

 

[Rank]

don't think it's on offer to Pakistan but the US might make it available at some stage if India gets too far ahead and stays with Russia for it's fighter requirements.

Already offered to Pakistan in 1980s

 

[45'22']

In the end, PAF will be going for this or may be F-15. No SUs, no Chinese heavy birds.
How they can loose an old customer? and as usual habbit of babas of PAF, they will be more eager to get US hardware.

China is already making AESA. There is noting in this aircraft for China to copy. They got better Russian hardware to copy.



F-18 Hornet was already offered. Actually, no one needs Indian permission for their sales to any country.

Any link to valudate this?

 

[Blue Marlin]

Do you know how PAF kept the F-16 fleet alive and kicking during the Pressler years?

yes i do know that. but im trying to say is that thye should go for more, somthing similar to the rose program, buy, upgrade and induct. if all is going smoothly then the f16 should replace the mirages and the j31/j10c can take up the lead figher role its got stealth (j31) and agility (j10/c), but thats in 7+ years

 

[Knight Rider]

Su 35 is the only solution

with some J-11

 

[Azad-Kashmiri]

well firstly te jet was offered to Pakistan, but actually buying them is the problem.

the f18 is unsuitable for both the airforce and the navy. firstly the f18 is a mid capable jet about a 600km radius. 11 hard points with a 8000 kg payload it will exceed the weapons payload. but its 65$+ million price tag.

also having a new platform will mean pakistan will have to invest in the jet heavily maintenance, training and servicing. this would mean they will need more than 2 squadrons.

i suggest going for the j10/c with aesa and cft's

The FA-18 are superior fighters than the junk F-16s we're offered that we have to MLU to keep them going. A few superior fighters are better than having many flying targets like the Syrian Migs; 100 were shot down without a single loss to the Zionists (they were flying F-15s). The point is quality over quantity!

 

[Azad-Kashmiri]

Neither side would be interested in the sale of -18's to be honest. This isn't what Pakistan needs, and the US won't sell it either due to sensitive AESA and other advance avionics. They don't want China anywhere near the AESA radar tech being used in these newer jets. SU-35, J-11B, either one's good enough. Or, J-10B in numbers like over 100, would make more sense IMO.

Yes, they only offer us junk that will not let is defend ourselves properly against India.

Lets look at what the Indians are given:

Indian ------------------------------ Pakistan
P8i Poseidon ------------------------------ P3 Orion
AH-64E ------------------------------ AH-1 Cobras
Offered FA-18E/F ------------------------------ F16 block 52

Our subs are sitting ducks, our tanks and infantry is exposed and our air-force has limited capability when the enemy is offered the top draw.

Well...at least those on here who love uncle Sam blindly have hope of getting a visa or are living over there. With friends like these who needs enemies!

 

[aliyusuf]

United States will not allow that. They don't want China to develop Cheap copies of their advance and sensitive systems ..........

Agreed.

But what I posted was in context of this thread i.e. if getting an F-18 Super Hornet becomes something that is even conceivable, should by any stroke of extreme good fortune the US should agree to even consider such a deal, then instead of going for the F-18s we should be adding more teeth and capabilities to our Viper fleet. Because that would add more punch to the PAF than to acquire just 2 Sqd of Super Hornets ... as that is the max we will be able to afford.

Hope it is clear now.

But in any case, we should be thinking of upgrading our Vipers with AESA. The reason for that is once all the 272 MKI's are done and delivered to the IAF (by 2018-19), the Super Sukhoi upgrade for the MKI's will commence. This upgrade includes new avionics, AESA and RCS reduction measures. Somewhere around 2022-23 IAF may be equipped with 272 AESA MKIs and possibly at least 36 AESA Rafales i.e. 300+ AESA fighters. For all practical purposes our high end fighter, till the induction of the 5th Gen fighter, will be the F-16 and it will be at a serious disadvantage if left facing the threat with a pulse Doppler radar. It should be either this or some (eventually knee jerk) induction of the J-10B.

Just my opinion.

 

[TaimiKhan]

I think its a useless topic to discuss as it is never gonna happen.

 

[Shaheen786]

su35 is far more realistic tool if we can get it or else upgrade our f16s with Aesa radar it will be good for our paf strength

 

[Beethoven]

I think its a useless topic to discuss as it is never gonna happen.

I second that.....4 pages of useless discussion

 

[VCheng]

I think its a useless topic to discuss as it is never gonna happen.

Sir, the thread was started by a Mod.