MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina's F-16s said to have limited capacities due to UK concerns

Countries can veto sales based on political agreements or security concerns

According to an Argentine high-ranking military official quoted by Buenos Aires' La Política Online but left unnamed, the recent acquisition of US-built second-hand F-16 fighter jets from Denmark did not include certain features at the UK's request.

What Defense Minister Luis Petri defined as a “strategic milestone” apparently comes with undisclosed limitations, restricting some of the aircraft's capabilities to prevent them from posing a threat to the Falkland Islands.

Specifically, the aircraft's firing radar will be limited to a range of 60 miles, which is deemed significant, as British anti-aircraft equipment in the Falklands has a range of 200 to 300 miles, rendering the F-16s vulnerable if they need to approach within 60 miles for an effective attack.

Defense Minister Luis Petri and Ambassador
Eva Bisgaard Pedersen sign the agreement

”If you have to get within 60 miles of Puerto Argentino (Stanley) to eventually be able to carry out an effective attack, at that 60-mile range, the British will have already detected you and shot you down. Because their anti-aircraft equipment has a range of 200 to 300 miles,“ the source was quoted as saying.

”If you have aircraft carriers, it's a different story because your zero point is always the aircraft carrier's launch platform, which you can have 200 miles from the coast. But that's not our case because we don't have any more aircraft carriers,“ he added.

While the F-16s do not contain British components, the UK, as a NATO member, along with Denmark and the United States, exercised its influence to ensure these limitations were implemented via software, which is a common practice in the arms industry. Countries can thus veto sales based on political agreements or security concerns.

”For example, we cannot sell the Pampa 3 to Bolivia, which wanted to buy it, because it has an agreement with Iran, and Israel, who supply us with parts, vetoes us selling it to a country that has agreements with Iran,” he also explained.

Despite these restrictions, Danish Ambassador Eva Bisgaard Pedersen stated that the F-16s were being upgraded with the latest technology. The purchase aims to modernize Argentina's air force, which has needed an upgrade since the decommissioning of its Dassault Mirage aircraft in 2015. Argentine pilots and technicians are currently undergoing training in the United States in preparation for the delivery of the first six F-16s.