USAF F-16 SLEP underway in Poland

On 14 November 2022, a ceremony was held at the Wojskowe Zaklady Lotnicze Nr.2 (WZL2) in Bydgoszcz of the start of the Service Life Extension Programme (SLEP) of the US Air Force Europe (USAFE) Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Fighting Falcons.

With USAFE, the 31st Fighter Wing at Aviano Air Base (Italy) and the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem Air Base (Germany) operate the Block 40 respectively Block 50 F-16s.

In December 2021, a consortium led by AAR Government Services, also involving the Polish WZL No. 2 facility based in Bydgoszcz, was awarded an indefinite delivery contract for depot-level maintenance support to the USAFE F-16 fleet. The contract, valued at up to USD 365 million will be in force until the end of 2032.

The consortium was competing against the Gosselies site of Société Anonyme Belge de Constructions Aéronautiques (SABCA), co-located at Brussels South-Charleroi Airport (Belgium). SABCA has won previous contracts for the maintenance of USAFE F-16s and A-10s.

The programme has been divided into two, five-year phases - the current contract provides for the provision of the service for five years with the option of extending it for another five years. In 2022, three Fighting Falcons will be delivered to WZL2. During the ceremony, F-16CM Block 40 serial 89-2035, was seen with all paint being removed. This specific F-16 was damaged during a landing incident at its homebase Aviano. A second F-16CM, a Block 50 from Spangdahlem with serial 91-0360, was delivered to Bydgoszcz on 17 November.

Each F-16 will go through a thorough airframe inspection to extend its service life from 8,000 to 12,000 hours. Also part of the SLEP is the installation of new on-board equipment, which includes a radar station and on-board avionics. The process of modifying one F-16 is expected to take about nine months. The modified F-16s will be able to be safely operated at least until the middle of this century.

Photos by Lukasz Pacholski