Aviation defence equipment technology - USAF First QF-16 target drone

The USAF's Tyndall Air Force Aerial Target Division has a new target. Since March 11, the division has access to the QF-16, an unmanned F-16 it will use in exercises with its F-22 squadron. The QF-16s are based at the 96th Test Wing at Eglin Air Force Base, but some are being sent to the 82nd Aerial Targets Squadron, a geographically separated unit of the 53rd Wing, headquartered at Eglin.

Tyndall AFB's QF-16 full-scale aerial target

Tyndall eventually will receive 13 QF-16s, which can be operated by a pilot or as a drone. Tyndall still is using the QF-4 in training, but the QF-16 will replace the QF-4, an unmanned McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II, as the next-generation aerial target. While the F-4 is still in service by Middle Eastern air forces, such as Iran as recently as December, the F-16 provides a next-generation fighter jet. “It’s a more nimble aircraft,” Tyndall Public Affairs Officer Chris Bowyer-Meeder said. The Tyndall Aerial Target Division will, from time to time, shoot down its target jets, Bowyer-Meeder said. However, the planes also are equipped with sensors to register a hit in training. “Today culminates five years of hard work and dedication beginning with a development program, completing a rigorous test and evaluation phase that has ultimately led to the first operational delivery of the QF-16,” said Michele Hafers, director, test and training division at Eglin AFB. The first QF-16 was delivered to Tyndall in November 2012 for operational and developmental testing to ensure their viability for aerial targets. The QF-16 is a supersonic reusable full-scale aerial target modified from an F-16 Fighting Falcon. The emergence of U.S. 5th generation fighters such as the F-22 Raptor and the F-35 Lightning II means American forces need an advanced target similar to what they would actually find on the battle field.