US to equip F-16s with long-range anti-ship missiles to counter Chinese war ships

The US military is planning to equip its advanced fighter jets with long-range anti-ship missiles to enhance its air strike capabilities in a potential conflict with China in the Indo-Pacific region, according to a media report.

Citing a contract notice from the US Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR), defence news website The War Zone reported Tuesday that the US Navy is working to integrate a version of the AGM-158C Long-Range Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM) onto the F-16 Viper fighter jet.

A December Pentagon report on China’s military and security developments revealed that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy possesses a fleet of over 370 ships and submarines, including more than 140 major combat vessels.

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The US has expressed concern over China’s Dongfeng-21D missile, an anti-ship ballistic missile known as the “carrier killer". which is believed to be capable of striking aircraft carriers from a range of approximately 1,500 to 1,700 kilometers.

Amid growing worries about munition stockpiles and naval shipbuilding capabilities, the US military has been bolstering its air-launched anti-ship capabilities to prepare for a potential confrontation with China in the Pacific. This comes as the production gap between the US and China continues to widen.

In the notice posted on Monday, NAVAIR said it intended “to enter into sole source negotiations and subsequently award a cost-plus fixed-fee delivery order to Lockheed Martin Corporation-Missiles Fire Control”, the South China Morning Post reported on Wednesday.

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“The anticipated [delivery order] is for required integration and test support of the AGM-158C-1 missile on the F-16 aircraft platform,” the notice said.

The AGM-158C-1 is part of the AGM-158 Joint Air to Surface Standoff Missile developed by Lockheed Martin and is the main version of the LRASM in production.

The stealth weapon has a range of 322km and features several advanced features, including autonomous route-planning supported by a suite of onboard electronic support measures that allows the missile to automatically alter its course in response to sudden threats, as well as better track its target via its radio-frequency emissions.

The integration of the LRASMs onto F-16s would likely boost the US Air Force’s anti-ship ability, the Post report said.

The notice comes as the US military has been expanding the number of the LRASM launch platforms in an effort to ramp up preparedness for a potential conflict in the Pacific, especially with China, which has the world’s largest navy fleet.

Anti-ship capabilities could see an outsize role in a potential war in the Asia-Pacific over speculation that Beijing could launch an attack across the Taiwan Strait, the Post report said.

One scenario would see the PLA Navy sail past the first island chain towards the Philippine Sea and the strategically important eastern side of Taiwan.

Denying the Chinese military access to the Pacific Ocean through this route would be a significant factor in determining the outcome of such a conflict, it said.

China asserts Taiwan is part of its mainland and vows to reunite the estranged island by force, if necessary.

While not recognising Taiwan as an independent state, the US has been asserting that it is opposed to any attempt to take it by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons for defence.

With inputs from agencies