Questions about APG-68 radar

[LesmoR]

1.The original APG-68(v)5 seemed to have been with the Viper since the 90s.
Did USAF ever upgrade the radar of their F-16 fleet? If they did, when?(To my knowledge the HAF received APG-68(v)9 circa 2009 while USAF was still on v5, not sure whether they got v7)

2.Up to 6 AIM-120s can be carried on the Viper, is the APG-68 capable of guiding all 6 simultaneously?

3.Did USAF pilots often complain about their underperforming v5 radar?

[Aquorys]

On 5/13/2025 at 5:20 PM, LesmoR said:

2.Up to 6 AIM-120s can be carried on the Viper, is the APG-68 capable of guiding all 6 simultaneously?

I don't know the definitive answer off the top of my head, the one thing that I can say is that it can track 10 targets simultaneously, so unless there is some other limiting factor, it should also be able to update the missiles with new information about each target

 

On 5/13/2025 at 5:20 PM, LesmoR said:

3.Did USAF pilots often complain about their underperforming v5 radar?

USAF pilots do not talk about the radar in much detail at all, and many refuse to say anything about it at all, because the radar is one of the most strictly classified parts of the aircraft (along with IFF, ECM and air-to-air missiles).

A few things that are kind of well-known are that the F-16's radar isn't all that great in general compared to other currently operational aircraft, but there is also some "war mode" that can be enabled by technicians, and it comes with a couple features that pilots said were surprising and quite advanced, compared to the capabilities of opposing forces' systems (like e.g., Russian, Chinese, etc.).

 

[TotenDead]

A fantasy mode that's never used in training and left only for war-time usage? Sure. That "mode" is probably just a different set of frequencies, nothing more

[Kang]

Just up the power to some components for more everything, including risk of cancer to everyone involved.