SIOUX FALLS, S.D., - The South Dakota Air National Guard will receive 22 Block 40 F-16 Fighting Falcons from Hill Air Force Base in Salt Lake City, Utah, later this year, Guard officials announced recently.
"This gives us a tremendous step in defining the future of the fighter aircraft mission at Joe Foss Field," Lt. Col. Reid Christopherson, executive officer of the 114th Fighter Wing, told the Sioux Falls Argus Leader.
The aircraft are four years younger than the 18 Block 30 F-16s that are currently being flown by the wing.
"This decision confirms the important role that the South Dakota Air National Guard plays in our nation's security and should secure the 114th Fighter Wing's F-16 mission into the next decade," said Sen. John Thune in a news release.
Christopherson said the F-16s coming from Hill AFB are about four years newer, and they have larger intakes and can generate more thrust than the jets they will be replacing.
"We will largely continue to fly the aircraft in the same mission profiles as we have been, as a dual-role fighter with air-to-air and air-to-ground capability," Christopherson told the newspaper.
Tech Sgt. Andrew Mager also told the Argus Leader that one of the biggest changes will be a shift from analog to digital flight controls. Air Guard avionics technicians will be expected to learn the new system during a 30-day field course, he said.
"In the long run, we expect they should not be significantly different to work on," Christopherson said. "But as we go through the acceptance process to bring them into our fleet, there is certainly going to be an intense workload."
F-16s have been the 114th Fighter Wing's plane since 1991.
To ensure the future of the 114th's fighter mission and keep it in line for a next-generation vehicle such as the Joint Strike Fighter, it is important to keep skills up to date and to incorporate new technology used by the active Air Force, Christopherson told the Argus Leader.
"The last thing you want to be doing in the Air Guard is flying an orphan, a system the Air Force doesn't own," he said.
"We want to make sure Joe Foss Field and the 114th are a vital part of national security," Thune said. "We've been exploring lots of different options and future missions" in the interim between now and the Air Force adopting new-generation fighters.
Christopherson said being chosen to receive the planes from Utah "gives us tremendous validation among senior Air Force leadership that the South Dakota National Guard is viewed as a viable and strong player in our Air Force."