Venezuela to sell F-16s to Iran?

While looking at the Pentagon Video article, I also noticed this interesting tidbit..

Venezuela is considering selling its fleet of U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets to another country, perhaps Iran, in response to a U.S. ban on arms sales to President Hugo Chavez's government, a military official said Tuesday.

More information here:

Breitbart.com - F-16s

Can you image how bad this could be? The article even mentions Cuba..

Well, it'll probably take time for Iranian pilots to master the plane, our pilots get alot more flight time and they simulate dogfights against other F-16's, they're always chasing each other around at Luke AFB (sometimes way too late at night). Plus, I wonder why Chavez would wanna sell whatever 16's he has since he won't be getting any more. Either way, I don't think it's a huge problem for our pilots.

Trying to get into our skin by saying out loud that he is selling American planes to the country that we are now confronting. I wonder why he don't sell to Israel.

Im not to worried about Iran having F-16s

I read in the paper this morning that Chavez said he wasn't going to do anything in retaliation, and I believe him.

You know what I say to President Bush and Co., if you want to invade Venezuela for all the wrong reasons, do it already, but stop having the media report all this propoganda.
Be men, don't be weasels, stand behind your BS for once.

Peace

Originally posted by Dr Love
I read in the paper this morning that Chavez said he wasn't going to do anything in retaliation, and I believe him.

Actually it is in retaliation it appears, upon reading more about it, he's pissed cuz we're not gonna supply parts for them anymore...so he says he may sell the entire fleet. The Iran thing is just a symbolic kick in the balls, but who will supply parts to them? That fleet will be outdated and falling apart probably.

www.cnn.com...

[edit on 16-5-2006 by 27jd]

You can also find quotes of him saying he might even just hand the US stuff back to the US.

This is not really new news, a little while back people were supposedly getting their panties in a twist over the F16's because he is supposed to have said he'd give them away to Castro.

Chavez was on the UK's Channel 4 news show tonight saying that he might just give them back to the US and be done with them.

You can find his interview here in about an hour or two (the show has only just gone out on air) -
www.channel4.com...

sminkeypinkey:

Thanks for that update, I'd much rather see him give the planes back to us. After taking some time to think about it I figure it this way. How dangerous can Iran be with 21 F-16s? I mean, ok they ARE F-16s but as said by 27jd I guess it would take them some time to learn them. Maybe Chavez is just trying to jab at us, and try to make us nervous. I guess time will tell.

haha, just wait till they need all them Nose and Main landing gear tires, an all the TONS of Safety wire gah i hate that soo much, not to mention F-16 in deserts arent fun, sand makes rotor turbine blades get all eaten up, an im sure they dont have enuff parts for all them Wonderious 24 hr engine pulls.

they would need so much parts its not funny.

They are also don't have the same fire power ours have and they aren't equIpt the the same as the US.
H ecan sell all he wants, they have to learn how to use them.

Originally posted by Tranceopticalinclined
not to mention F-16 in deserts arent fun, sand makes rotor turbine blades get all eaten up

Guess that's why they dump them all the time on the range here, lol.

If Iran does get where do they think they will get parts? the local pepboys? Whoi will work on them? I'm sure they have some competent aircraft mechanics but have they worked on F16s? do they have reference materials, manuels etc..?


Wonder is us aircraft builders will start building some type of backdoor technology into planes fo export so when someone decides to give the plane to a foe our pilots can just transmit some code to it, and it will fall out of the sky

Originally posted by warpboost
If Iran does get where do they think they will get parts? the local pepboys?

Whoi will work on them? I'm sure they have some competent aircraft mechanics but have they worked on F16s? do they have reference materials, manuels etc..?

In 1976 Iran was suppose to be the biggest buyer of F-16s after the US. A lot of the technology was transferred as well as some training (I think, I am not an expert in the aerospace business, may be someone can confirm or deny this?). The planes eventually went to Israel

Originally posted by Sep
In 1976 Iran was suppose to be the biggest buyer of F-16s after the US. A lot of the technology was transferred as well as some training

The cockpit today is a completely different place from the cockpit in 1976, technology then can't even be called technology today....