Tyrkia hamstrer F-16 deler - Tyler Rogoway

Turkey Reportedly Hoarding Spare F-16 Parts As It Faces Sanctions Over S-400 Purchases

The Turkish military is also said to be stockpiling spares for other systems amid fears the U.S. could block access to much more than the F-35.

By Joseph TrevithickJuly 3, 2019

• The War Zone

Turkish Armed ForcesTurkey has reportedly been stockpiling spare parts for its F-16 Viper fighter jets in order to head off possible U.S. sanctions after it takes delivery of Russian-made S-400 air defense systems, which the country's President Recep Erdogan says is set to happen within days. The purchase has already put Turkey on a path to get kicked out of the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program completely and it could potentially impact other U.S.-Turkish defense cooperation in the future.Bloomberg first reported the parts hoarding, citing two unnamed Turkish officials, on July 1, 2019. At present, Turkey has some 245 F-16C/Ds, which are a mix of Block 30, 40, and 50 variants, making it one of the largest operators of the type anywhere in the world. The effort has also included acquiring additional spares for other unspecified military systems beyond the Vipers. It is unclear what items Turkey has been buying specifically and from what sources, as well as when the shopping spree began, but U.S. government criticism of the S-400 deal has been growing steadily since Turkey first announced it in 2017.