While Israel is in the top 10 global arms exporters, political sensitivity on both sides does not necessarily want every country buying its arms to attract attention. In most cases, this simply means that the details of the weapon recipients are not disclosed. However, there appears to be a more covert approach when it comes to certain Israeli-made air-to-air missiles (AAMs), widely considered the most powerful in the world.
Mike Yeo, an Australia-based defense and aviation reporter, posted on Twitter today, noting that Singapore, for example, flies Block 52 F-16 fighters with Israeli-made Python 4 training missiles, which appear to be obsolete US-made AIM 9P Sidewinder cloaked are AAMs. The post came on the same day it was confirmed that Singapore’s F-16 upgrade will equip these jets with the latest Python 5 AAM, which looks very similar to the actual Python 4, which is quite different when compared to an AIM-9P looks.
Yeo added that while there have been rumors for almost 20 years that the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) is equipping its advanced F-16s with Python 4, “they have never been seen,” apart from the AIM-9P-like ones training rounds .
In this guise, the missile sports cruciform fins clipped forward, making it look almost identical to the widely exported AIM-9P – a much less capable weapon from an earlier generation. The training rockets also wear a blue band around their bodies, indicating their inertness. A live Python 4 features unique dual sets of tightly coupled forward control fins that are entirely absent in the training version.
A Brazilian F-5 pair takes off, with a Python 4/AIM-9P-like training round on the farthest aircraft. Brazilian Air Force
For comparison, the following tweet shows a live Python 4 on a Brazilian F-5:
An experienced eye would quickly identify the training rounds as Python due to the distinctive Python 4 seeker head and the overall larger dimensions of the missile body compared to the Sidewinder. However, the fact that live versions of the missile have never been seen in RSAF service is probably enough to preserve the deception.
Rafael’s Python family of infrared-guided AAMs was developed based on the Israeli Air Force’s (IAF) experience with first-generation heat-seeking weapons in air combat in the 1960s and 1970s.
The original Python 3 was developed starting in 1978 and entered service in 1982, just in time to see action in the First Lebanon War of the same year, in which Israel claimed up to 50 aerial victories with the new missile. Despite its age, the Python 3 is still worn by IAF frontline fighters today, as you can read about here.
An Israeli Air Force F-15D with a captured Python 3 training round. On the other side of the rocket rail, you can just about see a Python 4’s unique fin arrangement. KGyST/Wikicommons
While the Python missile’s early predecessors were simpler, short-range, heat-seeking air-to-air missiles, later versions were designed for use with a helmet-mounted sight, with successive iterations of Elbit’s Display and Sight Helmet System (DASH). The Python Seeker not only has the ability to be locked to the radar at the start of combat, but can also steer it almost anywhere the pilot’s head and helmet are pointing.
An F-16 pilot with Elbit’s Display and Sight Helmet System (DASH). Elbit systems
Python 4 came into IAF service in 1992. This missile is reported to have a 60-degree high-off boresight (HOBS) capability in close combat and can maneuver at up to 70g; It is also said to be able to perform a 180 degree turn after launch to intercept a target behind the launch aircraft. Python 4 also brought external changes with additional control surfaces. It features a dual-waveband infrared seeker (IIR) and infrared countermeasures (IRCCM).
This is the weapon reportedly sold to Singapore to arm the F-16 there, but has only been seen in its sluggish training form.
An AIM-9P Sidewinder missile preserved at the Royal Thai Air Force Museum. RoyKabanlit/Wikimedia Commons
These “covert pythons” are not only carried by Singaporean F-16 aircraft, but can also be found on modernized F-5E/F Tiger II jets in both Brazil and Thailand. In the last two cases, it is known that the aircraft in question may be armed with Israeli missiles. For Singapore, however, it remains a closely guarded secret that these similar rockets help boost it.
The latest Python 5 looks almost identical to Python 4 on the outside, but has been further improved, particularly in its ability to shoot down targets with smaller signatures, including drones and cruise missiles.
On display are Python 5 model (front) and first generation Shafrir 1 air-to-air missiles (rear). MathKnight/Wikimedia Commons
Video showing a Python 5 rotating 180 degrees after being fired to hit a target behind the plane taking off:
Singapore will add the advanced Python 5 to its F-16 fleet, which will be upgraded to a similar standard to the F-16V, including the Northrop Grumman AN/APG-83 Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radar and Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM). ) and GBU-39/B Small Diameter Bomb (SDB). While it was expected that the AIM-9X Sidewinder would also be integrated, the RSAF has now opted for the Python 5 and possibly also additional Israeli-supplied electronic countermeasures pods.
Why the Singaporean Python 5 has been disclosed while Python 4 details remain limited is likely because the RSAF is already a known operator of the Rafael Spyder air defense system. This is armed with both Python 5 and radar-guided Rafael Derby missiles.
The RSAF confirmed that the first deliveries of the upgraded F-16s began in June 2021 and the fleet will be gradually upgraded, allowing the jets to fill the gap until they can be replaced by F-35 stealth fighters.
The RSAF already operates some of the most modern F-16s in the world, flying a total of 62 jets completed to the F-16C/D Block 52 standard and has its surviving older F-16A/B Block 15s -OCU aircraft transferred there Thailand. In addition to air-to-air missiles, the RSAF’s Block 52 aircraft are equipped with other advanced Israeli-supplied equipment, including avionics and electronic warfare equipment. The latter includes equipment housed in the jet’s enlarged fuselage, similar to that on the Israeli F-16D Barak.
An RSAF F-16D lands on a public road in Singapore during Exercise Torrent in November 2016. ROSLAN RAHMAN/AFP via Getty Images
Why Singapore, in particular, remains so tight-lipped about Israeli defense equipment appears to stem primarily from sensitivities in a region of the world where many nations do not have as cordial ties to Israel. Nonetheless, Singapore’s military ties with Israel, while unremarkable, are nonetheless very close. This means that the RSAF has received some very advanced weapons from Israel, including the Gulfstream G550 Conformal Airborne Early Warning (CAEW) aircraft, four of which were purchased by Israel Aerospace Industries.
An RSAF Gulfstream G550 CAEW lands at RAAF Base Darwin, Australia during Exercise Pitch Black 2012. Owen65/Wikimedia Commons
Other branches of the military have also benefited from Israeli weapons. There have been rumors that Singapore acquired Merkava main battle tanks from Israel, but these vehicles have never been seen. Hiding heavy armor might seem almost impossible, but the same was apparently true of Singapore’s earlier Centurion tanks. The existence of these combat vehicles, which were delivered in a special Singaporean version called the Tempest, were only revealed to the public after they had been phased out.
Since the RSAF’s next-generation fighter, the F-35, is also operated by Israel and is also subject to Israeli modifications, including Israeli-specific weapons, it is entirely possible that Singaporean stealth planes will also receive some of these weapons. But if the current Python IV can be relied upon, such a takeover might well remain an unobtrusive affair.
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