Pakistan is warming its relationship with the US under President Donald Trump. The past few weeks have seen several developments hinting at a US rapprochement with Pakistan after former US President Joe Biden snubbed Islamabad. In a latest development, Pakistan is likely to receive AIM-120 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM) from the United States. However, it was not revealed how many AMRAAM missiles the US will supply to Pakistan.
Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles C8 and D3 Variant
US Department of War (DoW), which was till a month ago known as the Department of Defence, notified an arms contract which included Pakistan among the 35 other countries buying the missiles.
According to the reports, quoting the notification, the $2,512,389,558 contract for Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles C8 and D3 variants was awarded to the Raytheon company in Tucson, Arizona. The order is likely to be completed by May 30, 2030, according to the reports.
“This contract involves foreign military sales to United Kingdom, Poland, Pakistan, Germany, Finland, Australia, Romania, Qatar, Oman, Korea, Greece, Switzerland, Portugal, Singapore, Netherlands, Czech Republic, Japan, Slovakia, Denmark, Canada, Belgium, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Italy, Norway, Spain, Kuwait, Finland, Sweden, Taiwan, Lithuania, Isreal, Bulgaria, Hungary, and Turkey,” the contract stated.
Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif, Army Chief Asim Munir Meet Donald Trump
DoW notified the contract days after Pakistan’s PM Shehbaz Sharif and army chief Asim Munir met US President Donald Trump at White House. During the meeting, President Trump again boasted about his role in brokering a ceasefire between Indian and Pakistan in May this year. India has refuted these claims publicly.
In another development, Pakistan’s air force chief, Zaheer Ahmed Babar, recently visited the US State Department.
Will US Upgrade Pakistan’s F-16 jets?
The development has sparked speculation that the US might allow upgrades to the Pakistani Air Force’s F-16 fleet. It is pertinent that the AMRAAM is compatible with -16 fighter jet in the Pakistan Air Force service.
AMRAAM has a range of 20 kms to over 160 km. The range depends on the variant and generation. The missile can guide itself to the target after it is launched, as it works on active radar homing. AMRAAM is a supersonic missile with a speed of Mach 4+.
What’s the Capability of AMRAAM Missiles?
US has the AIM-120D variant of AMRAAM for its own use. AIM-120C8 is its export variant. AMRAAM missile is integrated into the F-15A/B/C/D/E Eagle/Strike Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F/A-18 Super Hornet, F-22 Raptor, Eurofighter Typhoon, JAS-39 Gripen, Tornado and Harrier, according to the missile manufacturer Raytheon.
AMRAAM’s latest version is also functional on all US F-35 Joint Strike Fighter variants.
As an air-to-air missile, AMRAAM quickly finds its targets in even harder and challenging environments. In contrast, as a surface-launch role, it is the baseline weapon on NASAMS, which allows countries to use AMRAAM in either role.
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Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
