:(I think it is very good step from Pakistan Government to buy F-16 for Enhance here Air Force
  Strong more than its enemy...
Pakistan has sought prices for buying as many as 75 new F-16 C/D Falcon fighter aircraft since the Bush administration announced it would resume sales, the head of the Pentagon agency handling the matter said on Wednesday.
Pakistan also has asked about buying 11 used F-16s, said Air Force Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kohler, head of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, which runs U.S. government-to-government arms sales.
Many experts had expected Pakistan to seek only about two dozen F-16s, said Richard Aboulafia of Teal Group, a Virginia-based aerospace consultancy.
The numbers cited by Kohler show it wants to make the F-16 a mainstay of its combat aircraft fleet, he said, adding this was "very ambitious in terms of regional strategy and very costly."
The single-engine, multi-role F-16 is built by Maryland-based Lockheed Martin Corp. . The new purchases would flesh out a fleet of about 32 F-16s acquired before Congress cut off sales in 1990 over Pakistan's nuclear program.
Kohler, in an interview with Reuters, said Pakistan had requested F-16 Block 50/52 aircraft, the most modern flown by the United States and the current production standard, similar to exports to Poland, Greece, Chile, Oman and Israel.
Only the United Arab Emirates flies a more advanced variant, Block 60, with improved radar, defenses and range.
Asked about any Pakistani interest in the Block 60 model, Kohler said: "They did not ask for it and I don't think they could afford it." Kohler held arms-sale talks with defense ministry officials in Pakistan and India last month.
"I think when we go back and talk to them about the cost of the new systems my guess is that they will downsize slightly the (request for) new and they may increase slightly the used," he said.
The Bush Administration announced on Mar. 25 that it would resume sales of F-16s to Pakistan after a 16-year break. The about-face was widely seen as a reward for Pakistan's support of the U.S.-led global war on terrorism.
At the same time, the administration said it would let Boeing Co. and Lockheed compete for a potential $9 billion market in India for as many as 126 combat aircraft.
Lockheed is pitching India the same F-16 Block 50/52 and Boeing is offering its dual-engine F/A-18E/F Super Hornet, the most modern combat U.S. aircraft currently in full-rate production.
The F-16 C/D Block 50/52 sells for $40 million to $45 million each, depending on options. Boeing's Super Hornet is expected to cost $50 million to $55 million, based on the U.S. Navy's next production batch, Kohler said.
He said India was seeking to produce domestically the majority of the aircraft it eventually buys. It also apparently had invited bids from Sweden, France and Russia, Kohler said.
For Pakistan, U.S. government officials were still weighing the weapons systems, targeting pods, radars and electronic warfare equipment that would be offered as part of a package.
A deal could perhaps be notified to Congress toward the end of the summer, the first step in a process that could lead to deliveries three years after an agreement is signed, he said.
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