QF-16 Air Superiority Target (AST) Specifications

The USAF plans to convert older-model F-16s into full-scale target drones under the QF-16 Air Superiority Target (AST) program. These AST drones are used in Weapon System Evaluation Programs (WSEP) for assessing upgrades or replacements for air-to-air missiles (AAM), and they are also useful for giving pilots the experience of a live AAM shot and kill prior to entering combat. QF-16s would replace the current QF-4 drones, the last of which are expected to be expended around 2015.

	QF-16 Air Superiority Target (AST)
Role	Full-scale target drone
National origin	United States
Primary users	USAF, US Navy
Manufacturer	Boeing
First flight	19 September 2013
Introduction	18 November 2014
Status	Under Development
Number built	126 (proposed)
Program cost	$70 million
Unit cost	Unknown
Length	49 ft 5 in (15.1 m)
Wingspan	31 ft 0 in (9.45 m)
Height	16 ft 8 in (5.08 m)
Wing area
Empty weight	18,900 lb (8,570 kg)
Maximum payload
Maximum takeoff weight	42,300 lb (19,200 kg)
Powerplant	General Electric F110-GE-100 engine
Fuel
Maximum speed	Mach 1.47 or 1,119mph/1,800km/
Ferry range
Combat radius	295 nmi (546 km)
Service ceiling	40,000ft
Rate of climb
Thrust/weight	28,600 lbf (127 kN)
Guns	Removed
Air to ground loadout
Hardpoints	Removed

When the F-16s arrive at Boeing’s facility, they are stripped down to remove unneeded parts, including the fighter’s Vulcan six-barrel 20mm cannon and the APG-66/68 radar. Because the USAF requires that the QF-16 be able to fly in both manned and unmanned modes, Boeing will modify the flight control system, working in a teaming arrangement with BAE, the original equipment manufacturer for the F-16 flight control system.

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