As part of an ambitious modernization plan for 2025, the Argentine Armed Forces are boosting their aerial power with new acquisitions and upgrades. Among those are four Lockheed Martin P-3 Orion patrol aircraft and 24 F-16A/B fighter aircraft, including weapon and equipment package, all with the support of the United States.
In late October, the U.S. State Department approved the potential sale of essential equipment, services, and logistical support for Argentina’s recently acquired F-16 fighter jets for an estimated $941 million. Argentina requested support for the 24 F-16 aircraft, which it secured via a third-party transfer from the Royal Danish Air Force in April. In addition to weapons, including 36 AIM-120 C-8 advanced medium range air-to-air missiles, guidance sections, 102 MK-82 bombs, and components for GBU-12 laser guided bombs, among others, additional elements include communication security systems, avionics support, essential spare parts, and training.
Maritime surveillance
In mid-September, the Argentine Navy received the first Lockheed Martin P-3 Orion as part of a strategy to enhance maritime surveillance in the South American country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), the Argentine Ministry of Defense indicated in a statement.
The aircraft is part of four P-3 Orion turbo aircraft, which belonged to the Royal Norwegian Air Force, which purchase the U.S. Congress approved in 2023, Argentine daily Ámbito Financiero reported. The purchase included three P-3C aircraft and a P-3N mobile logistic support aircraft, all of them subject to the Aircraft Service Life Extension Program (ASLEP), guaranteeing a residual life of 17,000 flight hours, equivalent to at least 15 years of service, the Argentine Defense Ministry indicated.
“The incorporation of these planes boosts our control and surveillance capability since they have great autonomy,” Argentine Navy Rear Admiral Rodolfo Berazay Martínez, head of the Joint Maritime Command (CCM) of the Armed Forces’ Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Diálogo. “They cover 120 nautical miles and reach a speed of more than 500 kilometers per hour.”
These four-engine airplanes will also support the fight against illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing, to dissuade the Chinese fishing fleet that trespasses Argentine maritime limits to plunder its resources. The planes are also equipped with sensors to detect submarines.
“It should be emphasized that [the P-3 Orion] operate in binomials, coordinated by Navy ships, which is fundamental for rapid response. They are a tool with a versatility that covers a large spectrum of the Argentine sea, beyond 200 miles,” Rear Adm. Berazay Martínez said.
The addition of these aircraft is part of the National Public Investment Project to improve the operational and logistical capabilities of the Naval Aviation Command’s search and surveillance aircraft, the Argentine Ministry of Defense indicated.
During the presentation of the first P-3 in Buenos Aires, Defense Minister Luis Petri thanked U.S. Ambassador to Argentina Marc Stanley and Norwegian Ambassador Halvor Saetre for their “unconditional support for the addition of this equipment.” Ambassador Stanley, for his part, welcomed the Argentine Navy’s new acquisition that will improve its patrol capabilities. “We see this advancement strengthening regional and global partnerships, which are essential to maintaining a free and secure international community.”
As part of the Argentina-U.S. partnership, during its first flight over the coastline, the P-3 Orion conducted exercises with the U.S. submarine USS Hampton (SSN-767), which was returning in late September from the Chilean Port of Valparaiso after participating in multinational exercise UNITAS LXV. The P-3C met with the USS Hampton to test sub-detection capability.
“There is no doubt about the great use of these aircraft to monitor and control the extensive and rich Argentine maritime coastline, where Chinese fishing vessels and those of other nations interfere in illegal fishing when there is no control,” Fabián Calle, professor of International Relations at Argentina’s Austral University, told Diálogo.
IUU fishing has been a continuous problem in both the Pacific and South Atlantic oceans since 2012, where at least 10 incidents involving Chinese fishing vessels conducting illegal activities in the EZZ took place, Argentine news site Infobae reported.
“Fishing incidents in the Argentine EEZ during the second decade of the 21st century, were directly related to Chinese companies, by developing IUU fishing, in the framework of the relaxed application of control measures and sanctions by the Chinese government,” Eduardo Oviedo, researcher with the National Council of Scientific and Technical Research of Argentina (CONICET) and professor at the National University of Rosario, told Infobae.
Rear Adm. Berazay Martínez said that since the 2021 inception of the CCM, Argentine authorities have not caught any offending vessel, due to the strong deterrence measures accomplished with Argentine naval units and technological supports. “In recent years, Argentina established the importance of the sea and its resources as a state policy.”
“There is a huge space to protect that is extremely demanding,” said Calle. “Large fisheries surveillance resources are vital to defend our EEZ.”
“The support of the United States was fundamental for Argentina to acquire these aircraft, which ratifies its commitment to collaborate for the fight against illegal fishing in South America, demonstrating a firm decision to promote the modernization of the different defense systems in the region,” Calle concluded.
