a combat variant) that would replace the Su-22. Ultimately,
after the cost analysis, a decision was made to acquire the
advanced jet trainers alone, leaving the combat variant aside.
The armed LIFT procurement was replaced with a potential
acquisition of an extra F-16 squadron, within the new
Technical Modernization Plan document, covering the 2013-
2022 timeline. This plan also did not end up in implementation,
due to the limited budget available. It was replaced with a
declarative and wishful idea contained in the "Operational
Requirements Review" published in 2014, assuming that
sixty-four 5th generation MRCA would be procured between
2020 and 2030. The Technical Modernization Plan and
the Operational Requirements Review also, several times,
included a concept of the acquisition of second-hand F-16
jets that, if they went through an upgrade, could serve as a
gap filler until the new jets are bought. After the analysis of
the costs of the potential MLU modernization, these ideas
were also abandoned. Ultimately, over the 17 years from the
moment when the F-16 contract was signed, despite the fact
that the necessity to procure new MRCA has been taken into
AVIATION
