Hill Air Force Base Upgrades F-16 Radar Test Systems
The 523rd Electronic Maintenance Squadron has upgraded its two test systems used to check F-16 radomes and fire control radar antennas.
Updated on Nov. 11, 2026 in Military Jobs
The U.S. Air Force upgraded its Nose Radome Electrical Test System and Fire Control Radar Antenna Test System at the 523rd Electronic Maintenance Squadron at Hill Air Force Base. The squadron is the sole Air Force source for F-16 radar antenna repair and radome tuning.
Why it matters
The squadron tests about 70 radomes and 160 fire control radar antennas a year for the F-16 fleet, so its equipment directly affects how quickly those components return to units. The upgrades replaced obsolete test equipment and increased shop throughput and capacity.
The 523rd Electronic Maintenance Squadron tests about 70 radomes and 160 fire control radar antennas a year for the F-16 fleet. The release did not give a cost for the test system upgrades or say how much output they added.
The players
523rd Electronic Maintenance Squadron
The Hill Air Force Base unit serves as the sole U.S. Air Force source for F-16 radar antenna repair and radome tuning, and sits within the 309th Maintenance Wing at the Ogden Air Logistics Complex.
Northrop Grumman
The defense contractor built the mechanically scanned APG-68 radar used on most U.S. Air Force F-16s and has delivered its 1,000th SABR radar for the F-16.
The details
The squadron's Nose Radome Electrical Test System measures radar energy passing through a radome to flag distortion or attenuation, while the Fire Control Radar Antenna Test System checks antenna radiation pattern, beam-pointing accuracy, sidelobe levels, and transmit and receive performance. Radomes go through robotic coating removal, structural repair and precision painting before NRETS testing, and antennas are diagnosed, repaired, verified on a separate station and given final FCRATS testing before returning to a unit.
Timeline
• January 1979: The 388th Tactical Fighter Wing at Hill received the first operational F-16A.
• Recently: The squadron upgraded its two test systems, NRETS and FCRATS.
Roadmap
The upgraded test systems support an F-16 fleet that has been based at Hill since the 388th Tactical Fighter Wing received the first operational F-16A in January 1979. Keeping that aging fleet flying depends on maintaining specialized depot capacity for radar components that few other facilities handle.
Civilian and military technicians at the 523rd handle radome and antenna repair work that determines how quickly F-16 units get radar components back. Mission-capable radar components reduce the time aircraft spend waiting on depot repair.
The takeaway
Specialized depot test equipment is a quiet but essential part of keeping legacy fighter fleets operational. Readers interested in defense careers can consider the technical maintenance roles that support these systems.
Further reading
For context on the defense workforce behind depot repair work like this, see Military Jobs in Utah.
