F-16 Silver War Plane Bird Stars & Stripes II US Air Force USAF I Fighter World

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Seller: checkoutmyunqiuefunitems ✉️ (3,666) 99.9%, Location: Manchester, Take a look at my other items, GB, Ships to: WORLDWIDE, Item: 276226164525 F-16 Silver War Plane Bird Stars & Stripes II US Air Force USAF I Fighter World. Vehicles Marvel comicsSpacecraft Space stations. Categories: Fictional aircraftLists of fictional thingsLists of aircraft. Donald, David (2005). "Boeing F/A-18 Hornet". Warplanes of the Fleet. ISBN 9781880588819. F16 War Plane Coin This is a Silver Plated F-16 Plane Coin The top side has a US Flag with a Fighting Falcon logo of the F16 The other side has the underside of a plane The dimensions are 70mm x 50mm x 5mm It is solid metal and it weighs 33 grams In Excellent Condition A Beautiful coin and Magnificent Keepsake Souvenir Sorry about the poor quality photos. They dont do the item justice which looks a lot better in real life I have a lot of Military Items on Ebay so Please  CLICK HERE TO VISIT MY SHOP
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Tianjin, Kuala Lumpur, Toronto, Milan, Shenyang, Dallas, Fort Worth, Boston, Belo Horizonte, Khartoum, Riyadh, Singapore, Washington, Detroit, Barcelona,, Houston, Athens, Berlin, Sydney, Atlanta, Guadalajara, San Francisco, Oakland, Montreal, Monterey, Melbourne, Ankara, Recife, Phoenix/Mesa, Durban, Porto Alegre, Dalian, Jeddah, Seattle, Cape Town, San Diego, Fortaleza, Curitiba, Rome, Naples, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Tel Aviv, Birmingham, Frankfurt, Lisbon, Manchester, San Juan, Katowice, Tashkent, Fukuoka, Baku, Sumqayit, St. Louis, Baltimore, Sapporo, Tampa, St. Petersburg, Taichung, Warsaw, Denver, Cologne, Bonn, Hamburg, Dubai, Pretoria, Vancouver, Beirut, Budapest, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Campinas, Harare, Brasilia, Kuwait, Munich, Portland, Brussels, Vienna, San Jose, Damman , Copenhagen, Brisbane, Riverside, San Bernardino, Cincinnati and Accra General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon Article Talk Read Edit View history Tools From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "F16" and "F-16 Fighting Falcon" redirect here. For the video game, see Falcon (video game series). For other uses, see F16 (disambiguation). F-16 Fighting Falcon Aerial view of jet aircraft, carrying cylindrical fuel tanks and ordnance, overflying desert A USAF F-16C flying over the desert in Iraq, 2008 Role    Multirole fighter, air superiority fighter National origin    United States Manufacturer     General Dynamics (1974–1993) Lockheed Corporation (1993–1995) Lockheed Martin (1995–present) First flight     20 January 1974; 49 years ago (unplanned) 2 February 1974; 49 years ago (official) Introduction    17 August 1978; 45 years ago Status    In service Primary users    United States Air Force 25 other users (see operators page) Produced    1973–2017, 2019–present[1] Number built    4,604 (June 2018)[2][3] Variants    General Dynamics X-62 VISTA Developed into     Vought Model 1600 General Dynamics F-16XL Mitsubishi F-2 The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful all-weather multirole aircraft. Over 4,600 aircraft have been built since production was approved in 1976.[4] Although no longer being purchased by the U.S. Air Force, improved versions are being built for export customers. In 1993, General Dynamics sold its aircraft manufacturing business to the Lockheed Corporation,[5] which in turn became part of Lockheed Martin after a 1995 merger with Martin Marietta.[6] The Fighting Falcon's key features include a frameless bubble canopy for good visibility, side-mounted control stick to ease control while maneuvering, an ejection seat reclined 30 degrees from vertical to reduce the effect of g-forces on the pilot, and the first use of a relaxed static stability/fly-by-wire flight control system that helps to make it an agile aircraft. The F-16 has an internal M61 Vulcan cannon and 11 hardpoints. In addition to active duty in the U.S. Air Force, Air Force Reserve Command, and Air National Guard units, the aircraft is also used by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds aerial demonstration team, the US Combat Air Command F-16 Viper Demonstration Team,[7] and as an adversary/aggressor aircraft by the United States Navy. The F-16 has also been procured to serve in the air forces of 25 other nations.[8] As of 2015, it was the world's most numerous fixed-wing aircraft in military service.[9] Development Lightweight Fighter program Main article: Lightweight Fighter program US Vietnam War experience showed the need for air superiority fighters and better air-to-air training for fighter pilots.[10] Based on his experience in the Korean War and as a fighter tactics instructor in the early 1960s, Colonel John Boyd with mathematician Thomas Christie developed the energy–maneuverability theory to model a fighter aircraft's performance in combat. Boyd's work called for a small, lightweight aircraft that could maneuver with the minimum possible energy loss and which also incorporated an increased thrust-to-weight ratio.[11][12] In the late 1960s, Boyd gathered a group of like-minded innovators who became known as the Fighter Mafia, and in 1969, they secured Department of Defense funding for General Dynamics and Northrop to study design concepts based on the theory.[13][14] Air Force F-X proponents were opposed to the concept because they perceived it as a threat to the F-15 program, but the USAF's leadership understood that its budget would not allow it to purchase enough F-15 aircraft to satisfy all of its missions.[15] The Advanced Day Fighter concept, renamed F-XX, gained civilian political support under the reform-minded Deputy Secretary of Defense David Packard, who favored the idea of competitive prototyping. As a result, in May 1971, the Air Force Prototype Study Group was established, with Boyd a key member, and two of its six proposals would be funded, one being the Lightweight Fighter (LWF). The request for proposals issued on 6 January 1972 called for a 20,000-pound (9,100 kg) class air-to-air day fighter with a good turn rate, acceleration, and range, and optimized for combat at speeds of Mach 0.6–1.6 and altitudes of 30,000–40,000 feet (9,100–12,000 m). This was the region where USAF studies predicted most future air combat would occur. The anticipated average flyaway cost of a production version was $3 million. This production plan was hypothetical as the USAF had no firm plans to procure the winner.[16][17] Selection of finalists and flyoff Two jet aircraft flying together over mountain range and cloud A right-side view of a YF-16 (foreground) and a Northrop YF-17, each armed with AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles Five companies responded, and in 1972, the Air Staff selected General Dynamics' Model 401 and Northrop's P-600 for the follow-on prototype development and testing phase. GD and Northrop were awarded contracts worth $37.9 million and $39.8 million to produce the YF-16 and YF-17, respectively, with the first flights of both prototypes planned for early 1974. To overcome resistance in the Air Force hierarchy, the Fighter Mafia and other LWF proponents[which?] successfully advocated the idea of complementary fighters in a high-cost/low-cost force mix.[18] The "high/low mix" would allow the USAF to be able to afford sufficient fighters for its overall fighter force structure requirements. The mix gained broad acceptance by the time of the prototypes' fly-off, defining the relationship between the LWF and the F-15.[19][20] The YF-16 was developed by a team of General Dynamics engineers led by Robert H. Widmer.[21] The first YF-16 was rolled out on 13 December 1973. Its 90-minute maiden flight was made at the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB, California, on 2 February 1974. Its actual first flight occurred accidentally during a high-speed taxi test on 20 January 1974. While gathering speed, a roll-control oscillation caused a fin of the port-side wingtip-mounted missile and then the starboard stabilator to scrape the ground, and the aircraft then began to veer off the runway. The test pilot, Phil Oestricher, decided to lift off to avoid a potential crash, safely landing six minutes later. The slight damage was quickly repaired and the official first flight occurred on time.[22] The YF-16's first supersonic flight was accomplished on 5 February 1974, and the second YF-16 prototype first flew on 9 May 1974. This was followed by the first flights of Northrop's YF-17 prototypes on 9 June and 21 August 1974, respectively. During the fly-off, the YF-16s completed 330 sorties for a total of 417 flight hours;[23] the YF-17s flew 288 sorties, covering 345 hours.[24] Air Combat Fighter competition Increased interest turned the LWF into a serious acquisition program. NATO allies Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway were seeking to replace their F-104G Starfighter fighter-bombers.[25] In early 1974, they reached an agreement with the U.S. that if the USAF ordered the LWF winner, they would consider ordering it as well. The USAF also needed to replace its F-105 Thunderchief and F-4 Phantom II fighter-bombers. The U.S. Congress sought greater commonality in fighter procurements by the Air Force and Navy, and in August 1974 redirected Navy funds to a new Navy Air Combat Fighter program that would be a naval fighter-bomber variant of the LWF. The four NATO allies had formed the Multinational Fighter Program Group (MFPG) and pressed for a U.S. decision by December 1974; thus, the USAF accelerated testing.[26][27][28] YF-16 on display at the Virginia Air and Space Center To reflect this serious intent to procure a new fighter-bomber, the LWF program was rolled into a new Air Combat Fighter (ACF) competition in an announcement by U.S. Secretary of Defense James R. Schlesinger in April 1974. The ACF would not be a pure fighter, but multirole, and Schlesinger made it clear that any ACF order would be in addition to the F-15, which extinguished opposition to the LWF.[27][28][29] ACF also raised the stakes for GD and Northrop because it brought in competitors intent on securing what was touted at the time as "the arms deal of the century".[30] These were Dassault-Breguet's proposed Mirage F1M-53, the Anglo-French SEPECAT Jaguar, and the proposed Saab 37E "Eurofighter". Northrop offered the P-530 Cobra, which was similar to the YF-17. The Jaguar and Cobra were dropped by the MFPG early on, leaving two European and two U.S. candidates. On 11 September 1974, the U.S. Air Force confirmed plans to order the winning ACF design to equip five tactical fighter wings. Though computer modeling predicted a close contest, the YF-16 proved significantly quicker going from one maneuver to the next and was the unanimous choice of those pilots that flew both aircraft.[31] On 13 January 1975, Secretary of the Air Force John L. McLucas announced the YF-16 as the winner of the ACF competition.[32] The chief reasons given by the secretary were the YF-16's lower operating costs, greater range, and maneuver performance that was "significantly better" than that of the YF-17, especially at supersonic speeds. Another advantage of the YF-16 – unlike the YF-17 – was its use of the Pratt & Whitney F100 turbofan engine, the same powerplant used by the F-15; such commonality would lower the cost of engines for both programs.[33] Secretary McLucas announced that the USAF planned to order at least 650, possibly up to 1,400 production F-16s. In the Navy Air Combat Fighter competition, on 2 May 1975, the Navy selected the YF-17 as the basis for what would become the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet.[34][35] Production Upright aerial photo of gray jet aircraft flying above clouds An F-16C of the Colorado Air National Guard with AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles, an Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation pod, and a centerline fuel tank (300 US gal or 1,100 L capacity) The U.S. Air Force initially ordered 15 full-scale development (FSD) aircraft (11 single-seat and four two-seat models) for its flight test program which was reduced to eight (six F-16A single-seaters and two F-16B two-seaters).[36] The YF-16 design was altered for the production F-16. The fuselage was lengthened by 10.6 in (0.269 m), a larger nose radome was fitted for the AN/APG-66 radar, wing area was increased from 280 sq ft (26 m2) to 300 sq ft (28 m2), the tailfin height was decreased, the ventral fins were enlarged, two more stores stations were added, and a single door replaced the original nosewheel double doors. The F-16's weight was increased by 25% over the YF-16 by these modifications.[37][38] The FSD F-16s were manufactured by General Dynamics in Fort Worth, Texas, at United States Air Force Plant 4 in late 1975; the first F-16A rolled out on 20 October 1976 and first flew on 8 December. The initial two-seat model achieved its first flight on 8 August 1977. The initial production-standard F-16A flew for the first time on 7 August 1978 and its delivery was accepted by the USAF on 6 January 1979. The aircraft entered USAF operational service with the 34th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 388th Tactical Fighter Wing, at Hill AFB in Utah, on 1 October 1980.[39] The F-16 was given its name of "Fighting Falcon" on 21 July 1980. Its pilots and crews often use the name "Viper" instead, because of a perceived resemblance to a viper snake as well as to the fictional Colonial Viper starfighter from the television program Battlestar Galactica, which aired at the time the F-16 entered service.[40][41] On 7 June 1975, the four European partners, now known as the European Participation Group, signed up for 348 aircraft at the Paris Air Show. This was split among the European Participation Air Forces (EPAF) as 116 for Belgium, 58 for Denmark, 102 for the Netherlands, and 72 for Norway. Two European production lines, one in the Netherlands at Fokker's Schiphol-Oost facility and the other at SABCA's Gosselies plant in Belgium, would produce 184 and 164 units respectively. Norway's Kongsberg Vaapenfabrikk and Denmark's Terma A/S also manufactured parts and subassemblies for EPAF aircraft. European co-production was officially launched on 1 July 1977 at the Fokker factory. Beginning in November 1977, Fokker-produced components were sent to Fort Worth for fuselage assembly, then shipped back to Europe for final assembly of EPAF aircraft at the Belgian plant on 15 February 1978; deliveries to the Belgian Air Force began in January 1979. The first Royal Netherlands Air Force aircraft was delivered in June 1979. In 1980, the first aircraft were delivered to the Royal Norwegian Air Force by SABCA and to the Royal Danish Air Force by Fokker.[42][43] During the late 1980s and 1990s, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) produced 232 Block 30/40/50 F-16s on a production line in Ankara under license for the Turkish Air Force. TAI also produced 46 Block 40s for Egypt in the mid-1990s and 30 Block 50s from 2010 onwards. Korean Aerospace Industries opened a production line for the KF-16 program, producing 140 Block 52s from the mid-1990s to mid-2000s (decade). If India had selected the F-16IN for its Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft procurement, a sixth F-16 production line would have been built in India.[44] In May 2013, Lockheed Martin stated there were currently enough orders to keep producing the F-16 until 2017.[45] Improvements and upgrades One change made during production was augmented pitch control to avoid deep stall conditions at high angles of attack. The stall issue had been raised during development but had originally been discounted. Model tests of the YF-16 conducted by the Langley Research Center revealed a potential problem, but no other laboratory was able to duplicate it. YF-16 flight tests were not sufficient to expose the issue; later flight testing on the FSD aircraft demonstrated a real concern. In response, the area of each horizontal stabilizer was increased by 25% on the Block 15 aircraft in 1981 and later retrofitted to earlier aircraft. In addition, a manual override switch to disable the horizontal stabilizer flight limiter was prominently placed on the control console, allowing the pilot to regain control of the horizontal stabilizers (which the flight limiters otherwise lock in place) and recover. Besides reducing the risk of deep stalls, the larger horizontal tail also improved stability and permitted faster takeoff rotation.[46][47] In the 1980s, the Multinational Staged Improvement Program (MSIP) was conducted to evolve the F-16's capabilities, mitigate risks during technology development, and ensure the aircraft's worth. The program upgraded the F-16 in three stages. The MSIP process permitted the quick introduction of new capabilities, at lower costs and with reduced risks compared to traditional independent upgrade programs.[48] In 2012, the USAF had allocated $2.8 billion to upgrade 350 F-16s while waiting for the F-35 to enter service.[49] One key upgrade has been an auto-GCAS (Ground collision avoidance system) to reduce instances of controlled flight into terrain.[50] Onboard power and cooling capacities limit the scope of upgrades, which often involve the addition of more power-hungry avionics.[51] Lockheed won many contracts to upgrade foreign operators' F-16s. BAE Systems also offers various F-16 upgrades, receiving orders from South Korea, Oman, Turkey, and the US Air National Guard;[52][53][54] BAE lost the South Korean contract because of a price breach in November 2014.[55] In 2012, the USAF assigned the total upgrade contract to Lockheed Martin.[56] Upgrades include Raytheon's Center Display Unit, which replaces several analog flight instruments with a single digital display.[57] In 2013, sequestration budget cuts cast doubt on the USAF's ability to complete the Combat Avionics Programmed Extension Suite (CAPES), a part of secondary programs such as Taiwan's F-16 upgrade.[58] Air Combat Command's General Mike Hostage stated that if he only had money for a service life extension program (SLEP) or CAPES, he would fund SLEP to keep the aircraft flying.[59] Lockheed Martin responded to talk of CAPES cancellation with a fixed-price upgrade package for foreign users.[60] CAPES was not included in the Pentagon's 2015 budget request.[61] The USAF said that the upgrade package will still be offered to Taiwan's Republic of China Air Force, and Lockheed said that some common elements with the F-35 will keep the radar's unit costs down.[62] In 2014, the USAF issued a RFI to SLEP 300 F-16 C/Ds.[63] Production relocation To make more room for assembly of its newer F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft, Lockheed Martin moved the F-16 production from Fort Worth, Texas to its plant in Greenville, South Carolina.[1] Lockheed delivered the last F-16 from Fort Worth to the Iraqi Air Force on 14 November 2017, ending 40 years of F-16 production there. The company resumed production in 2019, though engineering and modernization work will remain in Fort Worth.[64] A gap in orders made it possible to stop production during the move; after completing orders for the last Iraqi purchase,[65] the company was negotiating an F-16 sale to Bahrain that would be produced in Greenville. This contract was signed in June 2018,[3] and the first planes rolled off the Greenville line in 2023.[66] Design Overview Early Late Comparison between F-16's inset cannon; early aircraft had four leading vents, a grille, and four trailing vents, while later aircraft had only two trailing vents. The F-16 is a single-engine, highly maneuverable, supersonic, multirole tactical fighter aircraft. It is much smaller and lighter than its predecessors but uses advanced aerodynamics and avionics, including the first use of a relaxed static stability/fly-by-wire (RSS/FBW) flight control system, to achieve enhanced maneuver performance. Highly agile, the F-16 was the first fighter aircraft purpose-built to pull 9-g maneuvers and can reach a maximum speed of over Mach 2. Innovations include a frameless bubble canopy for better visibility, a side-mounted control stick, and a reclined seat to reduce g-force effects on the pilot. It is armed with an internal M61 Vulcan cannon in the left wing root and has multiple locations for mounting various missiles, bombs and pods. It has a thrust-to-weight ratio greater than one, providing power to climb and vertical acceleration.[67] The F-16 was designed to be relatively inexpensive to build and simpler to maintain than earlier-generation fighters. The airframe is built with about 80% aviation-grade aluminum alloys, 8% steel, 3% composites, and 1.5% titanium. The leading-edge flaps, stabilators, and ventral fins make use of bonded aluminum honeycomb structures and graphite epoxy lamination coatings. The number of lubrication points, fuel line connections, and replaceable modules is significantly lower than preceding fighters; 80% of the access panels can be accessed without stands.[44] The air intake was placed so it was rearward of the nose but forward enough to minimize air flow losses and reduce aerodynamic drag.[68] Although the LWF program called for a structural life of 4,000 flight hours, capable of achieving 7.33 g with 80% internal fuel; GD's engineers decided to design the F-16's airframe life for 8,000 hours and for 9-g maneuvers on full internal fuel. This proved advantageous when the aircraft's mission changed from solely air-to-air combat to multirole operations. Changes in operational use and additional systems have increased weight, necessitating multiple structural strengthening programs.[69] General configuration Jet heavily armed with weapons under wings taking off. F-16CJ of the 20th Fighter Wing from Shaw AFB, South Carolina, armed with a mix of air-to-air missiles, anti-radiation missiles, external fuel tanks and support equipment The F-16 has a cropped-delta wing incorporating wing-fuselage blending and forebody vortex-control strakes; a fixed-geometry, underslung air intake (with splitter plate[70]) to the single turbofan jet engine; a conventional tri-plane empennage arrangement with all-moving horizontal "stabilator" tailplanes; a pair of ventral fins beneath the fuselage aft of the wing's trailing edge; and a tricycle landing gear configuration with the aft-retracting, steerable nose gear deploying a short distance behind the inlet lip. There is a boom-style aerial refueling receptacle located behind the single-piece "bubble" canopy of the cockpit. Split-flap speedbrakes are located at the aft end of the wing-body fairing, and a tailhook is mounted underneath the fuselage. A fairing beneath the rudder often houses ECM equipment or a drag chute. Later F-16 models feature a long dorsal fairing along the fuselage's "spine", housing additional equipment or fuel.[44][71] Aerodynamic studies in the 1960s demonstrated that the "vortex lift" phenomenon could be harnessed by highly swept wing configurations to reach higher angles of attack, using leading edge vortex flow off a slender lifting surface. As the F-16 was being optimized for high combat agility, GD's designers chose a slender cropped-delta wing with a leading-edge sweep of 40° and a straight trailing edge. To improve maneuverability, a variable-camber wing with a NACA 64A-204 airfoil was selected; the camber is adjusted by leading-edge and trailing edge flaperons linked to a digital flight control system regulating the flight envelope.[44][69] The F-16 has a moderate wing loading, reduced by fuselage lift.[72] The vortex lift effect is increased by leading-edge extensions, known as strakes. Strakes act as additional short-span, triangular wings running from the wing root (the junction with the fuselage) to a point further forward on the fuselage. Blended into the fuselage and along the wing root, the strake generates a high-speed vortex that remains attached to the top of the wing as the angle of attack increases, generating additional lift and allowing greater angles of attack without stalling. Strakes allow a smaller, lower-aspect-ratio wing, which increases roll rates and directional stability while decreasing weight. Deeper wing roots also increase structural strength and internal fuel volume.[69][73] Armament Aircraft carrying missiles on tips of wings during flight over ocean. Under each wing is a cylindrical external fuel tank with pointed nose A Portuguese Air Force F-16A outfitted with AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles, AN/ALQ-131 ECM pod, and external fuel tanks. Early F-16s could be armed with up to six AIM-9 Sidewinder heat-seeking short-range air-to-air missiles (AAM) by employing rail launchers on each wingtip, as well as radar-guided AIM-7 Sparrow medium-range AAMs in a weapons mix.[74] More recent versions support the AIM-120 AMRAAM, and US aircraft often mount that missile on their wingtips to reduce wing flutter.[75] The aircraft can carry various other AAMs, a wide variety of air-to-ground missiles, rockets or bombs; electronic countermeasures (ECM), navigation, targeting or weapons pods; and fuel tanks on 9 hardpoints – six under the wings, two on wingtips, and one under the fuselage. Two other locations under the fuselage are available for sensor or radar pods.[74] The F-16 carries a 20 mm (0.787 in) M61A1 Vulcan cannon, which is mounted inside the fuselage to the left of the cockpit.[74] Relaxed stability and fly-by-wire F-16C of the South Carolina Air National Guard in-flight over North Carolina equipped with air-to-air missiles, bomb rack, targeting pods, and electronic countermeasures pods The F-16 is the first production fighter aircraft intentionally designed to be slightly aerodynamically unstable, also known as relaxed static stability (RSS), to both reduce drag and improve maneuverability.[76] Most aircraft are designed to have positive static stability, which induces the aircraft to return to straight and level flight attitude if the pilot releases the controls. This reduces maneuverability as the inherent stability has to be overcome and increases a form of drag known as trim drag. Aircraft with relaxed stability are designed to be able to augment their stability characteristics while maneuvering to increase lift and reduce drag, thus greatly increasing their maneuverability. At Mach 1, the F-16 gains positive stability because of aerodynamic changes.[77][78][79] To counter the tendency to depart from controlled flight and avoid the need for constant trim inputs by the pilot, the F-16 has a quadruplex (four-channel) fly-by-wire (FBW) flight control system (FLCS). The flight control computer (FLCC) accepts pilot input from the stick and rudder controls and manipulates the control surfaces in such a way as to produce the desired result without inducing control loss. The FLCC conducts thousands of measurements per second on the aircraft's flight attitude to automatically counter deviations from the pilot-set flight path. The FLCC further incorporates limiters governing movement in the three main axes based on attitude, airspeed, and angle of attack (AOA)/g; these prevent control surfaces from inducing instability such as slips or skids, or a high AOA inducing a stall. The limiters also prevent maneuvers that would exert more than a 9-g load.[80][81] Flight testing revealed that "assaulting" multiple limiters at high AOA and low speed can result in an AOA far exceeding the 25° limit, colloquially referred to as "departing"; this causes a deep stall; a near-freefall at 50° to 60° AOA, either upright or inverted. While at a very high AOA, the aircraft's attitude is stable but control surfaces are ineffective. The pitch limiter locks the stabilators at an extreme pitch-up or pitch-down attempting to recover. This can be overridden so the pilot can "rock" the nose via pitch control to recover.[82] Unlike the YF-17, which had hydromechanical controls serving as a backup to the FBW, General Dynamics took the innovative step of eliminating mechanical linkages from the control stick and rudder pedals to the flight control surfaces.[83] The F-16 is entirely reliant on its electrical systems to relay flight commands, instead of traditional mechanically linked controls, leading to the early moniker of "the electric jet" and aphorisms among pilots such as "You don't fly an F-16; it flies you."[84] The quadruplex design permits "graceful degradation" in flight control response in that the loss of one channel renders the FLCS a "triplex" system.[85][86] The FLCC began as an analog system on the A/B variants but has been supplanted by a digital computer system beginning with the F-16C/D Block 40.[87][88] The F-16's controls suffered from a sensitivity to static electricity or electrostatic discharge (ESD) and lightning.[89] Up to 70–80% of the C/D models' electronics were vulnerable to ESD.[90] Cockpit and ergonomics Bubble canopy, allowing all-round visibility A key feature of the F-16's cockpit is the exceptional field of view. The single-piece, bird-proof polycarbonate bubble canopy provides 360° all-round visibility, with a 40° look-down angle over the side of the aircraft, and 15° down over the nose (compared to the common 12–13° of preceding aircraft); the pilot's seat is elevated for this purpose. Additionally, the F-16's canopy omits the forward bow frame found on many fighters, which is an obstruction to a pilot's forward vision.[44][91] The F-16's ACES II zero/zero ejection seat is reclined at an unusual tilt-back angle of 30°; most fighters have a tilted seat at 13–15°. The tilted seat can accommodate taller pilots and increases g-force tolerance; however, it has been associated with reports of neck aches, possibly caused by incorrect headrest usage.[92] Subsequent U.S. fighters have adopted more modest tilt-back angles of 20°.[44][93] Because of the seat angle and the canopy's thickness, the ejection seat lacks canopy-breakers for emergency egress; instead the entire canopy is jettisoned prior to the seat's rocket firing.[94] Cramped cockpit of jet trainer, showing dials and instruments F-16 ground trainer cockpit (F-16 Mid-Life Update (MLU)) The pilot flies primarily by means of an armrest-mounted side-stick controller (instead of a traditional center-mounted stick) and an engine throttle; conventional rudder pedals are also employed. To enhance the pilot's degree of control of the aircraft during high-g combat maneuvers, various switches and function controls were moved to centralized hands on throttle-and-stick (HOTAS) controls upon both the controllers and the throttle. Hand pressure on the side-stick controller is transmitted by electrical signals via the FBW system to adjust various flight control surfaces to maneuver the F-16. Originally, the side-stick controller was non-moving, but this proved uncomfortable and difficult for pilots to adjust to, sometimes resulting in a tendency to "over-rotate" during takeoffs, so the control stick was given a small amount of "play". Since the introduction of the F-16, HOTAS controls have become a standard feature on modern fighters.[citation needed] F-16 pilot with Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System and cockpit head-up display The F-16 has a head-up display (HUD), which projects visual flight and combat information in front of the pilot without obstructing the view; being able to keep their head "out of the cockpit" improves the pilot's situation awareness.[95] Further flight and systems information are displayed on multi-function displays (MFD). The left-hand MFD is the primary flight display (PFD), typically showing radar and moving maps; the right-hand MFD is the system display (SD), presenting information about the engine, landing gear, slat and flap settings, and fuel and weapons status. Initially, the F-16A/B had monochrome cathode-ray tube (CRT) displays; replaced by color liquid-crystal displays on the Block 50/52.[44][96] The Mid-Life Update (MLU) introduced compatibility with night-vision goggles (NVG). The Boeing Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS) is available from Block 40 onwards, for targeting based on where the pilot's head faces, unrestricted by the HUD, using high-off-boresight missiles like the AIM-9X.[97] Fire-control radar The F-16A/B was originally equipped with the Westinghouse AN/APG-66 fire-control radar. Its slotted planar array antenna was designed to be compact to fit into the F-16's relatively small nose. In uplook mode, the APG-66 uses a low pulse-repetition frequency (PRF) for medium- and high-altitude target detection in a low-clutter environment, and in look-down/shoot-down employs a medium PRF for heavy clutter environments. It has four operating frequencies within the X band, and provides four air-to-air and seven air-to-ground operating modes for combat, even at night or in bad weather. The Block 15's APG-66(V)2 model added more powerful signal processing, higher output power, improved reliability, and increased range in cluttered or jamming environments. The Mid-Life Update (MLU) program introduced a new model, APG-66(V)2A, which features higher speed and more memory.[98] AN-APG-68, as fitted to the nose The AN/APG-68, an evolution of the APG-66, was introduced with the F-16C/D Block 25. The APG-68 has greater range and resolution, as well as 25 operating modes, including ground-mapping, Doppler beam-sharpening, ground moving target indication, sea target, and track while scan (TWS) for up to 10 targets. The Block 40/42's APG-68(V)1 model added full compatibility with Lockheed Martin Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night (LANTIRN) pods, and a high-PRF pulse-Doppler track mode to provide Interrupted Continuous Wave guidance for semi-active radar homing (SARH) missiles like the AIM-7 Sparrow. Block 50/52 F-16s initially used the more reliable APG-68(V)5 which has a programmable signal processor employing Very High Speed Integrated Circuit (VHSIC) technology. The Advanced Block 50/52 (or 50+/52+) is equipped with the APG-68(V)9 radar, with a 30% greater air-to-air detection range and a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) mode for high-resolution mapping and target detection-recognition. In August 2004, Northrop Grumman was contracted to upgrade the APG-68 radars of Block 40/42/50/52 aircraft to the (V)10 standard, providing all-weather autonomous detection and targeting for Global Positioning System (GPS)-aided precision weapons, SAR mapping, and terrain-following radar (TF) modes, as well as interleaving of all modes.[44] The F-16E/F is outfitted with Northrop Grumman's AN/APG-80 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar.[99] Northrop Grumman developed the latest AESA radar upgrade for the F-16 (selected for USAF and Taiwan's Republic of China Air Force F-16 upgrades), named the Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) APG-83.[100][101] In July 2007, Raytheon announced that it was developing a Next Generation Radar (RANGR) based on its earlier AN/APG-79 AESA radar as a competitor to Northrop Grumman's AN/APG-68 and AN/APG-80 for the F-16.[44] On 28 February 2020, Northrop Grumman received an order from USAF to extend the service lives of their F-16s to at least 2048 with APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) as part of the service-life extension program (SLEP).[102] Propulsion Afterburner – concentric ring structure inside the exhaust The initial powerplant selected for the single-engined F-16 was the Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-200 afterburning turbofan, a modified version of the F-15's F100-PW-100, rated at 23,830 lbf (106.0 kN) thrust. During testing, the engine was found to be prone to compressor stalls and "rollbacks", wherein the engine's thrust would spontaneously reduce to idle. Until resolved, the Air Force ordered F-16s to be operated within "dead-stick landing" distance of its bases.[15] It was the standard F-16 engine through the Block 25, except for the newly built Block 15s with the Operational Capability Upgrade (OCU). The OCU introduced the 23,770 lbf (105.7 kN) F100-PW-220, later installed on Block 32 and 42 aircraft: the main advance being a Digital Electronic Engine Control (DEEC) unit, which improved reliability and reduced stall occurrence. Beginning production in 1988, the "-220" also supplanted the F-15's "-100", for commonality. Many of the "-220" engines on Block 25 and later aircraft were upgraded from 1997 onwards to the "-220E" standard, which enhanced reliability and maintainability; unscheduled engine removals were reduced by 35%.[103] Adjustable exhaust nozzle in contracted position The F100-PW-220/220E was the result of the USAF's Alternate Fighter Engine (AFE) program (colloquially known as "the Great Engine War"), which also saw the entry of General Electric as an F-16 engine provider. Its F110-GE-100 turbofan was limited by the original inlet to a thrust of 25,735 lbf (114.47 kN), the Modular Common Inlet Duct allowed the F110 to achieve its maximum thrust of 28,984 lbf (128.93 kN). (To distinguish between aircraft equipped with these two engines and inlets, from the Block 30 series on, blocks ending in "0" (e.g., Block 30) are powered by GE, and blocks ending in "2" (e.g., Block 32) are fitted with Pratt & Whitney engines.)[103][104] The Increased Performance Engine (IPE) program led to the 29,588 lbf (131.61 kN) F110-GE-129 on the Block 50 and 29,160 lbf (129.7 kN) F100-PW-229 on the Block 52. F-16s began flying with these IPE engines in the early 1990s. Altogether, of the 1,446 F-16C/Ds ordered by the USAF, 556 were fitted with F100-series engines and 890 with F110s.[44] The United Arab Emirates' Block 60 is powered by the General Electric F110-GE-132 turbofan with a maximum thrust of 32,500 lbf (145 kN), the highest thrust engine developed for the F-16.[105] Operational history Main article: General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon operational history United States A United States Air Force F-16 from the 480th Fighter Squadron takes off from Spangdahlem Air Base in support of Operation Odyssey Dawn The F-16 is being used by the active duty USAF, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard units, the USAF aerial demonstration team, the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, and as an adversary-aggressor aircraft by the United States Navy at the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center.[citation needed] The U.S. Air Force, including the Air Force Reserve and the Air National Guard, flew the F-16 in combat during Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and in the Balkans later in the 1990s. F-16s also patrolled the no-fly zones in Iraq during Operations Northern Watch and Southern Watch and served during the War in Afghanistan and the War in Iraq from 2001 and 2003 respectively. In 2011, Air Force F-16s took part in the intervention in Libya.[106] On 11 September 2001, two unarmed F-16s were launched in an attempt to ram and down United Airlines Flight 93 before it reached Washington D.C. during the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks, but Flight 93 was brought down by the passengers first, so the F-16s were retasked to patrol the local airspace and later escorted Air Force One back to Washington.[107][108][importance?] The F-16 had been scheduled to remain in service with the U.S. Air Force until 2025.[109] Its replacement was planned to be the F-35A variant of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, which is expected to gradually begin replacing several multirole aircraft among the program's member nations. However, owing to delays in the F-35 program, all USAF F-16s will receive service life extension upgrades.[110] In 2022, it was announced the USAF would continue to operate the F-16 for another two decades.[111] Israel Israeli Air Force F-16A Netz 107 with 6.5 kill marks of other aircraft, a record for an F-16, as well as one kill mark of an Iraqi nuclear reactor[112] The F-16's first air-to-air combat success was achieved by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) over the Bekaa Valley on 28 April 1981, against a Syrian Mi-8 helicopter, which was downed with cannon fire.[113] On 7 June 1981, eight Israeli F-16s, escorted by six F-15s, executed Operation Opera, their first employment in a significant air-to-ground operation. This raid severely damaged Osirak, an Iraqi nuclear reactor under construction near Baghdad, to prevent the regime of Saddam Hussein from using the reactor for the creation of nuclear weapons.[114] The following year, during the 1982 Lebanon War Israeli F-16s engaged Syrian aircraft in one of the largest air battles involving jet aircraft, which began on 9 June and continued for two more days. Israeli Air Force F-16s were credited with 44 air-to-air kills during the conflict.[113][115] In January 2000, Israel completed a purchase of 102 new F-16I aircraft in a deal totaling $4.5 billion.[116] F-16s were also used in their ground-attack role for strikes against targets in Lebanon. IAF F-16s participated in the 2006 Lebanon War and the 2008–09 Gaza War.[117] During and after the 2006 Lebanon war, IAF F-16s shot down Iranian-made UAVs launched by Hezbollah, using Rafael Python 5 air-to-air missiles.[118][119][120] On 10 February 2018, an Israeli Air Force F-16I was shot down in northern Israel when it was hit by a relatively old model S-200 (NATO name SA-5 Gammon) surface-to-air missile of the Syrian Air Defense Force.[121] The pilot and navigator ejected safely in Israeli territory. The F-16I was part of a bombing mission against Syrian and Iranian targets around Damascus after an Iranian drone entered Israeli air space and was shot down.[122] An Israel Air Force investigation determined on 27 February 2018 that the loss was due to pilot error since the IAF determined the air crew did not adequately defend themselves.[123] Pakistan The PAF F-16BM (S. No. 84-606) which shot down one of the Indian jets during Operation Swift Retort (kill mark visible on nose) During the Soviet–Afghan War, PAF F-16As shot down between 20 to 30 Soviet and Afghan warplanes; the political situation however resulted in PAF officially recognising only 9 kills which were made inside Pakistani airspace.[124] From May 1986 to January 1989, PAF F-16s from the Tail Choppers and Griffin squadrons using mostly AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles, shot down four Afghan Su-22s, two MiG-23s, one Su-25, and one An-26s.[125] Most of these kills were by missiles, but at least one, a Su-22, was destroyed by cannon fire. One F-16 was lost in these battles. On 7 June 2002, a Pakistan Air Force F-16B Block 15 (S. No. 82-605) shot down an Indian Air Force unmanned aerial vehicle, an Israeli-made Searcher II, using an AIM-9L Sidewinder missile, during a night interception near Lahore[126] The Pakistan Air Force has used its F-16s in various foreign and internal military exercises, such as the "Indus Vipers" exercise in 2008 conducted jointly with Turkey.[127][failed verification] Between May 2009 and November 2011, the PAF F-16 fleet flew more than 5,500 sorties[needs update] in support of the Pakistan Army's operations against the Taliban insurgency in the FATA region of North-West Pakistan. More than 80% of the dropped munitions were laser-guided bombs.[128][129] On 27 February 2019, following six Pakistan Air Force airstrikes in Indian administered Kashmir, Pakistani officials said that two of its fighter jets shot down one MiG-21 and one Su-30MKI belonging to the Indian Air Force.[130][131][132][133] Indian officials only confirmed the loss of one MiG-21 but denied losing any Su-30MKI in the clash.[134][135] Additionally Indian officials also claimed to have shot down one F-16 belonging to the Pakistan Air Force.[136][137] This was denied by the Pakistani side,[138] considered dubious by neutral sources,[139][140] and later backed by a report by Foreign Policy magazine, reporting that the US had completed a physical count of Pakistan's F-16s and found none missing.[141] A report by The Washington Post noted that the Pentagon and State Department refused public comment on the matter but did not deny the earlier report.[142] Turkey F-16 SoloTürk aerial aerobatic aircraft The Turkish Air Force acquired its first F-16s in 1987. F-16s were later produced in Turkey under four phases of Peace Onyx programs. In 2015, they were upgraded to Block 50/52+ with CCIP by Turkish Aerospace Industries.[143] Turkish F-16s are being fitted with indigenous AESA radars and EW suite called SPEWS-II.[144] On 18 June 1992, a Greek Mirage F-1 crashed during a dogfight with a Turkish F-16.[145][146][147] On 8 February 1995, a Turkish F-16 crashed into the Aegean sea after being intercepted by Greek Mirage F1 fighters.[148][149] Turkish F-16s participated in the Bosnia Herzegovina and Kosovo since 1993 in support of United Nations resolutions.[150] On 8 October 1996, seven months after the escalation a Greek Mirage 2000 reportedly fired an R.550 Magic II missile and shot down a Turkish F-16D over the Aegean Sea.[151][152] The Turkish pilot died, while the co-pilot ejected and was rescued by Greek forces.[147][153][154] In August 2012, after the downing of an RF-4E on the Syrian Coast, Turkish Defence Minister İsmet Yılmaz confirmed that the Turkish F-16D was shot down by a Greek Mirage 2000 with an R.550 Magic II in 1996 near Chios island.[155] Greece denies that the F-16 was shot down.[156] Both Mirage 2000 pilots reported that the F-16 caught fire and they saw one parachute.[157][158] On 23 May 2006, two Greek F-16s intercepted a Turkish RF-4 reconnaissance aircraft and two F-16 escorts off the coast of the Greek island of Karpathos, within the Athens FIR. A mock dogfight ensued between the two sides, resulting in a midair collision[159] between a Turkish F-16 and a Greek F-16. The Turkish pilot ejected safely, but the Greek pilot died owing to damage caused by the collision.[160][161] Turkey used its F-16s extensively in its conflict with Kurdish insurgents in southeastern parts of Turkey and Iraq. Turkey launched its first cross-border raid on 16 December 2007, a prelude to the 2008 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq, involving 50 fighters before Operation Sun. This was the first time Turkey had mounted a night-bombing operation on a massive scale, and also the largest operation conducted by the Turkish Air Force.[162] During the Syrian Civil War, Turkish F-16s were tasked with airspace protection on the Syrian border. After the RF-4 downing in June 2012 Turkey changed its rules of engagement against Syrian aircraft, resulting in scrambles and downings of Syrian combat aircraft.[163] On 16 September 2013, a Turkish Air Force F-16 shot down a Syrian Arab Air Force Mil Mi-17 helicopter near the Turkish border.[164] On 23 March 2014, a Turkish Air Force F-16 shot down a Syrian Arab Air Force MiG-23 when it allegedly entered Turkish air space during a ground attack mission against Al Qaeda-linked insurgents.[165] On 16 May 2015, two Turkish Air Force F-16s shot down a Syrian Mohajer 4 UAV firing two AIM-9 missiles after it trespassed into Turkish airspace for 5 minutes.[166][167] A Turkish Air Force F-16 shot down a Russian Air Force Sukhoi Su-24 on the Turkey-Syria border on 24 November 2015.[168] On 1 March 2020, two Syrian Sukhoi Su-24s were shot down by Turkish Air Force F-16s using air-to-air missiles over Syria's Idlib Governorate.[169] All four pilots safely ejected.[170] On 3 March 2020, a Syrian Arab Army Air Force L-39 combat trainer was shot down by a Turkish F-16 over Syria's Idlib province.[171] The pilot died.[172] As a part of Turkish F-16 modernization program new air-to-air missiles are being developed and tested for the aircraft. GÖKTUĞ program led by TUBITAK SAGE has presented two types of air-to-air missiles named as Bozdogan (Merlin) and Gokdogan (Peregrine). While Bozdogan has been categorized as a Within Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile (WVRAAM), Gokdogan is a Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile (BVRAAM). On 14 April 2021, first live test exercise of Bozdogan have successfully completed and the first batch of missiles are expected to be delivered throughout the same year to the Turkish Air Force.[173][174] Egypt On 16 February 2015, Egyptian F-16s struck weapons caches and training camps of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Libya in retaliation for the murder of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christian construction workers by masked militants affiliated with ISIS. The air strikes killed 64 ISIS fighters, including three leaders in Derna and Sirte on the coast.[175] Others See also: General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon operational history and General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon operators Iraqi Air Force F-16C The Royal Netherlands Air Force, Belgian Air Force, Royal Danish Air Force, Royal Norwegian Air Force, and Venezuela Air Force have flown the F-16 on combat missions.[176] A Yugoslavian MiG-29 was shot down by a Dutch F-16AM during the Kosovo War in 1999.[177] Belgian and Danish F-16s also participated in joint operations over Kosovo during the war.[177] Dutch, Belgian, Danish, and Norwegian F-16s were deployed during the 2011 intervention in Libya and in Afghanistan.[178] In Libya, Norwegian F-16s dropped almost 550 bombs and flew 596 missions,[179] some 17% of the total strike missions[180] including the bombing of Muammar Gaddafi's headquarters.[181] The Royal Moroccan Air Force and the Royal Bahraini Air Force each lost a single F-16C, both shot down by Houthis anti-aircraft fire during the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen, respectively on 11 May 2015 and on 30 December 2015.[182] In late March 2018, Croatia announced its intention to purchase 12 used Israeli F-16C/D "Barak"/"Brakeet" jets, pending U.S. approval.[183] Acquiring these F-16s would allow Croatia to retire its aging MiG-21s.[184] On 11 July 2018, Slovakia's government approved the purchase of 14 F-16s Block 70/72 to replace its aging fleet of Soviet-made MiG-29s.[185] A contract was signed on 12 December 2018 in Bratislava.[186] Potential operators In May 2023, an international coalition consisting of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark announced their intention to train Ukrainian jet pilots of the F-16 ahead of possible future deliveries. The United States confirmed that it would approve the re-export from these countries to Ukraine.[187] Denmark has agreed to help train Ukrainians on their usage of the fighter. Denmark’s acting Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said Denmark: "will now be able to move forward for a collective contribution to train Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16s".[188] On 6 July 2023, Romania announced that it will host the future training center after the meeting of the Supreme Council of National Defense.[189] During the 2023 Vilnius summit, a coalition was formed consisting of Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Ukraine. The Ukrainian pilots will start their training in Denmark at the end of the summer,[190] while the training center will become operational at the end of the year. The center will be organized by Romania, the Netherlands, and the company Draken International. It will be located at the Romanian Air Force's 86th Air Base.[191] On 17 August 2023, the US approved the transfer of F-16s from the Netherlands and Denmark to Ukraine after the Ukrainian pilots have completed their training.[192] The Bulgarian Air Force expects delivery of the first eight new F-16 Block 70s by 2025 and the second batch of 8 F-16 Block 70s is expected to arrive in 2027.[193] Variants Main article: General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon variants A Republic of China Air Force F-16A taking off from Chiashan Air Force Base. Venezuelan Air Force F-16B Testing of the F-35 diverterless supersonic inlet on an F-16 testbed. The original intake with Splitter plate shown in the top image. F-16 models are denoted by increasing block numbers to denote upgrades. The blocks cover both single- and two-seat versions. A variety of software, hardware, systems, weapons compatibility, and structural enhancements have been instituted over the years to gradually upgrade production models and retrofit delivered aircraft.[citation needed] While many F-16s were produced according to these block designs, there have been many other variants with significant changes, usually because of modification programs. Other changes have resulted in role-specialization, such as the close air support and reconnaissance variants. Several models were also developed to test new technology. The F-16 design also inspired the design of other aircraft, which are considered derivatives. Older F-16s are being converted into QF-16 drone targets.[194] F-16A/B The F-16A (single seat) and F-16B (two seat) were initial production variants. These variants include the Block 1, 5, 10, 15 and 20 versions. Block 15 was the first major change to the F-16 with larger horizontal stabilizers. It is the most numerous of all F-16 variants with 475 produced.[195] Many F-16A and B aircraft have been upgraded to the Mid-Life Upgrade (MLU) Block 20 standard, becoming functionally equivalent to mid-production C/D models.[citation needed] F-16C/D The F-16C (single seat) and F-16D (two seat) variants entered production in 1984. The first C/D version was the Block 25 with improved cockpit avionics and radar which added all-weather capability with beyond-visual-range (BVR) AIM-7 and AIM-120 air-air missiles. Block 30/32, 40/42, and 50/52 were later C/D versions.[196] The F-16C/D had a unit cost of US$18.8 million (1998).[67] Operational cost per flight hour has been estimated at $7,000[197] to $22,470[198] or $24,000, depending on the calculation method.[199][unreliable source?] United Arab Emirates Air Force F-16E Block 60 with the IFTS pod, CFTs, and various external armament taking off F-16E/F The F-16E (single seat) and F-16F (two seat) are newer F-16 Block 60 variants based on the F-16C/D Block 50/52. The United Arab Emirates invested heavily in their development. They feature improved AN/APG-80 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, avionics, conformal fuel tanks (CFTs), and the more powerful General Electric F110-GE-132 engine.[200][201][202][N 1] F-16IN For the Indian MRCA competition for the Indian Air Force, Lockheed Martin offered the F-16IN Super Viper.[205] The F-16IN is based on the F-16E/F Block 60 and features conformal fuel tanks; AN/APG-80 AESA radar, GE F110-GE-132A engine with FADEC controls; electronic warfare suite and infrared search and track (IRST) unit; updated glass cockpit; and a helmet-mounted cueing system.[206] As of 2011, the F-16IN is no longer in the competition.[207][unreliable source?] In 2016, Lockheed Martin offered the new F-16 Block 70/72 version to India under the Make in India program.[208][209] In 2016, Indian government offered to purchase 200 (potentially up to 300) fighters in a deal worth $13–15bn.[210] As of 2017, Lockheed Martin has agreed to manufacture F-16 Block 70 fighters in India with the Indian defense firm Tata Advanced Systems Limited. The new production line could be used to build F-16s for India and for exports.[211] F-16IQ In September 2010, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency informed the United States Congress of a possible Foreign Military Sale of 18 F-16IQ aircraft along with the associated equipment and services to the newly reformed Iraqi Air Force. The total value of sale was estimated at US$4.2 billion.[212] The Iraqi Air Force purchased those 18 jets in the second half of 2011, then later exercised an option to purchase 18 more for a total of 36 F-16IQs.[213] As of 2021, the Iraqi had lost two in accidents.[214] By 2023, the US government reported that these jets were Iraq's most capable airborne platforms with a 66 percent mission-capable rate. Their maintenance was being supported by private contractors. At the same time, Iraq's Russian-made systems were suffering from sanctions imposed in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.[215] F-16N The F-16N was an adversary aircraft operated by the United States Navy. It is based on the standard F-16C/D Block 30 and is powered by the General Electric F110-GE-100 engine, and is capable of supercruise.[216] The F-16N has a strengthened wing and is capable of carrying an Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI) pod on the starboard wingtip. Although the single-seat F-16Ns and twin-seat (T)F-16Ns are based on the early-production small-inlet Block 30 F-16C/D airframe, they retain the APG-66 radar of the F-16A/B. In addition, the aircraft's 20mm cannon has been removed, as has the airborne self-protection jammer (ASPJ), and they carry no missiles. Their EW fit consists of an ALR-69 radar warning receiver (RWR) and an ALE-40 chaff/flare dispenser. The F-16Ns and (T)F-16Ns have the standard Air Force tailhook and undercarriage and are not aircraft carrier capable. Production totaled 26 airframes, of which 22 are single-seat F-16Ns and four are twin-seat TF-16Ns. The initial batch of aircraft was in service between 1988 and 1998. At that time, hairline cracks were discovered in several bulkheads and the Navy did not have the resources to replace them, so the aircraft were eventually retired, with one aircraft sent to the collection of the National Naval Aviation Museum at NAS Pensacola, Florida, and the remainder placed in storage at Davis-Monthan AFB. These aircraft were later replaced by embargoed ex-Pakistani F-16s in 2003. The original inventory of F-16Ns was previously operated by adversary squadrons at NAS Oceana, Virginia; NAS Key West, Florida and the former NAS Miramar, California. The current F-16A/B aircraft are operated by the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center at NAS Fallon, Nevada.[217][218][219] F-16V At the 2012 Singapore Air Show, Lockheed Martin unveiled plans for the new F-16V variant with the V suffix for its Viper nickname. It features an AN/APG-83 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, a new mission computer and electronic warfare suite, an automated ground collision avoidance system, and various cockpit improvements; this package is an option on current production F-16s and can be retrofitted to most in service F-16s.[220][221] First flight took place 21 October 2015.[222] Taiwanese media reported that Taiwan and the U.S. both initially invested in the development of the F-16V.[223] Upgrades to Taiwan's F-16 fleet began in January 2017.[224] The first country to confirm the purchase of 16 new F-16 Block 70/72 was Bahrain.[225][226] Greece announced the upgrade of 84 F-16C/D Block 52+ and Block 52+ Advanced (Block 52M) to the latest V (Block 70/72) variant in October 2017.[227][228] Slovakia announced on 11 July 2018 that it intends to purchase 14 F-16 Block 70/72 aircraft.[229][230] Lockheed Martin has redesignated the F-16V Block 70 as the "F-21" in its offering for India's fighter requirement.[231] Taiwan's Republic of China Air Force announced on 19 March 2019 that it formally requested the purchase of an additional 66 F-16V fighters.[232] The Trump administration approved the sale on 20 August 2019.[233][234] On 14 August 2020, Lockheed Martin was awarded a US$62 billion contract by the US DoD[235] that includes 66 new F-16s at US$8 billion for Taiwan.[236] USAF QF-16A, on its first unmanned test flight, over the Gulf of Mexico QF-16 In September 2013, Boeing and the U.S. Air Force tested an unmanned F-16, with two US Air Force pilots controlling the airplane from the ground as it flew from Tyndall AFB over the Gulf of Mexico.[237][238][239] Related developments Vought Model 1600 Proposed naval variant General Dynamics F-16XL 1980s technology demonstrator General Dynamics NF-16D VISTA 1990s experimental fighter Mitsubishi F-2 1990s Japanese multi-role fighter based on the F-16 Operators   Current operators   Former operators   Future operators F-16C Block 52 of the Hellenic Air Force with conformal fuel tanks and Advanced IFF (AIFF) Main article: General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon operators By July 2010, there had been 4,500 F-16s delivered.[240]  Bahrain  Belgium  Chile  Denmark  Egypt  Greece  Indonesia  Iraq  Israel  Jordan  Morocco  Netherlands  Oman  Pakistan  Poland  Portugal  Romania  Singapore  South Korea  Taiwan  Thailand  Turkey  United Arab Emirates  United States  Venezuela Former operators  Italy – Italian Air Force leased up to 30 F-16As and 4 F-16Bs from the USAF from 2001 until 2012.[241]  Norway – Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) on 6 January 2022, Norway announced that all F-16s had been retired and replaced with the F-35.[242] The RNoAF sold 32 of their F-16s to Romania, with the remaining operational aircraft being donated to Ukraine.[243][244][245] Future operators  Bulgaria - On 3 June 2019, the US State Department approved the possible sale of 8 F-16 Block 70s to Bulgaria.[246] On 26 July the deal was approved by the Bulgarian parliament, and President Rumen Radev.[247] In November 2022, the purchase of a further 8 F-16 Block 70 fighters, spares, weapons and other systems was approved for delivery in 2027.[248]  Slovakia - On 12 December 2018, the contract to acquire 14 F-16 Block 70/72s was officially signed by Slovakian Minister of Defense Peter Gajdos. Deliveries are scheduled to start in 2022.[249][250]  Ukraine - On 20 August 2023, Denmark and the Netherlands announced the joint transfer of up to 61 F-16s to the Ukrainian Air Force.[251][252] Four days later, Norway announced the donation of 5-10 aircraft, depending on how many can be made operational.[245] Notable accidents and incidents See also: United States Air Force Thunderbirds § Accidents A U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds pilot ejects from the F-16 just before impact at an air show in September 2003. The F-16 has been involved in over 670 hull-loss accidents as of January 2020.[253][254] On 8 May 1975, while practicing a 9-g aerial display maneuver with the second YF-16 (tail number 72-1568) at Fort Worth, Texas, prior to being sent to the Paris Air Show, one of the main landing gears jammed. The test pilot, Neil Anderson, had to perform an emergency gear-up landing and chose to do so in the grass, hoping to minimize damage and avoid injuring any observers. The aircraft was only slightly damaged, but because of the mishap, the first prototype was sent to the Paris Air Show in its place.[255] On 15 November 1982, while on a training flight outside Kunsan Air Base in South Korea, USAF Captain Ted Harduvel died when he crashed inverted into a mountain ridge. In 1985, Harduvel's widow filed a lawsuit against General Dynamics claiming an electrical malfunction, not pilot error, as the cause; a jury awarded the plaintiff $3.4 million in damages. However, in 1989, the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled the contractor had immunity to lawsuits, overturning the previous judgment. The court remanded the case to the trial court "for entry of judgment in favor of General Dynamics".[256] The accident and subsequent trial was the subject of the 1992 film Afterburn.[257][258] On 23 March 1994, during a joint Army-Air Force exercise at Pope AFB, North Carolina, F-16D (AF Serial No. 88-0171) of the 23d Fighter Wing / 74th Fighter Squadron was simulating an engine-out approach when it collided with a USAF C-130E. Both F-16 crew members ejected, but their aircraft, on full afterburner, continued on an arc towards Green Ramp and struck a USAF C-141 that was being boarded by US Army paratroopers. This accident resulted in 24 fatalities and at least 100 others injured.[259] It has since been known as the "Green Ramp disaster".[260] On 15 September 2003, a USAF Thunderbirds F-16C crashed during an air show at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho. Captain Christopher Stricklin attempted a "split S" maneuver based on an incorrect mean-sea-level altitude of the airfield. Climbing to only 1,670 ft (510 m) above ground level instead of 2,500 ft (760 m), Stricklin had insufficient altitude to complete the maneuver, but was able to guide the aircraft away from spectators and ejected less than one second before impact. Stricklin survived with only minor injuries; the aircraft was destroyed. USAF procedure for demonstration "Split-S" maneuvers was changed, requiring both pilots and controllers to use above-ground-level (AGL) altitudes.[261][262] On 26 January 2015, a Greek F-16D crashed while performing a NATO training exercise in Albacete, Spain. Both crew members and nine French soldiers on the ground died when it crashed in the flight line, destroying or damaging two Italian AMXs, two French Alpha jets, and one French Mirage 2000.[263][264] Investigations suggested that the accident was due to an erroneous rudder setting that was caused by loose papers in the cockpit.[265] On 7 July 2015, an F-16CJ collided with a Cessna 150M over Moncks Corner, South Carolina, U.S. The pilot of the F-16 ejected safely, but both people in the Cessna were killed.[266] On 11 October 2018, an F-16 MLU from the 2nd Tactical Wing of the Belgian Air Component, on the apron at Florennes Air Station, was hit by a gun burst from a nearby F-16, whose cannon was fired inadvertently during maintenance. The aircraft caught fire and was burned to the ground, while two other F-16s were damaged and two maintenance personnel were treated for aural trauma.[267] On 11 March 2020, a Pakistani F-16AM (Serial No. 92730) belonging to the No. 9 Squadron (Pakistan Air Force) crashed in the Shakarparian area of Islamabad during rehearsals for the Pakistan Day Parade. The plane crashed when the F-16 was executing an aerobatic loop. As a result, the pilot of the F-16, Wing Commander Noman Akram, who was also the Commanding Officer of the No. 9 Squadron "Griffins", lost his life. A board of inquiry ordered by the Pakistan Air Force later revealed that the pilot had every chance to eject but opted not to and tried his best to save the aircraft and avoid civilian casualties on the ground. Videos taken by locals on the ground show his F-16AM crashing into some woods. He was hailed a hero by Pakistanis while also gaining some attention internationally.[268] Specifications (F-16C Block 50 and 52) 3-view drawing of an F-16 The underside of an F-16 during a vertical climb F-16 in afterburner Weapons Storage and Security System vault in raised position holding a B61 nuclear bomb, adjacent to an F-16. The vault is within a Protective Aircraft Shelter. An Israeli F-16I Block 52 with conformal fuel tanks (CFTs), electronic countermeasures, and other external stores during a Red Flag exercise at Nellis AFB, Nevada Data from USAF sheet,[67] International Directory of Military Aircraft,[76] Flight Manual for F-16C/D Block 50/52+[269] General characteristics Crew: 1 Length: 49 ft 5 in (15.06 m) Wingspan: 32 ft 8 in (9.96 m) Height: 16 ft (4.9 m) Wing area: 300 sq ft (28 m2) Airfoil: NACA 64A204[270] Empty weight: 18,900 lb (8,573 kg) Gross weight: 26,500 lb (12,020 kg) Max takeoff weight: 42,300 lb (19,187 kg) Fuel capacity: 7,000 pounds (3,200 kg) internal[67] Powerplant: 1 × General Electric F110-GE-129 for Block 50 aircraft , 17,155 lbf (76.31 kN) thrust dry, 29,500 lbf (131 kN) with afterburner (1 × Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229 for Block 52 aircraft, 17,800 lbf (79 kN) thrust dry and 29,160 lbf (129.7 kN) with afterburner.) Performance Maximum speed: Mach 2.05, 1,176 kn (1,353 mph; 2,178 km/h) at 40,000 feet, clean[76] Mach 1.2, 800 kn (921 mph; 1,482 km/h) at sea level[76] Combat range: 295 nmi (339 mi, 546 km) on a hi-lo-hi mission with 4 × 1,000 lb (454 kg) bombs Ferry range: 2,277 nmi (2,620 mi, 4,217 km) with drop tanks Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,000 m) [67] g limits: +9.0 Roll rate: 324°/s[271] Wing loading: 88.3 lb/sq ft (431 kg/m2) Thrust/weight: 1.095 (1.24 with loaded weight & 50% internal fuel)[N 2] Armament Guns: 1 × 20 mm (0.787 in) M61A1 Vulcan 6-barrel rotary cannon, 511 rounds Hardpoints: 2 × wing-tip air-to-air missile launch rails, 6 × under-wing, and 3 × under-fuselage pylon (2 of 3 for sensors) stations with a capacity of up to 17,000 lb (7,700 kg) of stores Rockets: 4 × LAU-61/LAU-68 rocket pods (each with 19/7 × Hydra 70 mm/APKWS[272] rockets, respectively) 4 × LAU-5003 rocket pods (each with 19 × CRV7 70 mm rockets) 4 × LAU-10 rocket pods (each with 4 × Zuni 127 mm rockets) Missiles: Air-to-air missiles: 6 × AIM-9 Sidewinder 6 × AIM-120 AMRAAM 6 × IRIS-T 6 × Python-4 6 × Python-5 Air-to-surface missiles: 6 × AGM-65 Maverick 2 × AGM-88 HARM AGM-158 JASSM (JASSM) 4 × AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) Anti-ship missiles: 2 × AGM-84 Harpoon 4 × AGM-119 Penguin Joint Strike Missile (To be integrated) Bombs: 8 × CBU-87 Combined Effects Munition 8 × CBU-89 Gator mine 8 × CBU-97 Sensor Fuzed Weapon 4 × Mark 84 general-purpose bombs 8 × Mark 83 GP bombs 12 × Mark 82 GP bombs 8 × GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) 4 × GBU-10 Paveway II 6 × GBU-12 Paveway II 4 × GBU-24 Paveway III 4 × GBU-27 Paveway III 4 × Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) series Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser (WCMD) B61 nuclear bomb B83 nuclear bomb Others: SUU-42A/A flares/infrared decoys dispenser pod and chaff pod or AN/ALQ-131 & AN/ALQ-184 ECM pods on centerline or LANTIRN, Lockheed Martin Sniper XR & Litening targeting pods or AN/ASQ-213 HARM targeting system (HTS) Pod (typically configured on station 5L with Sniper XR pod on station 5R) or Up to 3 × 300/330/370/600 US gallon Sargent Fletcher drop tanks for ferry flight/extended range/loitering time or UTC Aerospace DB-110 long range EO/IR sensor pod on centerline Avionics AN/APG-68 radar, being replaced on US Air Force F-16C/D Block 40/42 and 50/52 by AN/APG-83 AESA radar[273][274] AN/ALR-56M radar warning receiver, being replaced on US Air Force F-16C/D Block 40/42 and 50/52 by AN/ALR-69A(V) AN/ALQ-213 electronic warfare suite, being replaced on US Air Force F-16C/D Block 40/42 and 50/52 by AN/ALQ-257 MIL-STD-1553 bus[275] Notable appearances in media Main article: Aircraft in fiction § F-16 Fighting Falcon See also     Aviation portal 4th generation jet fighter Green Ramp disaster David S. Lewis (General Dynamics' CEO during formative period for F-16) RSAF Black Knights – F-16 Aerobatic Team Related development Vought Model 1600 General Dynamics F-16XL General Dynamics X-62 VISTA AIDC F-CK-1 Ching-kuo KAI T-50 Golden Eagle Mitsubishi F-2 Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Chengdu J-10 Dassault Mirage 2000 McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet Mikoyan MiG-29 PAC/CAC JF-17 Thunder Saab JAS 39 Gripen Related lists List of active United States military aircraft List of fighter aircraft References Citations  Weisgerber, Marcus (22 March 2007). "Lockheed to Move F-16 Production to South Carolina". Defense One. Archived from the original on 23 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.  "How the F-16 fighter jet put Fort Worth on the aerospace map". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Archived from the original on 24 November 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2017.  "Lockheed Martin Awarded Contract to Build F-16 Block 70 Aircraft for Bahrain". Archived from the original on 29 June 2018. 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Hoh, Roger H.; Mitchell, David G. (September 1983). Flying Qualities of Relaxed Static Stability Aircraft – Volume I: Flying Qualities Airworthiness Assessment and Flight Testing of Augmented Aircraft. Federal Aviation Administration. ADA128758. Retrieved 16 June 2008. Jenkins, Dennis R. (2000). F/A-18 Hornet: A Navy Success Story (First ed.). New York: McGraww-Hill. ISBN 9780071346962. Peacock, Lindsay (1997). On Falcon Wings: The F-16 Story (Paperback). RAF Fairford, United Kingdom: Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund Enterprises. ISBN 9781899808014. Richardson, Doug (1990). General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon. London: Salamander Books. ISBN 9780861015344. Senior, Tim (2002). The AirForces Monthly Book of the F-16 Fighting Falcon. Stamford, UK: Key Books Ltd. ISBN 9780946219605. Spick, Mike (2000). The Great Book of Modern Warplanes. St. Paul, MN: MBI Publishing Company. ISBN 9780760308936. Further reading Drendel, Lou. F-16 Fighting Falcon – Walk Around No. 1. Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Books, 1993. ISBN 0-89747-307-8. Gunston, Bill. United States Military Aircraft of the 20th century London: Salamander Books Ltd, 1984. ISBN 0-86101-163-5. Jenkins, Dennis R. McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, Supreme Heavy-Weight Fighter. Arlington, Texas: Aerofax, 1998. ISBN 1-85780-081-8. Sweetman, Bill. Supersonic Fighters: The F-16 Fighting Falcons. Mankato, Minnesota: Capstone Press, 2008. ISBN 1-4296-1315-7. Williams, Anthony G. and Dr. Emmanuel Gustin. Flying Guns: The Modern Era. Ramsbury, UK: The Crowood Press, 2004. ISBN 1-86126-655-3. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to F-16 Fighting Falcon. F-16 USAF fact sheet F-16 page on LockheedMartin.com and F-16 articles on Code One magazine site F-16.net Fighting Falcon resource vte Lockheed and Lockheed Martin aircraft and spacecraft Transports     Constellation family     ConstellationL-049L-649L-749L-1049L-1249L-1649 StarlinerC-69C-121EC-121R6VXB-30 Hercules family     C-130C-130JAC-130DC-130HC-130EC-130 EC-130HKC-130LC-130MC-130WC-130L-100 Model 10 Electra family     Model 10Electra JuniorLodestarHudsonSuper ElectraVentura L-188 Electra family     L-188P-3EP-3CP-140P-7 Other types     Air ExpressAltairC-5C-141ExcaliburJetStarL-1011L-2000OrionSaturnSiriusTriStar RAFVegaVega Starliner Fighter-bombers     Lightning family     P-38XP-49XP-58 Shooting Star family     F-80F-94T-33T2V Starfighter family     XF-104F-104NF-104ACL-288CL-1200 Raptor family     YF-22F-22FB-22X-44 MANTA Other types     A-4ARA-9F-16F-21F-35F-117XFM-2XF-90YP-24 Reconnaissance     Blackbird family     A-12SR-71 BlackbirdYF-12M-21D-21 Maritime patrol     P-2 NeptuneS-3 Viking Other crewed     CL-400U-2YO-3 Quiet StarTR-X Other UAVs     AequareAQM-60Cormorant (UAV)Desert HawkDesert Hawk IIIFuryMQM-105PolecatRQ-3RQ-170SR-72X-44 (UAV) Trainers     T-33T2VT-50A Helicopters     CL-475XH-51AH-56 CheyenneVH-71 KestrelVH-92 Patriot Experimental     Have BlueL-133L-301Senior PegSenior PromStar ClipperXC-35X-7X-17X-24CX-26BX-33X-35X-55X-56X-59XFVXV-4 Light aircraft     Big DipperExplorerL-402Little Dipper Missiles     AgenaHigh VirgoPerseusPing-PongPolarisPoseidonTrident ITrident II Engines     J37/T35 Model numbers     123456178 A/D910111213114151617118192021222324251262728129303132333435361373813914041424445495051526061627580818283848586878889909192939499100104105122129133136137140141144149170171182185186188189193199200204206207210212222244245246249282 (I)282 (II)285286288293295296298300301320322325329330331346349351379380382389400 (I)400 (II)402407414422437449475480489500520522549580595622645649680685704749760780785822823840849880901915934949977980981984985995100010101011102010261049 A10601080109011321149119512001201123512361237124913291400144915491600164917001800198020002329 Vega     123141567–1011112–141151611718191201212223242512627–3213334353613738139140414243 1 Not assigned vte Convair and General Dynamics aircraft Manufacturer designations     (numbering continued from Vultee): 100101102103104105106108109110111112115116117118200 12345678/8-249112122232427303148 240300340440540580600640 Bombers     B-36XA-44XB-46XB-53B-58YB-60 Fighters and attack aircraft     XP-81XF-92F-102F-106XFYF2YCharger Civilian transports     3758-91102403003404405405806006408809905800 Military transports     XC-99C-131R3YR4YT-29 Experimental aircraft     KingfishNB-36HX-6 General Dynamics     F-111F-111BF-111CF-111KEF-111AAFTI/F-111AF-16F-16XLX-62 VISTAModel 100Model 1600RB-57FYF-22 vte General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon family and related aircraft Experimental and prototypes     F-16XLX-62 VISTA Derivatives     AIDC F-CK-1 Ching-kuoKAI T-50 Golden EagleMitsubishi F-2Vought Model 1600 Competitions     Enhanced Tactical FighterLightweight Fighter programNew Fighter Aircraft Project Notable aircraft     Netz 107 Topics     Accidents and incidents Belgian UFO wave (1990)1996 Turkish F-16 shootdown2015 Moncks Corner mid-air collisionIn fiction Falcon (series)OperatorsOperational historyVariants vte USAAS/USAAC/USAAF/USAF fighter designations 1924–1962, and Tri-Service post-1962 systems 1924 sequences (1924–1962)     Pursuit (1924–1948)     P-1P-2P-3P-43 Curtiss P-4Boeing P-4P-5P-6P-7P-8P-9P-10P-11P-12P-13P-14P-15P-16P-17P-18P-19P-20P-21P-22P-23P-24P-25P-26P-27P-28P-29P-30P-31P-32P-33P-34P-35P-36P-37P-38P-39 EP-40P-41P-42P-43P-44P-45P-46P-47P-48P-49P-50P-51P-52P-53P-54P-55P-56P-57P-58P-593 XP-59P-59P-60P-61P-62P-63P-64P-65P-66P-67P-68P-69P-70P-71P-72P-732P-741P-75P-76P-77P-78P-79P-80P-81P-82P-83P-84P-85P-86P-87P-88P-89P-90P-91P-92 Fighter (1948–1962)     F-38F-39F-40F-47F-51F-59F-61 RF-61CF-63F-80F-81F-82F-83F-84 F/JHF-85F-86 CD/G/K/LF-87F-88F-89F-90F-91F-92F-93F-94F-95F-96F-97F-98F-99F-100 BF-101F-102 BF-103F-104 SXF-104NF-104AF-105F-1063 XF-106F-106F-107F-108F-1092F-110F-111 BCKAFTIEF-111A Pursuit, Biplace     PB-1PB-2PB-3 Fighter, Multiplace     FM-1FM-2 Non-sequential     F-24P-322P-400 Tri-service sequence (1962–present)     Main sequence     F-1 C/DE/FF-2F-3F-4 K/MF-5 GF-6F-7F-8F-9 F/G/H/JF-10F-11F-12 C2F-131F-14F-15 EEXJSTOL/MTDF-16 XLVISTAF-17F-18 E/FGF-191F-20F-21F-22 YF-22FB-22F-23 Non-sequential     F-35 IX-35F-117 Covert designations     YF-110 B/DCYF-113 (I) AYF-113 (II) B/DYF-113 (III) CYF-114 C/DYF-117 ADYF-118 Related designations     FV-12 1 Not assigned  • 2 Unofficial  • 3 Assigned to multiple types See also: "F-19"  • 1919-1924 sequence vte United States Air Force system numbers 100–199     100101 P1021031041051061107 A-1A-21081109111011111121131114111511161117 LM118 ALP119 C/FELTY1201211221231241251261271128129130131132 AB1331341135136113711381391401411142143–1971198199 BCDY 200–299     200201 A/LB/WE202203120420520620712082091210211121221321421512162172182191220221222 AG22312242251226227–2381239240–2781279280–2981299 300–399     300301130230330413051306 A/LB3073083093101311131213131314315 A-1A-2316317318131932013213221323324 LM/N325326327 E328 E329 F33013311332133313341335336337338–3791380 A/B/E/F/NP381–3971398399 AB 400–499     400 B/C/NEG/HM4014024031404405 BCD406140740814091410 EL411 EL412413414 LM415416 LM (I)M (II)PQ417418 LM4191420 L/W4211422423424425426 LM427 LM428 AL429430431 G (I)G (II)432433434435 AL436437438439440441 ADL4424434441445 LM44644744814491450451 DL45245345414554564571458459460 L461462463464465466467468469470471 L (I)L (II)472473474 LN4751476 E477478 AT4791480481 L482 ELM/Z483484 LMN485 LZ486487488489490 LM4911492493494495 L (I)L (II)496497 AL (I)L498 ACDEL499 ACD 500–599     500501–5191520521–5291530531–5411542543–5491550 AE551–5591560 AF561–5691570571–5791580 AE581–5891590591592593–5991 600–699     600601 AL602 AL603 AL60460560660760816096101611161216131614615161661716186191620621 A/B (I)B (II)62262362462562616276281629163016311632633634 AB635636163716386396406416426436441645164616471648 ADP649 ABCDEFLP65065165265316541655 A (I)A (II)P65665716581659166066166216631664665 A (I)A (II)666 AC/P66766866916706711672 AM/P6731674675676167716781679680681 DE6821683 AJV6841685686687 JP68816891690691 CXZ69216936941695 ABCLNPQRS (I)S (II)6961697169816991 700–799     700–735173673717381739174017417427437441745746–7531754755–7991 800–899     80018011802 L (I)L (II)803180418051806807808–816181781818191820182118221823824–83118328331834835–8451846847–8991 900–999     900–9511952853185418551956957–9671968 1 Unknown or not assigned vte Royal Thai Armed Forces fighter designations B.Kh (Fighter)     B.Kh.1B.Kh.2 (I)B.Kh.2 (II)B.Kh.2 (III)B.Kh.2 (IV)B.Kh.3 (I)B.Kh.3 (II)B.Kh.4B.Kh.5B.Kh.6B.Kh.7B.Kh.8B.Kh.9B.Kh.10B.Kh.11B.Kh.12B.Kh.13B.Kh.14B.Kh.15B.Kh.16B.Kh.17 KB.Kh.18B.Kh.19B.Kh.20 (I)B.Kh.20 (II) Related designations     B.KhF.1B.KhF.2 Authority control Edit this at Wikidata National     GermanyIsraelUnited States Other     NARA Categories: Mid-wing aircraftGeneral Dynamics aircraftLockheed Martin aircraft1970s United States fighter aircraftSingle-engined jet aircraftRelaxed-stability aircraftGeneral Dynamics F-16 Fighting FalconAircraft first flown in 1974Fourth-generation jet fighter General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon Article Talk Read Edit View history Tools From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "F16" and "F-16 Fighting Falcon" redirect here. For the video game, see Falcon (video game series). For other uses, see F16 (disambiguation). F-16 Fighting Falcon Aerial view of jet aircraft, carrying cylindrical fuel tanks and ordnance, overflying desert A USAF F-16C flying over the desert in Iraq, 2008 Role    Multirole fighter, air superiority fighter National origin    United States Manufacturer     General Dynamics (1974–1993) Lockheed Corporation (1993–1995) Lockheed Martin (1995–present) First flight     20 January 1974; 49 years ago (unplanned) 2 February 1974; 49 years ago (official) Introduction    17 August 1978; 45 years ago Status    In service Primary users    United States Air Force 25 other users (see operators page) Produced    1973–2017, 2019–present[1] Number built    4,604 (June 2018)[2][3] Variants    General Dynamics X-62 VISTA Developed into     Vought Model 1600 General Dynamics F-16XL Mitsubishi F-2 The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful all-weather multirole aircraft. Over 4,600 aircraft have been built since production was approved in 1976.[4] Although no longer being purchased by the U.S. Air Force, improved versions are being built for export customers. In 1993, General Dynamics sold its aircraft manufacturing business to the Lockheed Corporation,[5] which in turn became part of Lockheed Martin after a 1995 merger with Martin Marietta.[6] The Fighting Falcon's key features include a frameless bubble canopy for good visibility, side-mounted control stick to ease control while maneuvering, an ejection seat reclined 30 degrees from vertical to reduce the effect of g-forces on the pilot, and the first use of a relaxed static stability/fly-by-wire flight control system that helps to make it an agile aircraft. The F-16 has an internal M61 Vulcan cannon and 11 hardpoints. In addition to active duty in the U.S. Air Force, Air Force Reserve Command, and Air National Guard units, the aircraft is also used by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds aerial demonstration team, the US Combat Air Command F-16 Viper Demonstration Team,[7] and as an adversary/aggressor aircraft by the United States Navy. The F-16 has also been procured to serve in the air forces of 25 other nations.[8] As of 2015, it was the world's most numerous fixed-wing aircraft in military service.[9] Development Lightweight Fighter program Main article: Lightweight Fighter program US Vietnam War experience showed the need for air superiority fighters and better air-to-air training for fighter pilots.[10] Based on his experience in the Korean War and as a fighter tactics instructor in the early 1960s, Colonel John Boyd with mathematician Thomas Christie developed the energy–maneuverability theory to model a fighter aircraft's performance in combat. Boyd's work called for a small, lightweight aircraft that could maneuver with the minimum possible energy loss and which also incorporated an increased thrust-to-weight ratio.[11][12] In the late 1960s, Boyd gathered a group of like-minded innovators who became known as the Fighter Mafia, and in 1969, they secured Department of Defense funding for General Dynamics and Northrop to study design concepts based on the theory.[13][14] Air Force F-X proponents were opposed to the concept because they perceived it as a threat to the F-15 program, but the USAF's leadership understood that its budget would not allow it to purchase enough F-15 aircraft to satisfy all of its missions.[15] The Advanced Day Fighter concept, renamed F-XX, gained civilian political support under the reform-minded Deputy Secretary of Defense David Packard, who favored the idea of competitive prototyping. As a result, in May 1971, the Air Force Prototype Study Group was established, with Boyd a key member, and two of its six proposals would be funded, one being the Lightweight Fighter (LWF). The request for proposals issued on 6 January 1972 called for a 20,000-pound (9,100 kg) class air-to-air day fighter with a good turn rate, acceleration, and range, and optimized for combat at speeds of Mach 0.6–1.6 and altitudes of 30,000–40,000 feet (9,100–12,000 m). This was the region where USAF studies predicted most future air combat would occur. The anticipated average flyaway cost of a production version was $3 million. This production plan was hypothetical as the USAF had no firm plans to procure the winner.[16][17] Selection of finalists and flyoff Two jet aircraft flying together over mountain range and cloud A right-side view of a YF-16 (foreground) and a Northrop YF-17, each armed with AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles Five companies responded, and in 1972, the Air Staff selected General Dynamics' Model 401 and Northrop's P-600 for the follow-on prototype development and testing phase. GD and Northrop were awarded contracts worth $37.9 million and $39.8 million to produce the YF-16 and YF-17, respectively, with the first flights of both prototypes planned for early 1974. To overcome resistance in the Air Force hierarchy, the Fighter Mafia and other LWF proponents[which?] successfully advocated the idea of complementary fighters in a high-cost/low-cost force mix.[18] The "high/low mix" would allow the USAF to be able to afford sufficient fighters for its overall fighter force structure requirements. The mix gained broad acceptance by the time of the prototypes' fly-off, defining the relationship between the LWF and the F-15.[19][20] The YF-16 was developed by a team of General Dynamics engineers led by Robert H. Widmer.[21] The first YF-16 was rolled out on 13 December 1973. Its 90-minute maiden flight was made at the Air Force Flight Test Center at Edwards AFB, California, on 2 February 1974. Its actual first flight occurred accidentally during a high-speed taxi test on 20 January 1974. While gathering speed, a roll-control oscillation caused a fin of the port-side wingtip-mounted missile and then the starboard stabilator to scrape the ground, and the aircraft then began to veer off the runway. The test pilot, Phil Oestricher, decided to lift off to avoid a potential crash, safely landing six minutes later. The slight damage was quickly repaired and the official first flight occurred on time.[22] The YF-16's first supersonic flight was accomplished on 5 February 1974, and the second YF-16 prototype first flew on 9 May 1974. This was followed by the first flights of Northrop's YF-17 prototypes on 9 June and 21 August 1974, respectively. During the fly-off, the YF-16s completed 330 sorties for a total of 417 flight hours;[23] the YF-17s flew 288 sorties, covering 345 hours.[24] Air Combat Fighter competition Increased interest turned the LWF into a serious acquisition program. NATO allies Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands, and Norway were seeking to replace their F-104G Starfighter fighter-bombers.[25] In early 1974, they reached an agreement with the U.S. that if the USAF ordered the LWF winner, they would consider ordering it as well. The USAF also needed to replace its F-105 Thunderchief and F-4 Phantom II fighter-bombers. The U.S. Congress sought greater commonality in fighter procurements by the Air Force and Navy, and in August 1974 redirected Navy funds to a new Navy Air Combat Fighter program that would be a naval fighter-bomber variant of the LWF. The four NATO allies had formed the Multinational Fighter Program Group (MFPG) and pressed for a U.S. decision by December 1974; thus, the USAF accelerated testing.[26][27][28] YF-16 on display at the Virginia Air and Space Center To reflect this serious intent to procure a new fighter-bomber, the LWF program was rolled into a new Air Combat Fighter (ACF) competition in an announcement by U.S. Secretary of Defense James R. Schlesinger in April 1974. The ACF would not be a pure fighter, but multirole, and Schlesinger made it clear that any ACF order would be in addition to the F-15, which extinguished opposition to the LWF.[27][28][29] ACF also raised the stakes for GD and Northrop because it brought in competitors intent on securing what was touted at the time as "the arms deal of the century".[30] These were Dassault-Breguet's proposed Mirage F1M-53, the Anglo-French SEPECAT Jaguar, and the proposed Saab 37E "Eurofighter". Northrop offered the P-530 Cobra, which was similar to the YF-17. The Jaguar and Cobra were dropped by the MFPG early on, leaving two European and two U.S. candidates. On 11 September 1974, the U.S. Air Force confirmed plans to order the winning ACF design to equip five tactical fighter wings. Though computer modeling predicted a close contest, the YF-16 proved significantly quicker going from one maneuver to the next and was the unanimous choice of those pilots that flew both aircraft.[31] On 13 January 1975, Secretary of the Air Force John L. McLucas announced the YF-16 as the winner of the ACF competition.[32] The chief reasons given by the secretary were the YF-16's lower operating costs, greater range, and maneuver performance that was "significantly better" than that of the YF-17, especially at supersonic speeds. Another advantage of the YF-16 – unlike the YF-17 – was its use of the Pratt & Whitney F100 turbofan engine, the same powerplant used by the F-15; such commonality would lower the cost of engines for both programs.[33] Secretary McLucas announced that the USAF planned to order at least 650, possibly up to 1,400 production F-16s. In the Navy Air Combat Fighter competition, on 2 May 1975, the Navy selected the YF-17 as the basis for what would become the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet.[34][35] Production Upright aerial photo of gray jet aircraft flying above clouds An F-16C of the Colorado Air National Guard with AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles, an Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation pod, and a centerline fuel tank (300 US gal or 1,100 L capacity) The U.S. Air Force initially ordered 15 full-scale development (FSD) aircraft (11 single-seat and four two-seat models) for its flight test program which was reduced to eight (six F-16A single-seaters and two F-16B two-seaters).[36] The YF-16 design was altered for the production F-16. The fuselage was lengthened by 10.6 in (0.269 m), a larger nose radome was fitted for the AN/APG-66 radar, wing area was increased from 280 sq ft (26 m2) to 300 sq ft (28 m2), the tailfin height was decreased, the ventral fins were enlarged, two more stores stations were added, and a single door replaced the original nosewheel double doors. The F-16's weight was increased by 25% over the YF-16 by these modifications.[37][38] The FSD F-16s were manufactured by General Dynamics in Fort Worth, Texas, at United States Air Force Plant 4 in late 1975; the first F-16A rolled out on 20 October 1976 and first flew on 8 December. The initial two-seat model achieved its first flight on 8 August 1977. The initial production-standard F-16A flew for the first time on 7 August 1978 and its delivery was accepted by the USAF on 6 January 1979. The aircraft entered USAF operational service with the 34th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 388th Tactical Fighter Wing, at Hill AFB in Utah, on 1 October 1980.[39] The F-16 was given its name of "Fighting Falcon" on 21 July 1980. Its pilots and crews often use the name "Viper" instead, because of a perceived resemblance to a viper snake as well as to the fictional Colonial Viper starfighter from the television program Battlestar Galactica, which aired at the time the F-16 entered service.[40][41] On 7 June 1975, the four European partners, now known as the European Participation Group, signed up for 348 aircraft at the Paris Air Show. This was split among the European Participation Air Forces (EPAF) as 116 for Belgium, 58 for Denmark, 102 for the Netherlands, and 72 for Norway. Two European production lines, one in the Netherlands at Fokker's Schiphol-Oost facility and the other at SABCA's Gosselies plant in Belgium, would produce 184 and 164 units respectively. Norway's Kongsberg Vaapenfabrikk and Denmark's Terma A/S also manufactured parts and subassemblies for EPAF aircraft. European co-production was officially launched on 1 July 1977 at the Fokker factory. Beginning in November 1977, Fokker-produced components were sent to Fort Worth for fuselage assembly, then shipped back to Europe for final assembly of EPAF aircraft at the Belgian plant on 15 February 1978; deliveries to the Belgian Air Force began in January 1979. The first Royal Netherlands Air Force aircraft was delivered in June 1979. In 1980, the first aircraft were delivered to the Royal Norwegian Air Force by SABCA and to the Royal Danish Air Force by Fokker.[42][43] During the late 1980s and 1990s, Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) produced 232 Block 30/40/50 F-16s on a production line in Ankara under license for the Turkish Air Force. TAI also produced 46 Block 40s for Egypt in the mid-1990s and 30 Block 50s from 2010 onwards. Korean Aerospace Industries opened a production line for the KF-16 program, producing 140 Block 52s from the mid-1990s to mid-2000s (decade). If India had selected the F-16IN for its Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft procurement, a sixth F-16 production line would have been built in India.[44] In May 2013, Lockheed Martin stated there were currently enough orders to keep producing the F-16 until 2017.[45] Improvements and upgrades One change made during production was augmented pitch control to avoid deep stall conditions at high angles of attack. The stall issue had been raised during development but had originally been discounted. Model tests of the YF-16 conducted by the Langley Research Center revealed a potential problem, but no other laboratory was able to duplicate it. YF-16 flight tests were not sufficient to expose the issue; later flight testing on the FSD aircraft demonstrated a real concern. In response, the area of each horizontal stabilizer was increased by 25% on the Block 15 aircraft in 1981 and later retrofitted to earlier aircraft. In addition, a manual override switch to disable the horizontal stabilizer flight limiter was prominently placed on the control console, allowing the pilot to regain control of the horizontal stabilizers (which the flight limiters otherwise lock in place) and recover. Besides reducing the risk of deep stalls, the larger horizontal tail also improved stability and permitted faster takeoff rotation.[46][47] In the 1980s, the Multinational Staged Improvement Program (MSIP) was conducted to evolve the F-16's capabilities, mitigate risks during technology development, and ensure the aircraft's worth. The program upgraded the F-16 in three stages. The MSIP process permitted the quick introduction of new capabilities, at lower costs and with reduced risks compared to traditional independent upgrade programs.[48] In 2012, the USAF had allocated $2.8 billion to upgrade 350 F-16s while waiting for the F-35 to enter service.[49] One key upgrade has been an auto-GCAS (Ground collision avoidance system) to reduce instances of controlled flight into terrain.[50] Onboard power and cooling capacities limit the scope of upgrades, which often involve the addition of more power-hungry avionics.[51] Lockheed won many contracts to upgrade foreign operators' F-16s. BAE Systems also offers various F-16 upgrades, receiving orders from South Korea, Oman, Turkey, and the US Air National Guard;[52][53][54] BAE lost the South Korean contract because of a price breach in November 2014.[55] In 2012, the USAF assigned the total upgrade contract to Lockheed Martin.[56] Upgrades include Raytheon's Center Display Unit, which replaces several analog flight instruments with a single digital display.[57] In 2013, sequestration budget cuts cast doubt on the USAF's ability to complete the Combat Avionics Programmed Extension Suite (CAPES), a part of secondary programs such as Taiwan's F-16 upgrade.[58] Air Combat Command's General Mike Hostage stated that if he only had money for a service life extension program (SLEP) or CAPES, he would fund SLEP to keep the aircraft flying.[59] Lockheed Martin responded to talk of CAPES cancellation with a fixed-price upgrade package for foreign users.[60] CAPES was not included in the Pentagon's 2015 budget request.[61] The USAF said that the upgrade package will still be offered to Taiwan's Republic of China Air Force, and Lockheed said that some common elements with the F-35 will keep the radar's unit costs down.[62] In 2014, the USAF issued a RFI to SLEP 300 F-16 C/Ds.[63] Production relocation To make more room for assembly of its newer F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft, Lockheed Martin moved the F-16 production from Fort Worth, Texas to its plant in Greenville, South Carolina.[1] Lockheed delivered the last F-16 from Fort Worth to the Iraqi Air Force on 14 November 2017, ending 40 years of F-16 production there. The company resumed production in 2019, though engineering and modernization work will remain in Fort Worth.[64] A gap in orders made it possible to stop production during the move; after completing orders for the last Iraqi purchase,[65] the company was negotiating an F-16 sale to Bahrain that would be produced in Greenville. This contract was signed in June 2018,[3] and the first planes rolled off the Greenville line in 2023.[66] Design Overview Early Late Comparison between F-16's inset cannon; early aircraft had four leading vents, a grille, and four trailing vents, while later aircraft had only two trailing vents. The F-16 is a single-engine, highly maneuverable, supersonic, multirole tactical fighter aircraft. It is much smaller and lighter than its predecessors but uses advanced aerodynamics and avionics, including the first use of a relaxed static stability/fly-by-wire (RSS/FBW) flight control system, to achieve enhanced maneuver performance. Highly agile, the F-16 was the first fighter aircraft purpose-built to pull 9-g maneuvers and can reach a maximum speed of over Mach 2. Innovations include a frameless bubble canopy for better visibility, a side-mounted control stick, and a reclined seat to reduce g-force effects on the pilot. It is armed with an internal M61 Vulcan cannon in the left wing root and has multiple locations for mounting various missiles, bombs and pods. It has a thrust-to-weight ratio greater than one, providing power to climb and vertical acceleration.[67] The F-16 was designed to be relatively inexpensive to build and simpler to maintain than earlier-generation fighters. The airframe is built with about 80% aviation-grade aluminum alloys, 8% steel, 3% composites, and 1.5% titanium. The leading-edge flaps, stabilators, and ventral fins make use of bonded aluminum honeycomb structures and graphite epoxy lamination coatings. The number of lubrication points, fuel line connections, and replaceable modules is significantly lower than preceding fighters; 80% of the access panels can be accessed without stands.[44] The air intake was placed so it was rearward of the nose but forward enough to minimize air flow losses and reduce aerodynamic drag.[68] Although the LWF program called for a structural life of 4,000 flight hours, capable of achieving 7.33 g with 80% internal fuel; GD's engineers decided to design the F-16's airframe life for 8,000 hours and for 9-g maneuvers on full internal fuel. This proved advantageous when the aircraft's mission changed from solely air-to-air combat to multirole operations. Changes in operational use and additional systems have increased weight, necessitating multiple structural strengthening programs.[69] General configuration Jet heavily armed with weapons under wings taking off. F-16CJ of the 20th Fighter Wing from Shaw AFB, South Carolina, armed with a mix of air-to-air missiles, anti-radiation missiles, external fuel tanks and support equipment The F-16 has a cropped-delta wing incorporating wing-fuselage blending and forebody vortex-control strakes; a fixed-geometry, underslung air intake (with splitter plate[70]) to the single turbofan jet engine; a conventional tri-plane empennage arrangement with all-moving horizontal "stabilator" tailplanes; a pair of ventral fins beneath the fuselage aft of the wing's trailing edge; and a tricycle landing gear configuration with the aft-retracting, steerable nose gear deploying a short distance behind the inlet lip. There is a boom-style aerial refueling receptacle located behind the single-piece "bubble" canopy of the cockpit. Split-flap speedbrakes are located at the aft end of the wing-body fairing, and a tailhook is mounted underneath the fuselage. A fairing beneath the rudder often houses ECM equipment or a drag chute. Later F-16 models feature a long dorsal fairing along the fuselage's "spine", housing additional equipment or fuel.[44][71] Aerodynamic studies in the 1960s demonstrated that the "vortex lift" phenomenon could be harnessed by highly swept wing configurations to reach higher angles of attack, using leading edge vortex flow off a slender lifting surface. As the F-16 was being optimized for high combat agility, GD's designers chose a slender cropped-delta wing with a leading-edge sweep of 40° and a straight trailing edge. To improve maneuverability, a variable-camber wing with a NACA 64A-204 airfoil was selected; the camber is adjusted by leading-edge and trailing edge flaperons linked to a digital flight control system regulating the flight envelope.[44][69] The F-16 has a moderate wing loading, reduced by fuselage lift.[72] The vortex lift effect is increased by leading-edge extensions, known as strakes. Strakes act as additional short-span, triangular wings running from the wing root (the junction with the fuselage) to a point further forward on the fuselage. Blended into the fuselage and along the wing root, the strake generates a high-speed vortex that remains attached to the top of the wing as the angle of attack increases, generating additional lift and allowing greater angles of attack without stalling. Strakes allow a smaller, lower-aspect-ratio wing, which increases roll rates and directional stability while decreasing weight. Deeper wing roots also increase structural strength and internal fuel volume.[69][73] Armament Aircraft carrying missiles on tips of wings during flight over ocean. Under each wing is a cylindrical external fuel tank with pointed nose A Portuguese Air Force F-16A outfitted with AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles, AN/ALQ-131 ECM pod, and external fuel tanks. Early F-16s could be armed with up to six AIM-9 Sidewinder heat-seeking short-range air-to-air missiles (AAM) by employing rail launchers on each wingtip, as well as radar-guided AIM-7 Sparrow medium-range AAMs in a weapons mix.[74] More recent versions support the AIM-120 AMRAAM, and US aircraft often mount that missile on their wingtips to reduce wing flutter.[75] The aircraft can carry various other AAMs, a wide variety of air-to-ground missiles, rockets or bombs; electronic countermeasures (ECM), navigation, targeting or weapons pods; and fuel tanks on 9 hardpoints – six under the wings, two on wingtips, and one under the fuselage. Two other locations under the fuselage are available for sensor or radar pods.[74] The F-16 carries a 20 mm (0.787 in) M61A1 Vulcan cannon, which is mounted inside the fuselage to the left of the cockpit.[74] Relaxed stability and fly-by-wire F-16C of the South Carolina Air National Guard in-flight over North Carolina equipped with air-to-air missiles, bomb rack, targeting pods, and electronic countermeasures pods The F-16 is the first production fighter aircraft intentionally designed to be slightly aerodynamically unstable, also known as relaxed static stability (RSS), to both reduce drag and improve maneuverability.[76] Most aircraft are designed to have positive static stability, which induces the aircraft to return to straight and level flight attitude if the pilot releases the controls. This reduces maneuverability as the inherent stability has to be overcome and increases a form of drag known as trim drag. Aircraft with relaxed stability are designed to be able to augment their stability characteristics while maneuvering to increase lift and reduce drag, thus greatly increasing their maneuverability. At Mach 1, the F-16 gains positive stability because of aerodynamic changes.[77][78][79] To counter the tendency to depart from controlled flight and avoid the need for constant trim inputs by the pilot, the F-16 has a quadruplex (four-channel) fly-by-wire (FBW) flight control system (FLCS). The flight control computer (FLCC) accepts pilot input from the stick and rudder controls and manipulates the control surfaces in such a way as to produce the desired result without inducing control loss. The FLCC conducts thousands of measurements per second on the aircraft's flight attitude to automatically counter deviations from the pilot-set flight path. The FLCC further incorporates limiters governing movement in the three main axes based on attitude, airspeed, and angle of attack (AOA)/g; these prevent control surfaces from inducing instability such as slips or skids, or a high AOA inducing a stall. The limiters also prevent maneuvers that would exert more than a 9-g load.[80][81] Flight testing revealed that "assaulting" multiple limiters at high AOA and low speed can result in an AOA far exceeding the 25° limit, colloquially referred to as "departing"; this causes a deep stall; a near-freefall at 50° to 60° AOA, either upright or inverted. While at a very high AOA, the aircraft's attitude is stable but control surfaces are ineffective. The pitch limiter locks the stabilators at an extreme pitch-up or pitch-down attempting to recover. This can be overridden so the pilot can "rock" the nose via pitch control to recover.[82] Unlike the YF-17, which had hydromechanical controls serving as a backup to the FBW, General Dynamics took the innovative step of eliminating mechanical linkages from the control stick and rudder pedals to the flight control surfaces.[83] The F-16 is entirely reliant on its electrical systems to relay flight commands, instead of traditional mechanically linked controls, leading to the early moniker of "the electric jet" and aphorisms among pilots such as "You don't fly an F-16; it flies you."[84] The quadruplex design permits "graceful degradation" in flight control response in that the loss of one channel renders the FLCS a "triplex" system.[85][86] The FLCC began as an analog system on the A/B variants but has been supplanted by a digital computer system beginning with the F-16C/D Block 40.[87][88] The F-16's controls suffered from a sensitivity to static electricity or electrostatic discharge (ESD) and lightning.[89] Up to 70–80% of the C/D models' electronics were vulnerable to ESD.[90] Cockpit and ergonomics Bubble canopy, allowing all-round visibility A key feature of the F-16's cockpit is the exceptional field of view. The single-piece, bird-proof polycarbonate bubble canopy provides 360° all-round visibility, with a 40° look-down angle over the side of the aircraft, and 15° down over the nose (compared to the common 12–13° of preceding aircraft); the pilot's seat is elevated for this purpose. Additionally, the F-16's canopy omits the forward bow frame found on many fighters, which is an obstruction to a pilot's forward vision.[44][91] The F-16's ACES II zero/zero ejection seat is reclined at an unusual tilt-back angle of 30°; most fighters have a tilted seat at 13–15°. The tilted seat can accommodate taller pilots and increases g-force tolerance; however, it has been associated with reports of neck aches, possibly caused by incorrect headrest usage.[92] Subsequent U.S. fighters have adopted more modest tilt-back angles of 20°.[44][93] Because of the seat angle and the canopy's thickness, the ejection seat lacks canopy-breakers for emergency egress; instead the entire canopy is jettisoned prior to the seat's rocket firing.[94] Cramped cockpit of jet trainer, showing dials and instruments F-16 ground trainer cockpit (F-16 Mid-Life Update (MLU)) The pilot flies primarily by means of an armrest-mounted side-stick controller (instead of a traditional center-mounted stick) and an engine throttle; conventional rudder pedals are also employed. To enhance the pilot's degree of control of the aircraft during high-g combat maneuvers, various switches and function controls were moved to centralized hands on throttle-and-stick (HOTAS) controls upon both the controllers and the throttle. Hand pressure on the side-stick controller is transmitted by electrical signals via the FBW system to adjust various flight control surfaces to maneuver the F-16. Originally, the side-stick controller was non-moving, but this proved uncomfortable and difficult for pilots to adjust to, sometimes resulting in a tendency to "over-rotate" during takeoffs, so the control stick was given a small amount of "play". Since the introduction of the F-16, HOTAS controls have become a standard feature on modern fighters.[citation needed] F-16 pilot with Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System and cockpit head-up display The F-16 has a head-up display (HUD), which projects visual flight and combat information in front of the pilot without obstructing the view; being able to keep their head "out of the cockpit" improves the pilot's situation awareness.[95] Further flight and systems information are displayed on multi-function displays (MFD). The left-hand MFD is the primary flight display (PFD), typically showing radar and moving maps; the right-hand MFD is the system display (SD), presenting information about the engine, landing gear, slat and flap settings, and fuel and weapons status. Initially, the F-16A/B had monochrome cathode-ray tube (CRT) displays; replaced by color liquid-crystal displays on the Block 50/52.[44][96] The Mid-Life Update (MLU) introduced compatibility with night-vision goggles (NVG). The Boeing Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS) is available from Block 40 onwards, for targeting based on where the pilot's head faces, unrestricted by the HUD, using high-off-boresight missiles like the AIM-9X.[97] Fire-control radar The F-16A/B was originally equipped with the Westinghouse AN/APG-66 fire-control radar. Its slotted planar array antenna was designed to be compact to fit into the F-16's relatively small nose. In uplook mode, the APG-66 uses a low pulse-repetition frequency (PRF) for medium- and high-altitude target detection in a low-clutter environment, and in look-down/shoot-down employs a medium PRF for heavy clutter environments. It has four operating frequencies within the X band, and provides four air-to-air and seven air-to-ground operating modes for combat, even at night or in bad weather. The Block 15's APG-66(V)2 model added more powerful signal processing, higher output power, improved reliability, and increased range in cluttered or jamming environments. The Mid-Life Update (MLU) program introduced a new model, APG-66(V)2A, which features higher speed and more memory.[98] AN-APG-68, as fitted to the nose The AN/APG-68, an evolution of the APG-66, was introduced with the F-16C/D Block 25. The APG-68 has greater range and resolution, as well as 25 operating modes, including ground-mapping, Doppler beam-sharpening, ground moving target indication, sea target, and track while scan (TWS) for up to 10 targets. The Block 40/42's APG-68(V)1 model added full compatibility with Lockheed Martin Low Altitude Navigation and Targeting Infrared for Night (LANTIRN) pods, and a high-PRF pulse-Doppler track mode to provide Interrupted Continuous Wave guidance for semi-active radar homing (SARH) missiles like the AIM-7 Sparrow. Block 50/52 F-16s initially used the more reliable APG-68(V)5 which has a programmable signal processor employing Very High Speed Integrated Circuit (VHSIC) technology. The Advanced Block 50/52 (or 50+/52+) is equipped with the APG-68(V)9 radar, with a 30% greater air-to-air detection range and a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) mode for high-resolution mapping and target detection-recognition. In August 2004, Northrop Grumman was contracted to upgrade the APG-68 radars of Block 40/42/50/52 aircraft to the (V)10 standard, providing all-weather autonomous detection and targeting for Global Positioning System (GPS)-aided precision weapons, SAR mapping, and terrain-following radar (TF) modes, as well as interleaving of all modes.[44] The F-16E/F is outfitted with Northrop Grumman's AN/APG-80 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar.[99] Northrop Grumman developed the latest AESA radar upgrade for the F-16 (selected for USAF and Taiwan's Republic of China Air Force F-16 upgrades), named the Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) APG-83.[100][101] In July 2007, Raytheon announced that it was developing a Next Generation Radar (RANGR) based on its earlier AN/APG-79 AESA radar as a competitor to Northrop Grumman's AN/APG-68 and AN/APG-80 for the F-16.[44] On 28 February 2020, Northrop Grumman received an order from USAF to extend the service lives of their F-16s to at least 2048 with APG-83 Scalable Agile Beam Radar (SABR) as part of the service-life extension program (SLEP).[102] Propulsion Afterburner – concentric ring structure inside the exhaust The initial powerplant selected for the single-engined F-16 was the Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-200 afterburning turbofan, a modified version of the F-15's F100-PW-100, rated at 23,830 lbf (106.0 kN) thrust. During testing, the engine was found to be prone to compressor stalls and "rollbacks", wherein the engine's thrust would spontaneously reduce to idle. Until resolved, the Air Force ordered F-16s to be operated within "dead-stick landing" distance of its bases.[15] It was the standard F-16 engine through the Block 25, except for the newly built Block 15s with the Operational Capability Upgrade (OCU). The OCU introduced the 23,770 lbf (105.7 kN) F100-PW-220, later installed on Block 32 and 42 aircraft: the main advance being a Digital Electronic Engine Control (DEEC) unit, which improved reliability and reduced stall occurrence. Beginning production in 1988, the "-220" also supplanted the F-15's "-100", for commonality. Many of the "-220" engines on Block 25 and later aircraft were upgraded from 1997 onwards to the "-220E" standard, which enhanced reliability and maintainability; unscheduled engine removals were reduced by 35%.[103] Adjustable exhaust nozzle in contracted position The F100-PW-220/220E was the result of the USAF's Alternate Fighter Engine (AFE) program (colloquially known as "the Great Engine War"), which also saw the entry of General Electric as an F-16 engine provider. Its F110-GE-100 turbofan was limited by the original inlet to a thrust of 25,735 lbf (114.47 kN), the Modular Common Inlet Duct allowed the F110 to achieve its maximum thrust of 28,984 lbf (128.93 kN). (To distinguish between aircraft equipped with these two engines and inlets, from the Block 30 series on, blocks ending in "0" (e.g., Block 30) are powered by GE, and blocks ending in "2" (e.g., Block 32) are fitted with Pratt & Whitney engines.)[103][104] The Increased Performance Engine (IPE) program led to the 29,588 lbf (131.61 kN) F110-GE-129 on the Block 50 and 29,160 lbf (129.7 kN) F100-PW-229 on the Block 52. F-16s began flying with these IPE engines in the early 1990s. Altogether, of the 1,446 F-16C/Ds ordered by the USAF, 556 were fitted with F100-series engines and 890 with F110s.[44] The United Arab Emirates' Block 60 is powered by the General Electric F110-GE-132 turbofan with a maximum thrust of 32,500 lbf (145 kN), the highest thrust engine developed for the F-16.[105] Operational history Main article: General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon operational history United States A United States Air Force F-16 from the 480th Fighter Squadron takes off from Spangdahlem Air Base in support of Operation Odyssey Dawn The F-16 is being used by the active duty USAF, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard units, the USAF aerial demonstration team, the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, and as an adversary-aggressor aircraft by the United States Navy at the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center.[citation needed] The U.S. Air Force, including the Air Force Reserve and the Air National Guard, flew the F-16 in combat during Operation Desert Storm in 1991 and in the Balkans later in the 1990s. F-16s also patrolled the no-fly zones in Iraq during Operations Northern Watch and Southern Watch and served during the War in Afghanistan and the War in Iraq from 2001 and 2003 respectively. In 2011, Air Force F-16s took part in the intervention in Libya.[106] On 11 September 2001, two unarmed F-16s were launched in an attempt to ram and down United Airlines Flight 93 before it reached Washington D.C. during the 11 September 2001 terrorist attacks, but Flight 93 was brought down by the passengers first, so the F-16s were retasked to patrol the local airspace and later escorted Air Force One back to Washington.[107][108][importance?] The F-16 had been scheduled to remain in service with the U.S. Air Force until 2025.[109] Its replacement was planned to be the F-35A variant of the Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II, which is expected to gradually begin replacing several multirole aircraft among the program's member nations. However, owing to delays in the F-35 program, all USAF F-16s will receive service life extension upgrades.[110] In 2022, it was announced the USAF would continue to operate the F-16 for another two decades.[111] Israel Israeli Air Force F-16A Netz 107 with 6.5 kill marks of other aircraft, a record for an F-16, as well as one kill mark of an Iraqi nuclear reactor[112] The F-16's first air-to-air combat success was achieved by the Israeli Air Force (IAF) over the Bekaa Valley on 28 April 1981, against a Syrian Mi-8 helicopter, which was downed with cannon fire.[113] On 7 June 1981, eight Israeli F-16s, escorted by six F-15s, executed Operation Opera, their first employment in a significant air-to-ground operation. This raid severely damaged Osirak, an Iraqi nuclear reactor under construction near Baghdad, to prevent the regime of Saddam Hussein from using the reactor for the creation of nuclear weapons.[114] The following year, during the 1982 Lebanon War Israeli F-16s engaged Syrian aircraft in one of the largest air battles involving jet aircraft, which began on 9 June and continued for two more days. Israeli Air Force F-16s were credited with 44 air-to-air kills during the conflict.[113][115] In January 2000, Israel completed a purchase of 102 new F-16I aircraft in a deal totaling $4.5 billion.[116] F-16s were also used in their ground-attack role for strikes against targets in Lebanon. IAF F-16s participated in the 2006 Lebanon War and the 2008–09 Gaza War.[117] During and after the 2006 Lebanon war, IAF F-16s shot down Iranian-made UAVs launched by Hezbollah, using Rafael Python 5 air-to-air missiles.[118][119][120] On 10 February 2018, an Israeli Air Force F-16I was shot down in northern Israel when it was hit by a relatively old model S-200 (NATO name SA-5 Gammon) surface-to-air missile of the Syrian Air Defense Force.[121] The pilot and navigator ejected safely in Israeli territory. The F-16I was part of a bombing mission against Syrian and Iranian targets around Damascus after an Iranian drone entered Israeli air space and was shot down.[122] An Israel Air Force investigation determined on 27 February 2018 that the loss was due to pilot error since the IAF determined the air crew did not adequately defend themselves.[123] Pakistan The PAF F-16BM (S. No. 84-606) which shot down one of the Indian jets during Operation Swift Retort (kill mark visible on nose) During the Soviet–Afghan War, PAF F-16As shot down between 20 to 30 Soviet and Afghan warplanes; the political situation however resulted in PAF officially recognising only 9 kills which were made inside Pakistani airspace.[124] From May 1986 to January 1989, PAF F-16s from the Tail Choppers and Griffin squadrons using mostly AIM-9 Sidewinder missiles, shot down four Afghan Su-22s, two MiG-23s, one Su-25, and one An-26s.[125] Most of these kills were by missiles, but at least one, a Su-22, was destroyed by cannon fire. One F-16 was lost in these battles. On 7 June 2002, a Pakistan Air Force F-16B Block 15 (S. No. 82-605) shot down an Indian Air Force unmanned aerial vehicle, an Israeli-made Searcher II, using an AIM-9L Sidewinder missile, during a night interception near Lahore[126] The Pakistan Air Force has used its F-16s in various foreign and internal military exercises, such as the "Indus Vipers" exercise in 2008 conducted jointly with Turkey.[127][failed verification] Between May 2009 and November 2011, the PAF F-16 fleet flew more than 5,500 sorties[needs update] in support of the Pakistan Army's operations against the Taliban insurgency in the FATA region of North-West Pakistan. More than 80% of the dropped munitions were laser-guided bombs.[128][129] On 27 February 2019, following six Pakistan Air Force airstrikes in Indian administered Kashmir, Pakistani officials said that two of its fighter jets shot down one MiG-21 and one Su-30MKI belonging to the Indian Air Force.[130][131][132][133] Indian officials only confirmed the loss of one MiG-21 but denied losing any Su-30MKI in the clash.[134][135] Additionally Indian officials also claimed to have shot down one F-16 belonging to the Pakistan Air Force.[136][137] This was denied by the Pakistani side,[138] considered dubious by neutral sources,[139][140] and later backed by a report by Foreign Policy magazine, reporting that the US had completed a physical count of Pakistan's F-16s and found none missing.[141] A report by The Washington Post noted that the Pentagon and State Department refused public comment on the matter but did not deny the earlier report.[142] Turkey F-16 SoloTürk aerial aerobatic aircraft The Turkish Air Force acquired its first F-16s in 1987. F-16s were later produced in Turkey under four phases of Peace Onyx programs. In 2015, they were upgraded to Block 50/52+ with CCIP by Turkish Aerospace Industries.[143] Turkish F-16s are being fitted with indigenous AESA radars and EW suite called SPEWS-II.[144] On 18 June 1992, a Greek Mirage F-1 crashed during a dogfight with a Turkish F-16.[145][146][147] On 8 February 1995, a Turkish F-16 crashed into the Aegean sea after being intercepted by Greek Mirage F1 fighters.[148][149] Turkish F-16s participated in the Bosnia Herzegovina and Kosovo since 1993 in support of United Nations resolutions.[150] On 8 October 1996, seven months after the escalation a Greek Mirage 2000 reportedly fired an R.550 Magic II missile and shot down a Turkish F-16D over the Aegean Sea.[151][152] The Turkish pilot died, while the co-pilot ejected and was rescued by Greek forces.[147][153][154] In August 2012, after the downing of an RF-4E on the Syrian Coast, Turkish Defence Minister İsmet Yılmaz confirmed that the Turkish F-16D was shot down by a Greek Mirage 2000 with an R.550 Magic II in 1996 near Chios island.[155] Greece denies that the F-16 was shot down.[156] Both Mirage 2000 pilots reported that the F-16 caught fire and they saw one parachute.[157][158] On 23 May 2006, two Greek F-16s intercepted a Turkish RF-4 reconnaissance aircraft and two F-16 escorts off the coast of the Greek island of Karpathos, within the Athens FIR. A mock dogfight ensued between the two sides, resulting in a midair collision[159] between a Turkish F-16 and a Greek F-16. The Turkish pilot ejected safely, but the Greek pilot died owing to damage caused by the collision.[160][161] Turkey used its F-16s extensively in its conflict with Kurdish insurgents in southeastern parts of Turkey and Iraq. Turkey launched its first cross-border raid on 16 December 2007, a prelude to the 2008 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq, involving 50 fighters before Operation Sun. This was the first time Turkey had mounted a night-bombing operation on a massive scale, and also the largest operation conducted by the Turkish Air Force.[162] During the Syrian Civil War, Turkish F-16s were tasked with airspace protection on the Syrian border. After the RF-4 downing in June 2012 Turkey changed its rules of engagement against Syrian aircraft, resulting in scrambles and downings of Syrian combat aircraft.[163] On 16 September 2013, a Turkish Air Force F-16 shot down a Syrian Arab Air Force Mil Mi-17 helicopter near the Turkish border.[164] On 23 March 2014, a Turkish Air Force F-16 shot down a Syrian Arab Air Force MiG-23 when it allegedly entered Turkish air space during a ground attack mission against Al Qaeda-linked insurgents.[165] On 16 May 2015, two Turkish Air Force F-16s shot down a Syrian Mohajer 4 UAV firing two AIM-9 missiles after it trespassed into Turkish airspace for 5 minutes.[166][167] A Turkish Air Force F-16 shot down a Russian Air Force Sukhoi Su-24 on the Turkey-Syria border on 24 November 2015.[168] On 1 March 2020, two Syrian Sukhoi Su-24s were shot down by Turkish Air Force F-16s using air-to-air missiles over Syria's Idlib Governorate.[169] All four pilots safely ejected.[170] On 3 March 2020, a Syrian Arab Army Air Force L-39 combat trainer was shot down by a Turkish F-16 over Syria's Idlib province.[171] The pilot died.[172] As a part of Turkish F-16 modernization program new air-to-air missiles are being developed and tested for the aircraft. GÖKTUĞ program led by TUBITAK SAGE has presented two types of air-to-air missiles named as Bozdogan (Merlin) and Gokdogan (Peregrine). While Bozdogan has been categorized as a Within Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile (WVRAAM), Gokdogan is a Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile (BVRAAM). On 14 April 2021, first live test exercise of Bozdogan have successfully completed and the first batch of missiles are expected to be delivered throughout the same year to the Turkish Air Force.[173][174] Egypt On 16 February 2015, Egyptian F-16s struck weapons caches and training camps of the Islamic State (ISIS) in Libya in retaliation for the murder of 21 Egyptian Coptic Christian construction workers by masked militants affiliated with ISIS. The air strikes killed 64 ISIS fighters, including three leaders in Derna and Sirte on the coast.[175] Others See also: General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon operational history and General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon operators Iraqi Air Force F-16C The Royal Netherlands Air Force, Belgian Air Force, Royal Danish Air Force, Royal Norwegian Air Force, and Venezuela Air Force have flown the F-16 on combat missions.[176] A Yugoslavian MiG-29 was shot down by a Dutch F-16AM during the Kosovo War in 1999.[177] Belgian and Danish F-16s also participated in joint operations over Kosovo during the war.[177] Dutch, Belgian, Danish, and Norwegian F-16s were deployed during the 2011 intervention in Libya and in Afghanistan.[178] In Libya, Norwegian F-16s dropped almost 550 bombs and flew 596 missions,[179] some 17% of the total strike missions[180] including the bombing of Muammar Gaddafi's headquarters.[181] The Royal Moroccan Air Force and the Royal Bahraini Air Force each lost a single F-16C, both shot down by Houthis anti-aircraft fire during the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen, respectively on 11 May 2015 and on 30 December 2015.[182] In late March 2018, Croatia announced its intention to purchase 12 used Israeli F-16C/D "Barak"/"Brakeet" jets, pending U.S. approval.[183] Acquiring these F-16s would allow Croatia to retire its aging MiG-21s.[184] On 11 July 2018, Slovakia's government approved the purchase of 14 F-16s Block 70/72 to replace its aging fleet of Soviet-made MiG-29s.[185] A contract was signed on 12 December 2018 in Bratislava.[186] Potential operators In May 2023, an international coalition consisting of the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark announced their intention to train Ukrainian jet pilots of the F-16 ahead of possible future deliveries. The United States confirmed that it would approve the re-export from these countries to Ukraine.[187] Denmark has agreed to help train Ukrainians on their usage of the fighter. Denmark’s acting Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen said Denmark: "will now be able to move forward for a collective contribution to train Ukrainian pilots to fly F-16s".[188] On 6 July 2023, Romania announced that it will host the future training center after the meeting of the Supreme Council of National Defense.[189] During the 2023 Vilnius summit, a coalition was formed consisting of Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and Ukraine. The Ukrainian pilots will start their training in Denmark at the end of the summer,[190] while the training center will become operational at the end of the year. The center will be organized by Romania, the Netherlands, and the company Draken International. It will be located at the Romanian Air Force's 86th Air Base.[191] On 17 August 2023, the US approved the transfer of F-16s from the Netherlands and Denmark to Ukraine after the Ukrainian pilots have completed their training.[192] The Bulgarian Air Force expects delivery of the first eight new F-16 Block 70s by 2025 and the second batch of 8 F-16 Block 70s is expected to arrive in 2027.[193] Variants Main article: General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon variants A Republic of China Air Force F-16A taking off from Chiashan Air Force Base. Venezuelan Air Force F-16B Testing of the F-35 diverterless supersonic inlet on an F-16 testbed. The original intake with Splitter plate shown in the top image. F-16 models are denoted by increasing block numbers to denote upgrades. The blocks cover both single- and two-seat versions. A variety of software, hardware, systems, weapons compatibility, and structural enhancements have been instituted over the years to gradually upgrade production models and retrofit delivered aircraft.[citation needed] While many F-16s were produced according to these block designs, there have been many other variants with significant changes, usually because of modification programs. Other changes have resulted in role-specialization, such as the close air support and reconnaissance variants. Several models were also developed to test new technology. The F-16 design also inspired the design of other aircraft, which are considered derivatives. Older F-16s are being converted into QF-16 drone targets.[194] F-16A/B The F-16A (single seat) and F-16B (two seat) were initial production variants. These variants include the Block 1, 5, 10, 15 and 20 versions. Block 15 was the first major change to the F-16 with larger horizontal stabilizers. It is the most numerous of all F-16 variants with 475 produced.[195] Many F-16A and B aircraft have been upgraded to the Mid-Life Upgrade (MLU) Block 20 standard, becoming functionally equivalent to mid-production C/D models.[citation needed] F-16C/D The F-16C (single seat) and F-16D (two seat) variants entered production in 1984. The first C/D version was the Block 25 with improved cockpit avionics and radar which added all-weather capability with beyond-visual-range (BVR) AIM-7 and AIM-120 air-air missiles. Block 30/32, 40/42, and 50/52 were later C/D versions.[196] The F-16C/D had a unit cost of US$18.8 million (1998).[67] Operational cost per flight hour has been estimated at $7,000[197] to $22,470[198] or $24,000, depending on the calculation method.[199][unreliable source?] United Arab Emirates Air Force F-16E Block 60 with the IFTS pod, CFTs, and various external armament taking off F-16E/F The F-16E (single seat) and F-16F (two seat) are newer F-16 Block 60 variants based on the F-16C/D Block 50/52. The United Arab Emirates invested heavily in their development. They feature improved AN/APG-80 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, avionics, conformal fuel tanks (CFTs), and the more powerful General Electric F110-GE-132 engine.[200][201][202][N 1] F-16IN For the Indian MRCA competition for the Indian Air Force, Lockheed Martin offered the F-16IN Super Viper.[205] The F-16IN is based on the F-16E/F Block 60 and features conformal fuel tanks; AN/APG-80 AESA radar, GE F110-GE-132A engine with FADEC controls; electronic warfare suite and infrared search and track (IRST) unit; updated glass cockpit; and a helmet-mounted cueing system.[206] As of 2011, the F-16IN is no longer in the competition.[207][unreliable source?] In 2016, Lockheed Martin offered the new F-16 Block 70/72 version to India under the Make in India program.[208][209] In 2016, Indian government offered to purchase 200 (potentially up to 300) fighters in a deal worth $13–15bn.[210] As of 2017, Lockheed Martin has agreed to manufacture F-16 Block 70 fighters in India with the Indian defense firm Tata Advanced Systems Limited. The new production line could be used to build F-16s for India and for exports.[211] F-16IQ In September 2010, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency informed the United States Congress of a possible Foreign Military Sale of 18 F-16IQ aircraft along with the associated equipment and services to the newly reformed Iraqi Air Force. The total value of sale was estimated at US$4.2 billion.[212] The Iraqi Air Force purchased those 18 jets in the second half of 2011, then later exercised an option to purchase 18 more for a total of 36 F-16IQs.[213] As of 2021, the Iraqi had lost two in accidents.[214] By 2023, the US government reported that these jets were Iraq's most capable airborne platforms with a 66 percent mission-capable rate. Their maintenance was being supported by private contractors. At the same time, Iraq's Russian-made systems were suffering from sanctions imposed in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.[215] F-16N The F-16N was an adversary aircraft operated by the United States Navy. It is based on the standard F-16C/D Block 30 and is powered by the General Electric F110-GE-100 engine, and is capable of supercruise.[216] The F-16N has a strengthened wing and is capable of carrying an Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI) pod on the starboard wingtip. Although the single-seat F-16Ns and twin-seat (T)F-16Ns are based on the early-production small-inlet Block 30 F-16C/D airframe, they retain the APG-66 radar of the F-16A/B. In addition, the aircraft's 20mm cannon has been removed, as has the airborne self-protection jammer (ASPJ), and they carry no missiles. Their EW fit consists of an ALR-69 radar warning receiver (RWR) and an ALE-40 chaff/flare dispenser. The F-16Ns and (T)F-16Ns have the standard Air Force tailhook and undercarriage and are not aircraft carrier capable. Production totaled 26 airframes, of which 22 are single-seat F-16Ns and four are twin-seat TF-16Ns. The initial batch of aircraft was in service between 1988 and 1998. At that time, hairline cracks were discovered in several bulkheads and the Navy did not have the resources to replace them, so the aircraft were eventually retired, with one aircraft sent to the collection of the National Naval Aviation Museum at NAS Pensacola, Florida, and the remainder placed in storage at Davis-Monthan AFB. These aircraft were later replaced by embargoed ex-Pakistani F-16s in 2003. The original inventory of F-16Ns was previously operated by adversary squadrons at NAS Oceana, Virginia; NAS Key West, Florida and the former NAS Miramar, California. The current F-16A/B aircraft are operated by the Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center at NAS Fallon, Nevada.[217][218][219] F-16V At the 2012 Singapore Air Show, Lockheed Martin unveiled plans for the new F-16V variant with the V suffix for its Viper nickname. It features an AN/APG-83 active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, a new mission computer and electronic warfare suite, an automated ground collision avoidance system, and various cockpit improvements; this package is an option on current production F-16s and can be retrofitted to most in service F-16s.[220][221] First flight took place 21 October 2015.[222] Taiwanese media reported that Taiwan and the U.S. both initially invested in the development of the F-16V.[223] Upgrades to Taiwan's F-16 fleet began in January 2017.[224] The first country to confirm the purchase of 16 new F-16 Block 70/72 was Bahrain.[225][226] Greece announced the upgrade of 84 F-16C/D Block 52+ and Block 52+ Advanced (Block 52M) to the latest V (Block 70/72) variant in October 2017.[227][228] Slovakia announced on 11 July 2018 that it intends to purchase 14 F-16 Block 70/72 aircraft.[229][230] Lockheed Martin has redesignated the F-16V Block 70 as the "F-21" in its offering for India's fighter requirement.[231] Taiwan's Republic of China Air Force announced on 19 March 2019 that it formally requested the purchase of an additional 66 F-16V fighters.[232] The Trump administration approved the sale on 20 August 2019.[233][234] On 14 August 2020, Lockheed Martin was awarded a US$62 billion contract by the US DoD[235] that includes 66 new F-16s at US$8 billion for Taiwan.[236] USAF QF-16A, on its first unmanned test flight, over the Gulf of Mexico QF-16 In September 2013, Boeing and the U.S. Air Force tested an unmanned F-16, with two US Air Force pilots controlling the airplane from the ground as it flew from Tyndall AFB over the Gulf of Mexico.[237][238][239] Related developments Vought Model 1600 Proposed naval variant General Dynamics F-16XL 1980s technology demonstrator General Dynamics NF-16D VISTA 1990s experimental fighter Mitsubishi F-2 1990s Japanese multi-role fighter based on the F-16 Operators   Current operators   Former operators   Future operators F-16C Block 52 of the Hellenic Air Force with conformal fuel tanks and Advanced IFF (AIFF) Main article: General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon operators By July 2010, there had been 4,500 F-16s delivered.[240]  Bahrain  Belgium  Chile  Denmark  Egypt  Greece  Indonesia  Iraq  Israel  Jordan  Morocco  Netherlands  Oman  Pakistan  Poland  Portugal  Romania  Singapore  South Korea  Taiwan  Thailand  Turkey  United Arab Emirates  United States  Venezuela Former operators  Italy – Italian Air Force leased up to 30 F-16As and 4 F-16Bs from the USAF from 2001 until 2012.[241]  Norway – Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF) on 6 January 2022, Norway announced that all F-16s had been retired and replaced with the F-35.[242] The RNoAF sold 32 of their F-16s to Romania, with the remaining operational aircraft being donated to Ukraine.[243][244][245] Future operators  Bulgaria - On 3 June 2019, the US State Department approved the possible sale of 8 F-16 Block 70s to Bulgaria.[246] On 26 July the deal was approved by the Bulgarian parliament, and President Rumen Radev.[247] In November 2022, the purchase of a further 8 F-16 Block 70 fighters, spares, weapons and other systems was approved for delivery in 2027.[248]  Slovakia - On 12 December 2018, the contract to acquire 14 F-16 Block 70/72s was officially signed by Slovakian Minister of Defense Peter Gajdos. Deliveries are scheduled to start in 2022.[249][250]  Ukraine - On 20 August 2023, Denmark and the Netherlands announced the joint transfer of up to 61 F-16s to the Ukrainian Air Force.[251][252] Four days later, Norway announced the donation of 5-10 aircraft, depending on how many can be made operational.[245] Notable accidents and incidents See also: United States Air Force Thunderbirds § Accidents A U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds pilot ejects from the F-16 just before impact at an air show in September 2003. The F-16 has been involved in over 670 hull-loss accidents as of January 2020.[253][254] On 8 May 1975, while practicing a 9-g aerial display maneuver with the second YF-16 (tail number 72-1568) at Fort Worth, Texas, prior to being sent to the Paris Air Show, one of the main landing gears jammed. The test pilot, Neil Anderson, had to perform an emergency gear-up landing and chose to do so in the grass, hoping to minimize damage and avoid injuring any observers. The aircraft was only slightly damaged, but because of the mishap, the first prototype was sent to the Paris Air Show in its place.[255] On 15 November 1982, while on a training flight outside Kunsan Air Base in South Korea, USAF Captain Ted Harduvel died when he crashed inverted into a mountain ridge. In 1985, Harduvel's widow filed a lawsuit against General Dynamics claiming an electrical malfunction, not pilot error, as the cause; a jury awarded the plaintiff $3.4 million in damages. However, in 1989, the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled the contractor had immunity to lawsuits, overturning the previous judgment. The court remanded the case to the trial court "for entry of judgment in favor of General Dynamics".[256] The accident and subsequent trial was the subject of the 1992 film Afterburn.[257][258] On 23 March 1994, during a joint Army-Air Force exercise at Pope AFB, North Carolina, F-16D (AF Serial No. 88-0171) of the 23d Fighter Wing / 74th Fighter Squadron was simulating an engine-out approach when it collided with a USAF C-130E. Both F-16 crew members ejected, but their aircraft, on full afterburner, continued on an arc towards Green Ramp and struck a USAF C-141 that was being boarded by US Army paratroopers. This accident resulted in 24 fatalities and at least 100 others injured.[259] It has since been known as the "Green Ramp disaster".[260] On 15 September 2003, a USAF Thunderbirds F-16C crashed during an air show at Mountain Home AFB, Idaho. Captain Christopher Stricklin attempted a "split S" maneuver based on an incorrect mean-sea-level altitude of the airfield. Climbing to only 1,670 ft (510 m) above ground level instead of 2,500 ft (760 m), Stricklin had insufficient altitude to complete the maneuver, but was able to guide the aircraft away from spectators and ejected less than one second before impact. Stricklin survived with only minor injuries; the aircraft was destroyed. USAF procedure for demonstration "Split-S" maneuvers was changed, requiring both pilots and controllers to use above-ground-level (AGL) altitudes.[261][262] On 26 January 2015, a Greek F-16D crashed while performing a NATO training exercise in Albacete, Spain. Both crew members and nine French soldiers on the ground died when it crashed in the flight line, destroying or damaging two Italian AMXs, two French Alpha jets, and one French Mirage 2000.[263][264] Investigations suggested that the accident was due to an erroneous rudder setting that was caused by loose papers in the cockpit.[265] On 7 July 2015, an F-16CJ collided with a Cessna 150M over Moncks Corner, South Carolina, U.S. The pilot of the F-16 ejected safely, but both people in the Cessna were killed.[266] On 11 October 2018, an F-16 MLU from the 2nd Tactical Wing of the Belgian Air Component, on the apron at Florennes Air Station, was hit by a gun burst from a nearby F-16, whose cannon was fired inadvertently during maintenance. The aircraft caught fire and was burned to the ground, while two other F-16s were damaged and two maintenance personnel were treated for aural trauma.[267] On 11 March 2020, a Pakistani F-16AM (Serial No. 92730) belonging to the No. 9 Squadron (Pakistan Air Force) crashed in the Shakarparian area of Islamabad during rehearsals for the Pakistan Day Parade. The plane crashed when the F-16 was executing an aerobatic loop. As a result, the pilot of the F-16, Wing Commander Noman Akram, who was also the Commanding Officer of the No. 9 Squadron "Griffins", lost his life. A board of inquiry ordered by the Pakistan Air Force later revealed that the pilot had every chance to eject but opted not to and tried his best to save the aircraft and avoid civilian casualties on the ground. Videos taken by locals on the ground show his F-16AM crashing into some woods. He was hailed a hero by Pakistanis while also gaining some attention internationally.[268] Specifications (F-16C Block 50 and 52) 3-view drawing of an F-16 The underside of an F-16 during a vertical climb F-16 in afterburner Weapons Storage and Security System vault in raised position holding a B61 nuclear bomb, adjacent to an F-16. The vault is within a Protective Aircraft Shelter. An Israeli F-16I Block 52 with conformal fuel tanks (CFTs), electronic countermeasures, and other external stores during a Red Flag exercise at Nellis AFB, Nevada Data from USAF sheet,[67] International Directory of Military Aircraft,[76] Flight Manual for F-16C/D Block 50/52+[269] General characteristics Crew: 1 Length: 49 ft 5 in (15.06 m) Wingspan: 32 ft 8 in (9.96 m) Height: 16 ft (4.9 m) Wing area: 300 sq ft (28 m2) Airfoil: NACA 64A204[270] Empty weight: 18,900 lb (8,573 kg) Gross weight: 26,500 lb (12,020 kg) Max takeoff weight: 42,300 lb (19,187 kg) Fuel capacity: 7,000 pounds (3,200 kg) internal[67] Powerplant: 1 × General Electric F110-GE-129 for Block 50 aircraft , 17,155 lbf (76.31 kN) thrust dry, 29,500 lbf (131 kN) with afterburner (1 × Pratt & Whitney F100-PW-229 for Block 52 aircraft, 17,800 lbf (79 kN) thrust dry and 29,160 lbf (129.7 kN) with afterburner.) Performance Maximum speed: Mach 2.05, 1,176 kn (1,353 mph; 2,178 km/h) at 40,000 feet, clean[76] Mach 1.2, 800 kn (921 mph; 1,482 km/h) at sea level[76] Combat range: 295 nmi (339 mi, 546 km) on a hi-lo-hi mission with 4 × 1,000 lb (454 kg) bombs Ferry range: 2,277 nmi (2,620 mi, 4,217 km) with drop tanks Service ceiling: 50,000 ft (15,000 m) [67] g limits: +9.0 Roll rate: 324°/s[271] Wing loading: 88.3 lb/sq ft (431 kg/m2) Thrust/weight: 1.095 (1.24 with loaded weight & 50% internal fuel)[N 2] Armament Guns: 1 × 20 mm (0.787 in) M61A1 Vulcan 6-barrel rotary cannon, 511 rounds Hardpoints: 2 × wing-tip air-to-air missile launch rails, 6 × under-wing, and 3 × under-fuselage pylon (2 of 3 for sensors) stations with a capacity of up to 17,000 lb (7,700 kg) of stores Rockets: 4 × LAU-61/LAU-68 rocket pods (each with 19/7 × Hydra 70 mm/APKWS[272] rockets, respectively) 4 × LAU-5003 rocket pods (each with 19 × CRV7 70 mm rockets) 4 × LAU-10 rocket pods (each with 4 × Zuni 127 mm rockets) Missiles: Air-to-air missiles: 6 × AIM-9 Sidewinder 6 × AIM-120 AMRAAM 6 × IRIS-T 6 × Python-4 6 × Python-5 Air-to-surface missiles: 6 × AGM-65 Maverick 2 × AGM-88 HARM AGM-158 JASSM (JASSM) 4 × AGM-154 Joint Standoff Weapon (JSOW) Anti-ship missiles: 2 × AGM-84 Harpoon 4 × AGM-119 Penguin Joint Strike Missile (To be integrated) Bombs: 8 × CBU-87 Combined Effects Munition 8 × CBU-89 Gator mine 8 × CBU-97 Sensor Fuzed Weapon 4 × Mark 84 general-purpose bombs 8 × Mark 83 GP bombs 12 × Mark 82 GP bombs 8 × GBU-39 Small Diameter Bomb (SDB) 4 × GBU-10 Paveway II 6 × GBU-12 Paveway II 4 × GBU-24 Paveway III 4 × GBU-27 Paveway III 4 × Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) series Wind Corrected Munitions Dispenser (WCMD) B61 nuclear bomb B83 nuclear bomb Others: SUU-42A/A flares/infrared decoys dispenser pod and chaff pod or AN/ALQ-131 & AN/ALQ-184 ECM pods on centerline or LANTIRN, Lockheed Martin Sniper XR & Litening targeting pods or AN/ASQ-213 HARM targeting system (HTS) Pod (typically configured on station 5L with Sniper XR pod on station 5R) or Up to 3 × 300/330/370/600 US gallon Sargent Fletcher drop tanks for ferry flight/extended range/loitering time or UTC Aerospace DB-110 long range EO/IR sensor pod on centerline Avionics AN/APG-68 radar, being replaced on US Air Force F-16C/D Block 40/42 and 50/52 by AN/APG-83 AESA radar[273][274] AN/ALR-56M radar warning receiver, being replaced on US Air Force F-16C/D Block 40/42 and 50/52 by AN/ALR-69A(V) AN/ALQ-213 electronic warfare suite, being replaced on US Air Force F-16C/D Block 40/42 and 50/52 by AN/ALQ-257 MIL-STD-1553 bus[275] Notable appearances in media Main article: Aircraft in fiction § F-16 Fighting Falcon See also     Aviation portal 4th generation jet fighter Green Ramp disaster David S. Lewis (General Dynamics' CEO during formative period for F-16) RSAF Black Knights – F-16 Aerobatic Team Related development Vought Model 1600 General Dynamics F-16XL General Dynamics X-62 VISTA AIDC F-CK-1 Ching-kuo KAI T-50 Golden Eagle Mitsubishi F-2 Aircraft of comparable role, configuration, and era Chengdu J-10 Dassault Mirage 2000 McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet Mikoyan MiG-29 PAC/CAC JF-17 Thunder Saab JAS 39 Gripen Related lists List of active United States military aircraft List of fighter aircraft References Citations  Weisgerber, Marcus (22 March 2007). "Lockheed to Move F-16 Production to South Carolina". Defense One. Archived from the original on 23 June 2018. Retrieved 28 June 2018.  "How the F-16 fighter jet put Fort Worth on the aerospace map". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Archived from the original on 24 November 2017. Retrieved 24 November 2017.  "Lockheed Martin Awarded Contract to Build F-16 Block 70 Aircraft for Bahrain". Archived from the original on 29 June 2018. 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Archived from the original on 10 April 2019.  "A Florennes, un F-16 a bien été détruit par un tir accidentel: "L'explosion a été provoquée par un tir de canon"". RTL Info. 7 November 2018. Archived from the original on 24 April 2021 – via Belga.  "Pakistan pays tribute to Wing Commander Noman Akram on his first martyrdom anniversary". 11 March 2021. Archived from the original on 17 April 2022. Retrieved 26 March 2022.  "Hellenic Air Force F-16C/D Flight Manuals". 15 June 2003. GR1F-16CJ-1. Archived from the original on 23 October 2021.  Lednicer, David. "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". m-selig.ae.illinois.edu. Archived from the original on 26 March 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2019.  "SEMPER VIPER!". Lockheed Martin. Archived from the original on 3 April 2016. Retrieved 1 August 2015.  "U.S. Air Force Deploys APKWS Laser-Guided Rockets on F-16s". baesystems.com. BAE. 8 June 2016. Archived from the original on 11 June 2016. Retrieved 8 June 2016.  Hunter, Jamie. "USAF launches huge upgrade program for its F-16s". Skies Magazine. Archived from the original on 25 September 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2022.  Leone, Dario. "USAF to Upgrade 608 F-16 fighter jets to V variant in Viper Fleet largest Modification Work in History". The Aviation Geek Club. Archived from the original on 25 September 2022. Retrieved 25 September 2022.  "MIL-STD-1553 Avionics Bus Description. Military Standard". Interfacebus.com. Archived from the original on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 24 December 2015. Notes  The F-16XL was originally referred to as "F-16E", with "F-16F" reserved for a variant, however this was dropped after the decision was made to procure the F-15E Strike Eagle instead.[203][204]  Thrust (28,600 lb) / Loaded weight with 50% internal fuel (23,000 lb) Bibliography Aleshire, Peter (2004). The Eye of the Viper: The Making of an F-16 Pilot (Illustrated ed.). Guilford, Conn.: Lyons Press. ISBN 1-59228-822-7. Archived from the original on 14 January 2023. Aronstein, David C.; Piccirillo, Albert C. (1996). The Lightweight Fighter Program: A Successful Approach to Fighter Technology Transition. Reston, VA: AIAA. ISBN 9781563471933. Coram, Robert (2002). Boyd: The Fighter Pilot Who Changed the Art of War. New York: Little, Brown and Company. ISBN 9780759527775. Darling, Kev (2003). F-16 Fighting Falcon. London: Crowood Press UK. ISBN 9781840373998. Droste, Carl S.; Walker, James E. (1980). The General Dynamics Case Study on the F-16 Fly-by-Wire Flight Control System (Paperback). American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. doi:10.2514/4.867873. ISBN 9781563473074. Eden, Paul, ed. (July 2006). The Encyclopedia of Modern Military Aircraft. London, UK: Amber Books, 2004. ISBN 978-1-904687-84-9. Frawley, Gerard (2002). The International Directory of Military Aircraft. Manly NSW: Australia: Aerospace Publications Pty Ltd. ISBN 1875671552. Hampton, Dan (2012). Viper Pilot: A Memoir of Air Combat. William Morrow. ISBN 9780062130358. Hoh, Roger H.; Mitchell, David G. (September 1983). Flying Qualities of Relaxed Static Stability Aircraft – Volume I: Flying Qualities Airworthiness Assessment and Flight Testing of Augmented Aircraft. Federal Aviation Administration. ADA128758. Retrieved 16 June 2008. Jenkins, Dennis R. (2000). F/A-18 Hornet: A Navy Success Story (First ed.). New York: McGraww-Hill. ISBN 9780071346962. Peacock, Lindsay (1997). On Falcon Wings: The F-16 Story (Paperback). RAF Fairford, United Kingdom: Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund Enterprises. ISBN 9781899808014. Richardson, Doug (1990). General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon. London: Salamander Books. ISBN 9780861015344. Senior, Tim (2002). The AirForces Monthly Book of the F-16 Fighting Falcon. Stamford, UK: Key Books Ltd. ISBN 9780946219605. Spick, Mike (2000). The Great Book of Modern Warplanes. St. Paul, MN: MBI Publishing Company. ISBN 9780760308936. Further reading Drendel, Lou. F-16 Fighting Falcon – Walk Around No. 1. Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Books, 1993. ISBN 0-89747-307-8. Gunston, Bill. United States Military Aircraft of the 20th century London: Salamander Books Ltd, 1984. ISBN 0-86101-163-5. Jenkins, Dennis R. McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, Supreme Heavy-Weight Fighter. Arlington, Texas: Aerofax, 1998. ISBN 1-85780-081-8. Sweetman, Bill. Supersonic Fighters: The F-16 Fighting Falcons. Mankato, Minnesota: Capstone Press, 2008. ISBN 1-4296-1315-7. Williams, Anthony G. and Dr. Emmanuel Gustin. Flying Guns: The Modern Era. Ramsbury, UK: The Crowood Press, 2004. ISBN 1-86126-655-3. External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to F-16 Fighting Falcon. F-16 USAF fact sheet F-16 page on LockheedMartin.com and F-16 articles on Code One magazine site F-16.net Fighting Falcon resource vte Lockheed and Lockheed Martin aircraft and spacecraft Transports     Constellation family     ConstellationL-049L-649L-749L-1049L-1249L-1649 StarlinerC-69C-121EC-121R6VXB-30 Hercules family     C-130C-130JAC-130DC-130HC-130EC-130 EC-130HKC-130LC-130MC-130WC-130L-100 Model 10 Electra family     Model 10Electra JuniorLodestarHudsonSuper ElectraVentura L-188 Electra family     L-188P-3EP-3CP-140P-7 Other types     Air ExpressAltairC-5C-141ExcaliburJetStarL-1011L-2000OrionSaturnSiriusTriStar RAFVegaVega Starliner Fighter-bombers     Lightning family     P-38XP-49XP-58 Shooting Star family     F-80F-94T-33T2V Starfighter family     XF-104F-104NF-104ACL-288CL-1200 Raptor family     YF-22F-22FB-22X-44 MANTA Other types     A-4ARA-9F-16F-21F-35F-117XFM-2XF-90YP-24 Reconnaissance     Blackbird family     A-12SR-71 BlackbirdYF-12M-21D-21 Maritime patrol     P-2 NeptuneS-3 Viking Other crewed     CL-400U-2YO-3 Quiet StarTR-X Other UAVs     AequareAQM-60Cormorant (UAV)Desert HawkDesert Hawk IIIFuryMQM-105PolecatRQ-3RQ-170SR-72X-44 (UAV) Trainers     T-33T2VT-50A Helicopters     CL-475XH-51AH-56 CheyenneVH-71 KestrelVH-92 Patriot Experimental     Have BlueL-133L-301Senior PegSenior PromStar ClipperXC-35X-7X-17X-24CX-26BX-33X-35X-55X-56X-59XFVXV-4 Light aircraft     Big DipperExplorerL-402Little Dipper Missiles     AgenaHigh VirgoPerseusPing-PongPolarisPoseidonTrident ITrident II Engines     J37/T35 Model numbers     123456178 A/D910111213114151617118192021222324251262728129303132333435361373813914041424445495051526061627580818283848586878889909192939499100104105122129133136137140141144149170171182185186188189193199200204206207210212222244245246249282 (I)282 (II)285286288293295296298300301320322325329330331346349351379380382389400 (I)400 (II)402407414422437449475480489500520522549580595622645649680685704749760780785822823840849880901915934949977980981984985995100010101011102010261049 A10601080109011321149119512001201123512361237124913291400144915491600164917001800198020002329 Vega     123141567–1011112–141151611718191201212223242512627–3213334353613738139140414243 1 Not assigned vte Convair and General Dynamics aircraft Manufacturer designations     (numbering continued from Vultee): 100101102103104105106108109110111112115116117118200 12345678/8-249112122232427303148 240300340440540580600640 Bombers     B-36XA-44XB-46XB-53B-58YB-60 Fighters and attack aircraft     XP-81XF-92F-102F-106XFYF2YCharger Civilian transports     3758-91102403003404405405806006408809905800 Military transports     XC-99C-131R3YR4YT-29 Experimental aircraft     KingfishNB-36HX-6 General Dynamics     F-111F-111BF-111CF-111KEF-111AAFTI/F-111AF-16F-16XLX-62 VISTAModel 100Model 1600RB-57FYF-22 vte General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon family and related aircraft Experimental and prototypes     F-16XLX-62 VISTA Derivatives     AIDC F-CK-1 Ching-kuoKAI T-50 Golden EagleMitsubishi F-2Vought Model 1600 Competitions     Enhanced Tactical FighterLightweight Fighter programNew Fighter Aircraft Project Notable aircraft     Netz 107 Topics     Accidents and incidents Belgian UFO wave (1990)1996 Turkish F-16 shootdown2015 Moncks Corner mid-air collisionIn fiction Falcon (series)OperatorsOperational historyVariants vte USAAS/USAAC/USAAF/USAF fighter designations 1924–1962, and Tri-Service post-1962 systems 1924 sequences (1924–1962)     Pursuit (1924–1948)     P-1P-2P-3P-43 Curtiss P-4Boeing P-4P-5P-6P-7P-8P-9P-10P-11P-12P-13P-14P-15P-16P-17P-18P-19P-20P-21P-22P-23P-24P-25P-26P-27P-28P-29P-30P-31P-32P-33P-34P-35P-36P-37P-38P-39 EP-40P-41P-42P-43P-44P-45P-46P-47P-48P-49P-50P-51P-52P-53P-54P-55P-56P-57P-58P-593 XP-59P-59P-60P-61P-62P-63P-64P-65P-66P-67P-68P-69P-70P-71P-72P-732P-741P-75P-76P-77P-78P-79P-80P-81P-82P-83P-84P-85P-86P-87P-88P-89P-90P-91P-92 Fighter (1948–1962)     F-38F-39F-40F-47F-51F-59F-61 RF-61CF-63F-80F-81F-82F-83F-84 F/JHF-85F-86 CD/G/K/LF-87F-88F-89F-90F-91F-92F-93F-94F-95F-96F-97F-98F-99F-100 BF-101F-102 BF-103F-104 SXF-104NF-104AF-105F-1063 XF-106F-106F-107F-108F-1092F-110F-111 BCKAFTIEF-111A Pursuit, Biplace     PB-1PB-2PB-3 Fighter, Multiplace     FM-1FM-2 Non-sequential     F-24P-322P-400 Tri-service sequence (1962–present)     Main sequence     F-1 C/DE/FF-2F-3F-4 K/MF-5 GF-6F-7F-8F-9 F/G/H/JF-10F-11F-12 C2F-131F-14F-15 EEXJSTOL/MTDF-16 XLVISTAF-17F-18 E/FGF-191F-20F-21F-22 YF-22FB-22F-23 Non-sequential     F-35 IX-35F-117 Covert designations     YF-110 B/DCYF-113 (I) AYF-113 (II) B/DYF-113 (III) CYF-114 C/DYF-117 ADYF-118 Related designations     FV-12 1 Not assigned  • 2 Unofficial  • 3 Assigned to multiple types See also: "F-19"  • 1919-1924 sequence vte United States Air Force system numbers 100–199     100101 P1021031041051061107 A-1A-21081109111011111121131114111511161117 LM118 ALP119 C/FELTY1201211221231241251261271128129130131132 AB1331341135136113711381391401411142143–1971198199 BCDY 200–299     200201 A/LB/WE202203120420520620712082091210211121221321421512162172182191220221222 AG22312242251226227–2381239240–2781279280–2981299 300–399     300301130230330413051306 A/LB3073083093101311131213131314315 A-1A-2316317318131932013213221323324 LM/N325326327 E328 E329 F33013311332133313341335336337338–3791380 A/B/E/F/NP381–3971398399 AB 400–499     400 B/C/NEG/HM4014024031404405 BCD406140740814091410 EL411 EL412413414 LM415416 LM (I)M (II)PQ417418 LM4191420 L/W4211422423424425426 LM427 LM428 AL429430431 G (I)G (II)432433434435 AL436437438439440441 ADL4424434441445 LM44644744814491450451 DL45245345414554564571458459460 L461462463464465466467468469470471 L (I)L (II)472473474 LN4751476 E477478 AT4791480481 L482 ELM/Z483484 LMN485 LZ486487488489490 LM4911492493494495 L (I)L (II)496497 AL (I)L498 ACDEL499 ACD 500–599     500501–5191520521–5291530531–5411542543–5491550 AE551–5591560 AF561–5691570571–5791580 AE581–5891590591592593–5991 600–699     600601 AL602 AL603 AL60460560660760816096101611161216131614615161661716186191620621 A/B (I)B (II)62262362462562616276281629163016311632633634 AB635636163716386396406416426436441645164616471648 ADP649 ABCDEFLP65065165265316541655 A (I)A (II)P65665716581659166066166216631664665 A (I)A (II)666 AC/P66766866916706711672 AM/P6731674675676167716781679680681 DE6821683 AJV6841685686687 JP68816891690691 CXZ69216936941695 ABCLNPQRS (I)S (II)6961697169816991 700–799     700–735173673717381739174017417427437441745746–7531754755–7991 800–899     80018011802 L (I)L (II)803180418051806807808–816181781818191820182118221823824–83118328331834835–8451846847–8991 900–999     900–9511952853185418551956957–9671968 1 Unknown or not assigned vte Royal Thai Armed Forces fighter designations B.Kh (Fighter)     B.Kh.1B.Kh.2 (I)B.Kh.2 (II)B.Kh.2 (III)B.Kh.2 (IV)B.Kh.3 (I)B.Kh.3 (II)B.Kh.4B.Kh.5B.Kh.6B.Kh.7B.Kh.8B.Kh.9B.Kh.10B.Kh.11B.Kh.12B.Kh.13B.Kh.14B.Kh.15B.Kh.16B.Kh.17 KB.Kh.18B.Kh.19B.Kh.20 (I)B.Kh.20 (II) Related designations     B.KhF.1B.KhF.2 Authority control Edit this at Wikidata National     GermanyIsraelUnited States Other     NARA Categories: Mid-wing aircraftGeneral Dynamics aircraftLockheed Martin aircraft1970s United States fighter aircraftSingle-engined jet aircraftRelaxed-stability aircraftGeneral Dynamics F-16 Fighting FalconAircraft first flown in 1974Fourth-generation jet fighter Military aircraft     Article     Talk     Read     Edit     View history Tools From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia An F-16 Fighting Falcon (leading), P-51D Mustang (bottom), F-86 Sabre (top), and F-22 Raptor (trailing) fly in a formation representing four generations of American combat aircraft. A military aircraft is any fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft that is operated by a legal or insurrectionary military of any type.[1] Military aircraft can be either combat or non-combat:     Combat aircraft are designed to destroy enemy equipment or personnel using their own aircraft ordnance.[1] Combat aircraft are typically developed and procured only by military forces.     Non-combat aircraft are not designed for combat as their primary function, but may carry weapons for self-defense. These mainly operate in support roles, and may be developed by either military forces or civilian organizations. History Lighter-than-air A replica of a German Messerschmitt Me 262, one of the first combat aircraft to fly under turbojet power Main articles: Observation balloon and Airship In 1783, when the first practical aircraft (hot-air and hydrogen balloons) were established, they were quickly adopted for military duties.[2] The first military balloon unit was the French Aerostatic Corps, who in 1794 flew an observation balloon during the Battle of Fleurus, the first major battle to feature aerial observation.[3] Balloons continued to be used throughout the 19th century, including in the Napoleonic Wars and the Franco-Prussian War, for observation and propaganda distribution.[4] During World War I, German Zeppelin airships carried out multiple air raids on British cities, as well as being used for observation.[4] In the 1920s, the U.S. Navy acquired several non-rigid airships, the first one to see service being the K-1 in 1931. Use by the U.S. as well as other countries continued into World War II. The U.S. Navy retired its last balloons in 1963.[5] Only a handful of lighter-than-air military aircraft were used since, such as the American Blimp MZ-3, used for research and development by the U.S. Navy from 2006 to 2017. Heavier-than-air Soon after the first flight of the Wright Flyer, several militaries became interested in powered aircraft. In 1909 the United States Army purchased the Wright Military Flyer, a two-seat observation aircraft, for the Aeronautical Division, U.S. Signal Corps. It served until 1911, by which time powered aircraft had become an important feature in several armies around the world.[6] Airplanes performed aerial reconnaissance and tactical bombing missions in the Italo-Turkish war, and the First Balkan War saw the first naval-air operations. Photoreconnaissance and propaganda leaflet drops followed in the Second Balkan War. Air combat was a notable component of World War I, as fighter aircraft were developed during the war, long-range strategic bombing became a possibility,[7] and airplanes were deployed from aircraft carriers. Airplanes also took on a greater variety of support roles, notably medical evacuation, and deployed new weapons like air-to-air rockets for use against reconnaissance balloons.[8] Aviation technology advanced rapidly in the interwar period, and military aircraft became increasingly capable. Autogyros and helicopters were also developed at this time.[citation needed] During World War II, military aviation reached new heights. Decisive air battles influenced the outcome of the war, early jet aircraft flew combat missions, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles were deployed for the first time, airborne troops and cargo parachuted into battle, and the nuclear weapons that ended the war were delivered by air. In the Cold War era, aviation technology continued to advance at an extremely rapid pace. Jet aircraft exceeded Mach 1 and Mach 2, armament focus switched mainly to missiles, aircraft began carrying more sophisticated avionics, air-to-air refueling matured into practicality, and transport aircraft grew in size. Stealth aircraft entered development during the 1970s and saw combat in the 1980s. Combat An F-35 Lightning II multirole stealth fighter operated by the Israeli Air Force Combat aircraft, or "warplanes", are divided broadly into fighters, bombers, attackers, electronic warfare, maritime, multirole, and unmanned aircraft. Variations exist between them, including fighter-bombers, such as the MiG-23 ground-attack aircraft and the Soviet Ilyushin Il-2. Also included among combat aircraft are long-range maritime patrol aircraft, such as the Hawker Siddeley Nimrod and the S-3 Viking that are often equipped to attack with anti-ship missiles and anti-submarine weapons. Fighters Main articles: Fighter aircraft, Night fighter, Day fighter, Escort fighter, Air superiority fighter, Interceptor aircraft, Fighter-bomber, Strike fighter, Light fighter, Heavy fighter, and Bomber destroyer The primary role of fighters is destroying enemy aircraft in air-to-air combat, as part of both offensive and defensive counter air operations. Many fighters also possess a degree of ground attack capability, allowing them to perform surface attack and close air support missions. In addition to their counter air duties they are tasked to perform escort mission for bombers or other aircraft. Fighters are capable of carrying a variety of weapons, including machine guns, cannons, rockets, guided missiles, and bombs. Many modern fighters can attack enemy fighters from a great distance, before the enemy even sees or detects them. Examples of such fighters include the F-35 Lightning II, F-22 Raptor, F-15 Eagle, and Su-27. Bombers Main articles: Bomber, Night bomber, Strategic bomber, Heavy bomber, Medium bomber, Light bomber, Dive bomber, Torpedo bomber, and Interdictor Bombers are normally larger, heavier, and less maneuverable than fighter aircraft. They are capable of carrying large payloads of bombs, torpedoes or cruise missiles. Bombers are used almost exclusively for ground attacks and are not fast or agile enough to take on enemy fighters head-to-head. Some have a single engine and require one pilot to operate, while others have two or more engines and require crews of two or more. A limited number of bombers, such as the B-2 Spirit, have stealth capabilities that keep them from being detected by enemy radar. An example of a conventional modern bomber would be the B-52 Stratofortress. An example of a World War II bomber would be a B-17 Flying Fortress. Bombers include light bombers, medium bombers, heavy bombers, dive bombers, and torpedo bombers. Attack aircraft Augusta Westland AH-1 Apache attack helicopter operated by the British Army Air Corps Main articles: Attack aircraft, Gunship, Attack Helicopter, and Counter-insurgency aircraft Attack aircraft can be used to provide support for friendly ground troops. Some are able to carry conventional or nuclear weapons far behind enemy lines to strike priority ground targets. Attack helicopters attack enemy armor and provide close air support for ground troops. An example historical ground-attack aircraft is the Soviet Ilyushin Il-2. Several types of transport airplanes have been armed with sideways firing weapons as gunships for ground attack. These include the AC-47 and AC-130 gunships. Electronic warfare Main article: Electronic-warfare aircraft An electronic warfare aircraft is a military aircraft equipped for electronic warfare, i.e. degrading the effectiveness of enemy radar and radio systems. They are generally modified versions of other preexisting aircraft. A recent example would be the EA-18G Growler, which is a modified version of the F/A-18F Super Hornet.[9] Maritime patrol Main article: Maritime patrol aircraft A maritime patrol aircraft is a fixed-wing military aircraft designed to operate for long durations over water in maritime patrol roles—in particular anti-submarine, anti-ship, and search and rescue. Some patrol aircraft were designed for this purpose, like the Kawasaki P-1.[10] Many others are modified designs of pre-existing aircraft, such as the Boeing P-8 Poseidon, which is based on the Boeing 737-800 airliner.[11] While the term maritime patrol aircraft generally refers to fixed wing aircraft, other aircraft types, such as blimps and helicopters, have also been used in the same roles. Multirole A Russian Navy Beriev Be-12 used for maritime patrol and ASW Main articles: Multirole combat aircraft, Fighter-bomber, Strike fighter, Armed helicopter, and Utility helicopter Many combat aircraft in the modern day have a multirole ability. Normally only applied to fixed-wing aircraft, this term signifies that the plane in question can be a fighter or a bomber, depending on what the mission calls for. An example of a multirole design is the F-15E Strike Eagle, Eurofighter Typhoon, and Panavia Tornado. A World War II example would be the P-38 Lightning.[12] A utility helicopter can also count as a multirole aircraft and can fill roles such as ground attack, air assault, military logistics, CASEVAC, medical evacuation, command and control, and troop transport.[13] Unmanned Main article: Unmanned combat aerial vehicle Unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAV) are used for combat by using bombs and air-to-surface missiles. They are used for targeted killings and air interdictions, among other forms of drone warfare. Non-combat Non-combat roles of military aircraft include search and rescue, reconnaissance, observation/surveillance, Airborne Early Warning and Control, transport, training, and aerial refueling. Many civil aircraft, both fixed wing and rotary wing, have been produced in separate models for military use, such as the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner, which became the military C-47 Skytrain, and British "Dakota" transport planes, and decades later, the USAF's AC-47 Spooky gunships. Even the fabric-covered two-seat Piper J3 Cub had a military version. Gliders and balloons have also been used as military aircraft; for example, balloons were used for observation during the American Civil War and during World War I, and military gliders were used during World War II to deliver ground troops in airborne assaults. Military transport An A400M Atlas transport aircraft of the Royal Air Force Main articles: Military transport aircraft and Military glider Military transport (logistics) aircraft are primarily used to transport troops and war supplies. Cargo can be attached to pallets, which are easily loaded, secured for flight, and quickly unloaded for delivery. Cargo also may be discharged from flying aircraft on parachutes, eliminating the need for landing. Also included in this category are aerial tankers; these planes can refuel other aircraft while in flight. An example of a transport aircraft is the C-17 Globemaster III. A World War II example would be the C-47. An example of a tanker craft would be the KC-135 Stratotanker. Transport helicopters and gliders can transport troops and supplies to areas where other aircraft would be unable to land. Calling a military transport aircraft a "cargo plane" is inaccurate, because military transport planes are able to carry paratroopers and other personnel. Airborne early warning and control Main article: Airborne early warning and control An airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) system is an airborne radar system designed to detect aircraft, ships and ground vehicles at long ranges and control and command the battle space in an air engagement by directing fighter and attack aircraft strikes. AEW&C units are also used to carry out surveillance, including over ground targets and frequently perform C2BM (command and control, battle management) functions similar to an Airport Traffic Controller given military command over other forces. Used at a high altitude, the radars on the aircraft allow the operators to distinguish between friendly and hostile aircraft hundreds of miles away. AEW&C aircraft are used for both defensive and offensive air operations, and are to the NATO and American trained or integrated air forces what the combat information center is to a naval vessel, plus a highly mobile and powerful radar platform. The system is used offensively to direct fighters to their target locations, and defensively in order to counterattacks by enemy forces, both air and ground. So useful is the advantage of command and control from a high altitude, the United States Navy operates AEW&C aircraft off its Supercarriers to augment and protect its carrier Combat information center (CICs). AEW&C is also known by the older terms "airborne early warning" (AEW) and "airborne warning and control system" (AWACS, /ˈeɪwæks/ ay-waks) although AWACS is the name of a specific system currently used by NATO and the USAF and is often used in error to describe similar systems. An MQ-4C Triton operated by the U.S. Navy Reconnaissance and surveillance Main articles: Reconnaissance aircraft, Surveillance aircraft, Liaison aircraft, Unmanned aerial vehicle, and Unmanned surveillance and reconnaissance aerial vehicle Reconnaissance aircraft are primarily used to gather intelligence. They are equipped with cameras and other sensors. These aircraft may be specially designed or may be modified from a basic fighter or bomber type. This role is increasingly being filled by satellites and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Surveillance and observation aircraft use radar and other sensors for battlefield surveillance, airspace surveillance, maritime patrol, and artillery spotting. They include modified civil aircraft designs, moored balloons and UAVs. Experimental Main article: Experimental aircraft Experimental aircraft are designed in order to test advanced aerodynamic, structural, avionic, or propulsion concepts. These are usually well instrumented, with performance data telemetered on radio-frequency data links to ground stations located at the test ranges where they are flown. An example of an experimental aircraft is the Bristol 188. See also     List of aircraft     List of fighter aircraft References Gunston 1986, p. 274 Guilmartin, John F., Jr. "Military Aircraft." Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica, n.d. Web. 11 May 2015 (March 2015) "History of Balloons in Warfare". bbrclub. Retrieved 2019-02-25. "Aerial warfare during World War One". The British Library. Retrieved 2019-02-25. "balloons in World War 2". www.century-of-flight.net. Retrieved 2019-02-25. "The World's First Military Airplane". National Air and Space Museum. 2009-07-23. Retrieved 2019-02-25. Munson, Kenneth (2004). Bombers : patrol and reconnaissance aircraft 1914-1919. London: Bounty Books. ISBN 0-7537-0918-X. OCLC 56387422. "A brief history of rocketry". NASA Spacelink. Archived from the original on 5 August 2006. Retrieved 2006-08-19. EA-18G Growler Boeing Retrieved January 20, 2016 Kawasaki P-1 Kawasaki Aerospace Company Retrieved January 20, 2017 P-8 Poseidon Boeing Retrieved January 20, 2017 Dwyer, Larry (17 September 1997). "Lockheed P38 Lightning". The Aviation History Online Museum     "Utility helicopter".     Gunston, Bill (1986). Jane's Aerospace Dictionary. London, England: Jane's Publishing Company Limited. ISBN 0-7106-0365-7. External links Media related to Military aircraft at Wikimedia Commons     vte Modern military aircraft types and roles Types         Balloon Fixed-wing Glider Helicopter Unmanned (UAV) Roles     Combat         Airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) Attack         Counter-insurgency Gunship Bomber         Heavy bomber Light bomber Medium bomber Strategic Penetrator Pathfinder Close air support Electronic warfare (EW) Intruder Fighter         Air superiority Interceptor Emergency Escort Night Maritime patrol Multi-role Interdictor Fighter-bomber Strike fighter Non-combat         Experimental Liaison Reconnaissance         Scout Surveillance         Scout Tanker Testbed Trainer Transport Authority control Edit this at Wikidata National         Spain France BnF data Germany Israel United States Japan Czech Republic Other         NARA         2 Category:     Military aircraft List of fictional aircraft Article Talk Read Edit View history Tools From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Some of this article's listed sources may not be reliable. Please help this article by looking for better, more reliable sources. Unreliable citations may be challenged or deleted. (July 2019) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) A F/A-37 Talon mockup on the flight deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln from the film Stealth This is a list of fictional aircraft, including fixed-wing aircraft, rotary wing aircraft, and lighter-than-air craft. The aircraft in this list are generally intended to operate in an atmosphere, though a few have been stated as being capable of exoatmospheric or sub-orbital flight as well. These aircraft appear in notable works of fiction, including novels, stories, films, TV series, animation, video games, comics, and other works. They are either the subject of the work or an important element. Fighters Main article: Fighter aircraft ACG-01 Chimera: A prototype aircraft with exceptional maneuverability and responsiveness, it can be equipped with the RDBM (Remote Detonation Burst Missile) and the EUFB (Experimental Uranium Freefall Bomb). From Project Wingman (2020). Advanced Dominance Fighter: A family of supermaneuverable air superiority superfighters developed by Gründer Industries in the Ace Combat series of video games. ADFX-01/02 Morgan: A family of experimental fighters capable of carrying a chemical laser system and airburst missiles, first featured in Zero: The Belkan War (2006). ADF-01 FALKEN: a superfighter armed with an internal laser system, the ability to jam and disrupt HUDs, and backwards-fire capabilities, first featured in 2 (1997). ADF-11F Raven: a modular superfighter that can optionally use a UCAV module in place of a manned cockpit, from 7: Skies Unknown (2019). This UCAV can detach and transform to fly on its own as the ADF-11. Unlike preceding ADF aircraft, the ADF-11F lacks forward-swept wings and rearward vertical stabilizers. Angel Interceptor: a carrier-based fighter jet from the 1967 TV series Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons. The aircraft operates from an airborne aircraft carrier named Cloudbase. The craft is based on the World Air Force Viper, powered by twin turbo-jet compressors feeding a single ramjet. It is armed with a nose cannon and rockets.[1] ASF-X Shinden II: an experimental multirole fighter jet that features forward-swept wings, a two-tiered engine configuration (akin to that of the English Electric Lightning), and variable-geometry wing tips and vertical stabilizers. It was designed by Macross creator Shōji Kawamori for Ace Combat: Assault Horizon (2011). AV-14 Attack VTOL: a UNSC airborne attack vehicle, also known as the Hornet, from the Halo video game series.[2] A/V-32 Pegasus: a fictional jump jet operated by the US Marine Corps in the Jim DeFelice novel Havana Strike.[3] Cobra Rattler: a VTOL attack plane based on the Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II. It made its first appearance in G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero in 1984. CFA-44 Nosferatu: an advanced carrier-based fighter jet with all-directional multi-purpose missiles (ADMMs), internal jamming pods, and dual railguns, from Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation (2007). CS7 Thunderhawk: a single-engine fighter from Just Cause 3 armed with homing missiles and a machine gun for strafing, which also features partially-folding wings. Used both by the in-universe Medici Military and the opposing rebellion against the military's commander, Sebastiano Di Ravello. Darkstar: a prototype hypersonic jet powered by a scramjet based on the SR-72, capable of reaching speeds over Mach 10. Test-flown by the title character in Top Gun: Maverick.[4] Eurofighter Hailstorm: a main support fighter equipped with a laser cannon, used by the European Union Enforcer Corps in EndWar. F-11X Apollo: a VTOL-equipped single-seater fighter jet equipped with autocannons used by the Allies in Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 (2008). F-19 Ghostrider: based on the Have Blue project of the 1970s. The Testors Model Company released a conceptual model airplane in 1986, and Monogram followed with its own version in 1987. Earning massive media attention, the design became the shape of the mysterious "Stealth Fighter" in the public eye until the F-117 Nighthawk was unveiled in 1990. As it turned out, the sleek and low-profile design looked nothing like the highly angular, faceted F-117 it was meant to portray.[5][6] The aircraft was described as the F-19A Ghostrider in the Tom Clancy novel Red Storm Rising. The book described the aircraft as being nicknamed the "Frisbee" and having no corners, high-bypass turbofans, and appearing to mimic the shape of a cathedral bell when viewed from above.[7] F-41 Broadsword: a UNSC exoatmospheric multirole strike fighter. It is capable of operating within an atmosphere or in a vacuum; the F-41E variant features energy shielding, as seen in Halo 4. This craft comes from the Halo video game series.[8] F-22V Velociraptor: a delta wing version of the F-22 Raptor featured in the Jim DeFelice novel Cyclops One.[9] F-302 Fighter-Interceptor: An exoatmospheric combat craft developed, and initially fielded by, the Stargate franchise's depiction of the United States of America. Developed as a response to the imminent threat posed by the Milky Way galaxy's dominant power, the Goa'uld System Lords, it was described as having made use of various alien-derived technologies that had been procured through the series' eponymous Stargate Program. Among the various alien-based materials and subsystems said to have been incorporated into the aircraft were its inertial dampening systems, a 'Naquadah'-based airframe composite, and even a short-range 'hyperspace-window generator' granting it limited superluminal propulsion.[10] F/A-37 Talon: a single-seat fighter attack aircraft of the U.S. Navy, which appeared in the 2005 film Stealth. It is capable of Mach 3.5 and supercruise, and has a range of 4,000 miles. It is also accompanied by an AI-operated UAV, which assists in targeting and ISR for the Talon.[11][12] F/A-40 Stalker: a stealth fighter used by the Western Coalition from Frontlines: Fuel of War. It is based on the F-22 Raptor. F/A-181 Black Wasp II: A carrier-based multirole fighter aircraft used by NATO in ARMA 3. It is a combination of the F/A-18E Super Hornet and the F-22 Raptor. Firehawk: a VTOL multi-role fighter jet that appears in Command & Conquer 3. The craft is a two-seat, forward-swept wing design with rearwards-swept winglets and canards. It can be outfitted with special boosters that enable it to go sub-orbital, allowing it to bypass anti-aircraft fire.[13] GAF-1 Varcolac: an advanced fighter jet that features extreme maneuverability and a machine gun on the tail for defense against missiles. It was developed by the Golden Axe Plan from Ace Combat: Joint Assault. Its name is Romanian for "werewolf". Gilbert XF-120: a fictitious X-plane portrayed by an XB-51 in camouflage, from the 1956 film Toward the Unknown.[14] Manta Fighter: a single-place 1939 twin-prop design, with a delta tail & straight wings near the aft, from the 2004 film Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.[15] Mikoyan CF-121 Redhawk: an April Fools' prank detailing the RCAF purchase of thirty MiG-21s for Squadron 441 in 1960.[16] MiG-28: a fictional aircraft flown by the antagonists in the 1986 film Top Gun. The real aircraft used to portray the MiG-28 was a Northrop F-5.[17] Full-scale MiG-31 Firefox model used in the film Firefox parked at Van Nuys Airport, California in May 1982 MiG-31 Firefox: a fictional aircraft that appeared in Craig Thomas's novels Firefox and Firefox Down, as well as the 1982 film by the same name starring Clint Eastwood. The aircraft was portrayed as a Soviet interceptor with stealth capabilities, and had a thought-controlled weapons system.[18] Its designation is shared with the real MiG-31 Foxhound.[19] MiG-37 Ferret: a fictional Soviet stealth model aircraft, produced by Testors as a counter to the American F-19. The craft combined a faceted airframe design with cooled exhausts and radar-absorbing skin. Purely conjectural, the design nonetheless turned out to be closer in shape to the actual F-117 Nighthawk.[20] MiG-242: a fictional Soviet aircraft appearing in the 1968 pilot episode of Joe 90, a British Supermarionation television series co-created by Gerry and Sylvia Anderson[21] Night Raven SP3: an advanced air superiority fighter used by Cobra in the G.I. Joe comics and animated series in the 1980s. It closely resembles the SR-71 Blackbird. P-996 LAZER: a fictional fighter jet appearing in Grand Theft Auto V, where it can be found in and around Fort Zancudo. Based primarily on the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon. Project Wingman Mark I (PW-Mk.I): an experimental fighter aircraft powered by cordium (an unstable material from the game's universe, used as extremely potent fuel and powerful explosives) Along with being armed with a railgun that fires plasma orbs, It's main weapon is the BML-U (Burst Missile Launcher-Universal). The titular aircraft of Project Wingman (2020). X-PF: A prototype aircraft of similar configuration, albeit with an opaque canopy. QFA-44: a UCAV variant of the CFA-44 remotely operated by the "Butterfly Master", from Ace Combat Infinity (2014). Savoia S.21: a fictional fighter seaplane that appears in the anime film Porco Rosso, directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Its name is shared with the real-life Savoia S.21; however, the two do not look similar.[22] SP-34R (Icarus Experimental Ballistic Airframe "Spear"): a prototype test platform equipped only with cannons and railguns that lacks a fly-by-wire system. From Project Wingman (2020). Su-38 Slamhound: a Russian Spetsnaz Guard Brigade support fighter in EndWar.[23] To-201 Shikra: A multirole/air superiority fighter used by the CSAT in ARMA 3. It is a combination of the Sukhoi Su-57 and the Sukhoi Su-35S. VF-0 Phoenix: A series of "variable fighters" from the Macross Zero sci-fi anime series, which can transform into mecha.[24] VF-1 Valkyrie: An evolution of the aforementioned VF-0 that was prominently featured in Super Dimension Fortress Macross (adapted as Robotech in the US). Its design was inspired by the F-14 Tomcat,[25] while its name was taken from the North American XB-70 Valkyrie.[26] Vic Viper: the protagonist jet fighter in the video game Gradius. Willis JA-3: a rocket/jet-powered X-plane capable of 1,400 mph (2,300 km/h), from the 1950 film Chain Lightning, piloted by Humphrey Bogart's character.[27] X-02 Wyvern: An advanced fighter aircraft developed by the fictional nation of Erusea, with 3D thrust vectoring nozzles and variable-geometry tail fins and wings that can switch between a forward- and backward-swept configuration. First featured in Ace Combat 04: Shattered Skies. A two-seat variant known as the X-02S Strike Wyvern appears in Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown. X-49 Night Raven: An advanced experimental fighter aircraft with a closed flying wing design. It is equipped with a laser cannon, and requires its pilot to undergo artificial nerve surgery in order to operate it. First featured in Ace Combat 3: Electrosphere. XA-20 Razorback: a main support fighter in the United States Joint Strike Force in EndWar. Also appears in H.A.W.X as a reward for completing the game, revealing it to have stealth capabilities.[28] XFA-24A Apalis: an experimental multirole fighter developed in the 2010s, first featured in Ace Combat X: Skies of Deception (2006). XFA-27: a multirole fighter aircraft with variable geometry wings, boasting high maneuverability and the ability to fire off four missiles simultaneously (being the first aircraft in an Ace Combat game to do so). First featured in Ace Combat 2 (1997). XFA-33 Fenrir: a multirole aircraft possessing a massive airframe and equipped with optical camouflage, a microwave radiation gun, VTOL capabilities, thrust-vectoring engines, wingtips, delta wing configuration, canards and V-tail. First featured in Ace Combat X: Skies of Deception (2006) XP-14F Skystriker: the primary air-superiority fighter used by G.I. Joe in the comics and animated series in the early 1980s, sold as a toy from 1983 to 1986. It closely resembles the real-life U.S. Navy F-14 Tomcat.[25][29] Yak-12: a fictional Soviet jet aircraft featured in the film Jet Pilot starring John Wayne. A Lockheed T-33 was used to portray the fictitious plane. The designation does, however, exist in the form of the Yakovlev Yak-12, a utility airplane from the Soviet Union.[14] YSS-1000 Sabre: a fictional spaceplane being developed by the UNSC. It appears in Halo: Reach.[30] Bombers and attackers Main articles: Bomber and Attack aircraft A-164 Wipeout: a stealthy version of the A-10 Thunderbolt II used by NATO, from ARMA 3. ADA-01A/01B ADLER: two attacker variants of the ADF-01 FALKEN fighter. As the first aircraft in the ADA series developed by Gründer Industries, it was designed to complement the FALKEN and defend it from surface-to-air attacks. It was also designed to test the experimental "SDBM" weapon. It was planned to appear in Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War, but the idea was scrapped. The B model, which replaces the SDBM from the ADA-01A with the MPBM (Multi-Purpose Burst Missile), appears in Ace Combat Infinity as a playable aircraft. Banshee: a bomber made by the Brotherhood of Nod from reverse-engineered technology obtained through an extraterrestrial matrix called the Tacitus. It is outfitted with two rapid-fire plasma cannons, and appears in Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun B-19+1⁄2: an enormous heavy bomber used by the pigs in propaganda cartoon Blitz Wolf to deploy the "Scream Bomb" on Adolf Wolf. It has at least 16 piston engines, and has 5 guns fitted to the bottom of the fuselage and a cannon fitted to the top. B-6+7⁄8: a tiny single-engined bomber used by the pigs to drop an incendiary bomb on Adolf Wolf, which lights his foot on fire. It is fitted with a lever to the right side of the cockpit, which lifts up the wings and deploys bombs. B-2X Century: a VTOL-equipped heavy bomber equipped with iron bombs, which could also deploy paratroopers. Used by the Allies in Command & Conquer: Red Alert 3 (2008). B-3: a fictional derivative of the B-2 Spirit featured in the 1996 film Broken Arrow[31] and Command & Conquer: Generals – Zero Hour. Bm-335 Lindwurm: a large strategic bomber with a prominent radome below the cockpit, used by the Belkan Air Force. From Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War (2006). B-39 Peacemaker: a fictional Cold War-era nuclear-powered USAF bomber in the Charles Stross novelette A Colder War.[32] EB-52 Megafortress: The Megafortress first appears in Dale Brown's novel Flight of the Old Dog and is expanded upon and upgraded in his later books. The design contains a long SST nose, with a stealth shape and twin V-tails. Its eight engines are later replaced by four larger turbofans.[33] EB-1C Vampire: first appearing in Dale Brown's novel Battle Born, the EB-1C is an advanced variant of the real-life B-1 Lancer. It differs from the real B-1 in that its wings are always swept all the way back, the tail is smaller and lacks the horizontal stabilizer, and it utilizes "Mission Adaptive Skin" that uses micro-hydraulics to affect the shape of its wings in-flight.[34] P-U "Stinka Bomber": a low-speed, shoddily built bomber used by Adolf Wolf in Blitz Wolf. It is detected by the pigs using their listening detector, and is promptly shot down by their huge, multi-cannon gun, simply named Secret Weapon. SuperCOIL: a secretly developed radar-invisible B-2 variant, which carries an airborne "COIL" chemical laser powerful enough to shoot down missiles in mid-flight, featured in the thriller novel SuperCOIL by Robert Ari.[35][better source needed] Vindicator: A fictitious supersonic bomber based on the Convair B-58 Hustler. In the 1964 film Fail Safe, the attack on Moscow is made by a squadron of Vindicators. While exterior shots of the plane relied on footage of B-58s, interior shots depicted a three-man crew similar to that of a conventional airliner and distinct from the tandem seating on a real B-58. The fictional Vindicator bomber was again represented by the B-58 Hustler in Fail Safe, a 2000 made-for-TV remake starring George Clooney. Valkyrie: Appears in the 1985 video game Rescue on Fractalus!. A variant of the (also fictional) F-27 Firedrake, the Valkyrie is a bomber and attack aircraft capable of line-of-sight dogfighting using an antimatter bubble torpedo projector and defended by "Dirac Mirror Shields", which can redirect any form of energy attack and some physical attacks. The Valkyrie is a primarily air-breathing/aerodynamic-lift aircraft, but is capable of exoatmospheric flight and operations from space-based carrier ships. It is a single-seat aircraft, but the Valkyrie variant, named after the choosers of the slain from Norse mythology, has been modified for search and rescue and can transport up to 20 recovered personnel in a separate section of the aircraft. Gunships Main article: Gunship AT-99 Scorpion: a VTOL gunship which uses two transverse ducted rotors for lift. It has a crew of one. The aircraft appears in the 2009 film Avatar.[36] Cordium-powered airships from Project Wingman: Anura-class air cruiser: The smallest type of airship for civilian and military use. Equipped with standard anti-aircraft armament. Arcion-class air heavy cruiser: Similar to the Anura, but equipped with railguns and more advanced weaponry. Littoria-class air battlecruiser: Larger airship used by both civilian and military forces. More advanced variants can be equipped with railguns. 205-class air battleship: The largest known class of airship. Bristling with CIWS turrets, railguns, and SAM batteries. Civilian and military use known. C-21 Dragon: a VTOL four-post ducted-fan transport and gunship, which appears in the film Avatar.[37] SA-2 Samson: a ducted-fan transverse rotor utility assault transport from the film Avatar.[38] XH9 Warbird: a VTOL ducted-fan twin-rotor utility aircraft that is used by the United States Air Force and the Atlas Corporation. It is equipped with machine guns, rockets, and a cloaking device. It appears in Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare. Orca: a family of VTOL gunships used by the Global Defense Initiative (GDI) from the Command & Conquer video game series. Vertibird : a VTOL gunship similar to the V-22 Osprey in the Fallout (series) video game series. It was developed before the apocalypse and used by the U.S military on many fronts. In the games, the aircraft is used by several factions, including the Enclave and the Brotherhood of Steel, both remnants of the army in this uchronia[39] Unmanned aerial vehicles Main articles: Unmanned aerial vehicle and Unmanned combat aerial vehicle EDI: Featured in the film Stealth, the Extreme Deep Invader (EDI) was developed as an assistant to the FA-37 Talon. The craft has an artificial intelligence system that allows it to operate without a human pilot. The sensors can identify a human target by fingerprints, voice identification, or facial recognition. It has V/STOL capabilities and pulse detonation scramjet engines fueled by catalyzed A1 methane.[40][better source needed] MQ-99: A UCAV developed by Gründer Industries and used by Erusea to intercept enemy aircraft that cross the boundary lines of a "drone interceptor network". MQ-99s will launch if any pilot in the area does not identify themselves as friendly after a certain amount of time, and are also capable of being launched from shipping containers. From Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (2019). MQ-101: A UCAV used by Erusea that resembles the Northrop Grumman X-47B. It is carried by the Arsenal Bird airborne aircraft carrier, which deploys them to defend itself from enemy aircraft. From Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (2019). UCAV Wyvern: A UCAV seen in the game War Thunder that was featured in the 2021 April Fools event. The Wyvern featured anti-air missiles, cruise missiles, and anti-ground missiles. The Wyvern has significantly superior metals and alloys that allowed it to achieve extremely high wing overload rates compared to planes that are regularly seen in the game. The Wyvern was removed from the game on the 5th of April 2021 when the April Fools event concluded. Wraith: A tactical strike UCAV used by the Nile River Coalition and the 54 Immortals. It features VTOL and stealth capabilites, along with optical camouflage. It also has a flak drone that escorts it and protects it. From Call of Duty: Black Ops III (2015). Special operations Aerowing: an aircraft that the story says was built by villain Lex Luthor. It has two fuselages, six engines and undernose guns, and was flown from the mid-Atlantic Ocean to the Amazon rainforest in the DC Comics book Elseworld's Finest #2.[41] Airwolf: an attack helicopter from the 1984 TV series of the same name. It was capable of supersonic flight and carried retractable weapons. The helicopter used was a modified Bell 222.[42] Albatross: appears in Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet.[43] AmphibiCopter: a 21st century submersible two-seater aircraft which appeared in the 2001 film A.I. Artificial Intelligence.[44] Arkbird: a long-range low-orbiting lifting body spacecraft conceived by the nation of Osea. Its laser cannon was originally meant to neutralize space debris, but was repurposed to shoot down ground targets and ordnance alike. Further tampering with the design gave it the ability to deploy UCAVs and ballistic cannons for self-defense. From Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War (2005). Batcopter: a modified Bell 47G-3 which made an appearance in the 1966 Batman film.[45] Batwing: This iconic aircraft was used in the 1989 Batman film starring Michael Keaton.[46] Blue Thunder: a fictional police helicopter from the film and television series of the same name. The aircraft incorporated an optically tracked rotary gun, a "whisper mode" for quiet flight, surveillance equipment, and an infrared camera. The helicopter used in the film was a modified Aérospatiale Gazelle.[47] Bubble ship: an aircraft that resembles a dragonfly combined with the canopy of a Bell 47 helicopter. The machine features rotating VTOL engines and a cockpit that swivels along with the upper and lower guns fixed to it. The craft was flown by Tom Cruise's character Jack Harper in the sci-fi film Oblivion.[48] BV-38 Flying Wing: a bent-winged twin-prop transport, which appeared in the 1981 film Raiders of the Lost Ark.[49][50] D79-TC Pelican: An extremely versatile dropship used by the UNSC, mainly for the transportation of personnel, vehicles and equipment. Occasionally used as a support gunship in the Halo video game franchise[51][52] Cobra F.A.N.G.: a short range one-man light-attack gyrocopter, equipped with air-to-air heat-seeking rockets. This craft appeared in the comics and the first season of the G.I. Joe animated series, as well in the 1985 computer game.[53] Condor/Vulture: A main element of the first chapter of Wolfenstein: The New Order and appearing in Wolfenstein: The Old Blood, the Condor is the supposed result of the modification of an Avro Lancaster using American-built parts. It is equipped with four quad autocannon turrets, with one mounted above the protruding cockpit, two mounted at the top and bottom of the tail end, and one turret chin-mounted below the cockpit. The autocannons appear to fire HVAP rounds exclusively, as enemy aircraft can take multiple hits without catching fire, while armored ground units are affected much more by these rounds. Although the official name for this type of aircraft is "Condor", the call sign for troop transport variants is Vulture, with the "Condor" call sign only being used to refer to the troop support variants. F-117X Remora: an experimental F-117 variant used in the film Executive Decision. It is modified to transport personnel with an in-flight docking probe designed to dock with other aircraft in midair. Originally designed to relieve fatigued bomber crews at altitude, this aircraft was used to transport a special operations unit to a commercial airliner which had been hijacked by terrorists.[citation needed] Flying Sub FS-1: Introduced in the Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea TV series, this hybrid submersible is capable of flight, as well as conducting underwater operations. The design resembles that of a stingray, with twin tail fins on the back, and has room for a crew of two.[54] Ornithopter: a flapping-wing craft featured in the novel Dune by Frank Herbert and in the 1984 and the 2021 films of the same name.[55][56] Snowspeeder: a military variant of the T-47 airspeeder, adapted for cold climates. The craft appeared in the 1980 film The Empire Strikes Back.[57] Invisible Plane: from the Wonder Woman comic books and TV series.[58] Quinjet: a craft featured in the Avengers comic books and films. It is a multirole jet aircraft used by S.H.I.E.L.D, with VTOL capabilities and a tilted cockpit to provide pilots with better visibility during landings.[59] Spider's Wing: a flying wing aircraft used by the leader of the Spider Gang to terrorize citizens in the Dick Tracy comics.[60] Tiltrotor craft: a stealth VTOL tiltrotor vehicle used by the antagonists in the sci-fi film Resident Evil: Afterlife. The craft has similarities to the real life V-22 Osprey.[61] Thunderbird 2: from Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds. It is a bulbous VTOL cargo carrier that comes equipped with a variety of service modules.[62] UH-144 Falcon: a tiltrotor troop transport used by the UNSC in the Halo franchise.[63] XB-0 Hresvelgr: a huge airborne twin-boom "command cruiser" with six jet engines and a wingspan of 503 m (1,650 ft), from Ace Combat Zero: The Belkan War (2006). It was purportedly able to carry and deploy up to 50 fighter planes. X-Jet Blackbird: featured in the X-Men films, it is a modified SR-71 Blackbird with forward-swept wings and VTOL capabilities. The craft has room for a dozen personnel.[64] YF-12A X-Jet Prototype: the predecessor to the X-Jet and the SR-71, the aircraft was designed and flown by Hank McCoy. The prototype incorporates VTOL capabilities and an internal cargo hold for personnel. The plane appeared in the 2011 film X-Men: First Class.[65] Airborne aircraft carriers Main article: Airborne aircraft carrier See also: Floating cities and islands in fiction Argo: a flying wing operated by Monarch that deploys and recovers V-22 Ospreys in Godzilla: King of the Monsters.[66] Arsenal Bird: a large unmanned aircraft carrier designed to hold up to 80 MQ-101 UCAVs, featured in Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown. It is a flying wing powered by numerous contra-rotating propeller engines and armed with three laser defense systems, air-to-air missile launchers, and a force field referred to as the Active Protection System (APS). Originally built by Osea to protect the International Space Elevator, the two Arsenal Birds in operation were later hijacked by Erusea before the events of the game. It also deploys beyond-visual-range "Helios" airburst missiles. AAC-03 Banshee III: a massive airborne aircraft carrier that is used as a base of operations. Two Banshees, the other being designated the AAC-04 Banshee IV, were built to allow the Fairy Air Force to coordinate their operations anywhere over the surface of the continent. It appears in both the Yukikaze anime and novel adaptations. Cloudbase: Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons[67] Daedalus: a flying aircraft carrier used by the STAG (Special Tactical Anti-Gang) unit in Saints Row: The Third. Helicarrier: a series of massive carriers in Marvel comics that resemble conventional seaborne aircraft carriers and also serve as capital ships.[68] Iron Vulture: an airship captained by the air pirate leader Don Karnage in the Disney animated series TaleSpin.[69] P-1112 Aigaion: An airborne closed flying wing carrier armed with airburst cruise missiles (delegating terminal guidance to UAVs for long-range strikes) similar to the Helios missiles used by the Arsenal Bird. It also serves as a base for the infamous Estovakian elite squadron "Strigon Team". Originally featured in Ace Combat 6: Fires of Liberation (2007). Pandora: an airship used by Nathan Zachary and his air pirate gang the Fortune Hunters in the Crimson Skies game franchise.[70] Royal Navy flying aircraft carriers: Appear in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.[71] Skybase: Appears in Gerry Anderson's New Captain Scarlet.[72] Valiant: a flying command ship/aircraft carrier used by UNIT in Doctor Who[73] Civilian Commercial Antonov 500: a heavy transport that appears in the film 2012, based on the Antonov An-225.[74] Carreidas 160: a prototype supersonic business jet with 10 seats, seen in Flight 714 to Sydney, one of The Adventures of Tintin.[75][76] Elgin E-474: featured in the 2005 film Flightplan, based on the Airbus A380.[77] Fireflash: a hypersonic transport featured in Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds TV series.[78] Fortress-1 and Fortress-2: a successive pair of massive Helicarrier-like vehicles employed by the fictional Cyberbiotics Corporation in the Disney animated series Gargoyles, commissioned by the firm's founder, the disabled CEO Halcyon Renard.[79] Hindenburg III: an upgraded dirigible featured in the film Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow.[80] Jeremy the Jet Plane: an anthropomorphic jet airliner who lives in the Sodor Airport. He is based on the BAC One-Eleven and is featured in the Thomas & Friends TV series. Norton N-22: a wide-body passenger aircraft at the center of a safety investigation in Michael Crichton's novel Airframe.[81] Orion III: a space plane featured in the 1968 sci-fi film 2001: A Space Odyssey, used to shuttle personnel from Earth to the orbiting space station. It wore a Pan Am livery. Rutland Reindeer: Appeared in No Highway in the Sky, a film based loosely on Neville Shute's No Highway.[82] The aircraft used was a modified Handley Page Halifax.[83] Skyfleet S570: a prototype airplane that appeared in the 2006 film Casino Royale, which was actually a Boeing 747-200 originally owned by British Airways. It was refitted with two mock-up engines on each inner pylon and external fuel tanks on the outer pylons, somewhat anachronistically resembling a B-52 Stratofortress.[84] Spectrum Passenger Jet: a twin-turbojet personnel transport, from Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons.[85] Starflight: a hypersonic transport which was featured in the 1983 TV movie Starflight: The Plane That Couldn't Land.[86] Rocket plane: a Concorde-like rocket-powered plane used by the Nazi Empire in The Man in the High Castle novel and TV series.[87] Luxemburg (LZ131): a dirigible based on a Zeppelin design, which appeared in the climatic ending of the 1991 film The Rocketeer.[88] Personal Albatross: a 19th-century large propeller-powered airship in the novel Robur the Conqueror, aka Clipper of the Clouds by Jules Verne, and in the film version of Verne's Master of the World.[89][90] Conwing L-16: an amphibious seaplane based on the Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar, featured in the animated Disney series TaleSpin, an example of which is the Sea Duck flown by bush pilot Baloo.[91][92] Drake Bullet: an air racer flown by Clark Gable's character in the 1938 film Test Pilot. A Seversky P-35 was used to fulfill the aircraft's role.[93] Harold the Helicopter: a cartoon helicopter based on the Sikorsky H-19, featured in the Thomas & Friends TV series.[94] Möwe, a jet-powered motor glider–like craft used by the titular character in Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind. The craft was brought from fiction to reality by fans of the film under the name OpenSky.[95] T-16 Skyhopper: Luke Skywalker's canyon flyer on the planet Tatooine, which appeared in Star Wars: A New Hope[96] The Terror: a 19th-century land, sea and air craft invented by Robur the Conqueror, featured in Jules Verne's The Master of the World.[90] See also Aircraft in fiction Airborne aircraft carrier List of fictional spacecraft References  Chris Bishop, Angel Interceptor at Spectrum Headquarters. Retrieved 27 April 2018.  "UNSC AV-14 Hornet Attack VTOL". rpggamer.org. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "Havana Strike (1997)". Fantastic Fiction. Retrieved 27 April 2018.  Tapp, Tom (2022-05-28). 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Retrieved 2018-11-12.  "Powerplants Stephen Trimble / Washington DC; Boeing pushes B-52H re-engining; Manufacturer points to financing scheme to fund USAF bomber overhaul to replace ageing Pratt & Whitney TF33s. - Flight International - November 25, 2003 - Business & Industry". Archived from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 21 December 2014.  Brown, Dale (2009-03-17). Plan of Attack. Harper. pp. 458–459. ISBN 978-0-06-202184-7.  https://www.amazon.com/SuperCOIL-Robert-Ari-ebook/dp/B07V6KN4DZ/[dead link]  "Avatar – helicopter sci-fi movie for Rotary Action at". Rotaryaction.com. Archived from the original on 2012-06-04. Retrieved 2012-07-09.  "C-21 "Dragon" Assault Ship". fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "Aerospatiale SA-2 Samson by Fantastic Plastic Models". Fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 2012-07-10.  https://fallout.wiki/wiki/Vertibird  "EDI-UCAV from "Stealth" (2005)". Fantastic Plastic. Retrieved 27 April 2018.  John Francis Moore, Kieron Dwyer and Hilary Barta, Elseworld's Finest #2, DC Comics, 1997, p. 13-16.  "Airwolf". rotaryaction.com. Archived from the original on 23 September 2014. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "Albatross". spectrum-headquarters.com. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "A.I." Archived from the original on 23 September 2014. Retrieved 1 October 2014.  "Batman (1966)". rotaryaction.com. Retrieved 2 April 2018.  "Batwing 1:25 Model Kit by AMT/Ertl". Fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 2012-07-10.  Blue Thunder Archived 2014-09-23 at the Wayback Machine. Rotary Action site  "Oblivion Bubble Ship". fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 2 April 2018.  "Blohm & Voss Bv-38 Flying Wing, Black Sun Models". Scalemates.com. Retrieved 2012-07-10.  "Starship Modeler: Gallery (Vehicles & Vessels)". Starshipmodeler.info. Retrieved 2012-07-10.  "Guilty Spark (HALO)". guiltyspark.org. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "(VEHICLES) UNSC Vehicle "Pelican"". Microsoft 2013. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  Roberts, Matt. "G.I. Joe for Personal Computers". YoJoe.com. Retrieved 27 April 2018.  "Flying Sub from "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea"". fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "Dune". Archived from the original on 23 September 2014. Retrieved 1 October 2014.  "Harkonnen Ornithopter". fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 2 April 2018.  "Rebel Snowspeeder by MPC". Fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 2012-07-10.  Goldberg, Matt (2014-05-15). "First Look at Wonder Woman's Invisible Jet from BATMAN VS. SUPERMAN". Collider. Retrieved 2016-02-24.  "Quinjet". fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 1 May 2018.  "Spider's Wing from "Dick Tracy" (1937)". fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "Resident Evil: Afterlife – helicopter movie review for Rotary Action at". Rotaryaction.com. Retrieved 2012-07-01.  "Thunderbird 2 from "Thunderbirds" (syndicated 1964–66)". Fantastic Plastic. Retrieved 2012-07-12.  "UH-144 FALCON". rpggamer.org. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "X-Jet from "X2 – X-Men United"". fantastic plastic. Retrieved 2012-10-07.  "X-Jet Takes A Tumble in New 'X-Men: First Class' TV Spot". Screen Rant, LLC. 2011-05-14. Retrieved 2012-07-12.  Pappalardo, Joe (31 May 2019). "The New 'Godzilla' Is the King of Absurd Military Tactics". Retrieved 1 June 2019.  "Cloudbase H.Q." actiontoys.com. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "Marvel's The Avengers Helicarrier". fantastic plastic.com. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "The TaleSpin Sourcepage – The Iron Vulture". talespinsourcepage.i8.com. Archived from the original on 2 March 2009. Retrieved 2012-07-18.  Herold, Charles (1 March 2001). "Game Theory; Fly in a Retro World Under Crimson Skies". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 July 2015.  "page S". Rotary Action at rotaryaction.com. Archived from the original on 2014-09-23. Retrieved 2012-07-18.  "Skybase central". spectrum-headquarters.com. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  Davies, Russell T (writer); Teague, Colin (director) (23 June 2007). "The Sound of Drums". Doctor Who. Series 3. Episode 12. BBC. BBC One.  "Placing the limelight on the aircraft of the 2012 movie heroes". Warplanes Online Community. Retrieved 2012-07-16.  "Vol 714 pour Sydney". Hergé – Moulinsart SA. Retrieved 2012-07-16.  "x plane freeware". xplanefreeware. Archived from the original on 2011-01-21. Retrieved 2012-07-16.  "AALOT E-474". media.ign.com. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  "Fire Flash (Plastic model)". Hobby search.com. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  Directors: Saburo Hashimoto, Kazuo Terada; Writers: Eric Luke (story), Michael Reaves (story, teleplay), Greg Weisman (creator) (October 24–28, 1994). "Awakening". Gargoyles. Season 1. Episode 1–5. syndicated.  "SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW". scifimoviepage.com. Retrieved 26 November 2013.  Crichton, Michael (1996). Airframe (1st trade ed.). New York: Alfred Knopf. ISBN 0679446486. OCLC 35723547.  "Rutland Reindeer. From "No Highway In the Sky."". airlinercafe.com. Retrieved 3 December 2013.  Merrick, K. A. Halifax: An Illustrated History of a Classic World War II Bomber. Ian Allan.  "Skyfleet and Texron". Wordpress. Archived from the original on 2014-03-13. Retrieved 2012-07-16.  "Spectrum Headquarters Gallery". Coppermine Photo Gallery. Retrieved 2012-07-16.  "Film 1". Chellomedia Direct Programming B.V. Retrieved 2012-07-16.  The Man In The High Castle February 8, 2015 Memphis Flyer Retrieved March 20, 2017  "The Rocketeer | Aircraft". Spot.colorado.edu. 1958-12-17. Retrieved 2012-06-30.  "Steam Noir". William Wardrop. Retrieved 2012-07-16.  "The Master of the World – 1914". Amereon House Mattituck. Retrieved 2012-07-16.  "The TaleSpin Sourcepage – Conwing L-16". talespinsourcepage.i8.com. Archived from the original on 11 February 2009. Retrieved 2013-02-12.  "The TaleSpin Sourcepage – The Sea Duck". talespinsourcepage.i8.com. Archived from the original on 20 June 2012. Retrieved 2013-02-12.  "Aviation Movie: Test Pilot (1938)". WordPress. Retrieved 2012-07-16.  Railway Series Characters: Harold the Helicopter  "Jet-powered Nausicaa Glider Project". Slashdot. 21 February 2004. Retrieved 2006-06-18.  "Incom T-16 Skyhopper Model by Darkstar". Fantastic-plastic.com. Retrieved 2012-07-10. vte Fictional transportation Ground transportation     BusesCarsMetro/rapid transit stationsRailway stations Air transportation     Aircraft Flying cars Water transportation     Ships Royal Navy shipsSubmarine aircraft carriers Other transportation     Vehicles Marvel comicsSpacecraft Space stations Categories: Fictional aircraftLists of fictional thingsLists of aircraft
  • Condition: In Excellent Condition
  • Denomination: Commerative
  • Year of Issue: 2023
  • Number of Pieces: 1
  • Collections/ Bulk Lots: No
  • Time Period: 2000s
  • Collection: USAF
  • Fineness: F16
  • Features: Commemorative
  • Country/Region of Manufacture: United Kingdom
  • Modified Item: No
  • Country of Origin: Great Britain
  • Colour: Silver

PicClick Insights - F-16 Silver War Plane Bird Stars & Stripes II US Air Force USAF I Fighter World PicClick Exclusive

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