A remarkable anniversary in the history of Lockheed Martin’s F-16 programme will be marked on 20 January, exactly 50 years after a prototype of the lightweight fighter got airborne for the first time.
Our recently published extensive report into the milestone tells the story behind General Dynamics test pilot Phil Oestricher’s unscheduled outing from Edwards AFB in the YF-16, the programme’s official first flight on 2 February 1974, and the single-engined type’s evolution into the world’s most widely-flown fighter. Click here to read the full article.
To coincide with the 50th anniversary event, this gallery of images highlights some of the additional notable events, unusual F-16 variants, and leading operators of the US airframer’s evergreen fighter, as it continues to enjoy production success for multiple customers.
Craig Hoyle joined Flight International in 2003, and has edited the now monthly title since 2015. He has reported on the UK, European and international military aviation sector for more than 25 years, and produces our annual World Air Forces directory.View full Profile
The long-stalled deal to provide Turkey with 40 Lockheed Martin F-16V fighters was approved by arms regulators, who simultaneously advanced a proposal to sell 40 F-35A stealth fighters to Greece – orders worth a gargantuan $31.6 billion to Lockheed.
In a series of flight tests, Lockheed Martin’s secretive Skunk Works unit simulated an offensive counter air mission where an airborne, human battle manager aboard an Aero Vodochody L-39 Albatros directed two autonomous Aero Vodochody L-29 Delfin jets, which worked together to defeat two mock enemy fighters using simulated mission systems and weapons.
Our annual World Air Forces directory – published in association with Embraer – details the military aircraft fleets of 161 nations, and analyses the main events of the last 12 months.
Our 2025 World Air Forces directory details the military aircraft fleets of 161 nations, from Afghanistan to Zimbabwe, totalling just over a combined 52,600 in-service assets
