American multirole fighter, famed in late Cold War conflicts, renowned for performance in precision daytime strikes and defensive counter air operations.
| Crew | 1 pilot |
| Length | 15.1 m (49.4 ft) |
| Wingspan | 10.0 m (32.7 ft) |
| Height | 4.9 m (16.0 ft) |
| Wing area | 27.9 m² (300.0 sqft) |
| Empty weight | 8,570 kg (18,894 lbs) |
| Max. takeoff weight | 19,200 kg (42,329 lbs) |
| Powerplant | 1 × turbofan General Electric F110-GE-100 13,381 kgf each |
| Ejection seat | McDonnell Douglas ACES II |
| Maximum speed | 2410 km/h (Mach 2.41) |
| Operational range | 546 km (339 mi) |
| Service ceiling | 18,288 m (60,000 ft) |
| Climb rate | 254.0 m/s (833.3 ft/s) |
United States
784
Turkey
238 +40
Egypt
218
South Korea
167
Greece
152
Israel
149
Taiwan
138 +66
United Arab Emirates
76
Pakistan
75
Jordan
61 +12
Singapore
60
Belgium
52
Romania
49
Poland
47
Chile
46
Thailand
46
Denmark
36
Iraq
34
Indonesia
33
Bahrain
32 +3
Ukraine
31
Portugal
25
Morocco
23 +24
Oman
23
Slovakia
14 +4
Bulgaria
8 +8
Venezuela
4
Argentina
0 +24
Philippines
0
6 losses recorded here in the Russia-Ukraine War.
Ukraine
Crashed near Kremenchuk, Poltava Oblast, during an intercept mission against Russian air targets; pilot ejected and survived.
Crash
Greece
In-flight fire, crash-landed at Zakynthos Airport; pilot escaped unhurt, runway blocked to traffic.
Crash
Peru
×12
Peru orders 12 F-16 Block 70 in a 1.5 billion dollar direct commercial sale, reversing its Gripen selection.
Ordered
Slovakia
×4
Final four F-16 Block 70 handed over at Tucson, completing Slovakia 14-aircraft order.
Delivered
South Korea
F-16C crashed in mountains near Yeongju during night training; pilot ejected safely.
Crash
Turkey
F-16C crashed shortly after takeoff from Balikesir 9th Main Jet Base; pilot killed.
Destroyed
Ukraine
×13
Final batch of 13 Danish F-16s delivered following the type's retirement from Danish service.
Delivered
Denmark
×10
Officially decommissioned; two-seat training variants retired alongside the F-16A fleet.
Retired
Denmark
×31
Officially decommissioned after 46 years of service; fleet retired in favor of F-35A.
Transfer
Ukraine
Reportedly shot down by Russian S-300; claim disputed by Kyiv and unverified by third parties.
Shot down
The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic multirole fourth-generation fighter aircraft manufactured by General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin. Entering service in 1978, it evolved from a day air-superiority fighter into an all-weather multirole platform. It is known for fly-by-wire flight controls, a bubble canopy, and widespread military adoption.
Originating from the U.S. Air Force's 1972 Lightweight Fighter program, the YF-16 prototype first flew in 1974. It won the Air Combat Fighter competition in 1975 over the YF-17 due to lower operating costs and engine commonality with the F-15. Over 4,600 F-16s have been produced across assembly lines in the United States, Belgium, the Netherlands, Turkey, and South Korea, with current manufacturing centered in Greenville, South Carolina.
The F-16 features a cropped-delta wing, blended wing-body construction, forebody strakes, and an underslung air intake. It was the first production fighter designed with relaxed static stability and quadruplex fly-by-wire flight controls to perform 9-g maneuvers. The cockpit incorporates a 360-degree visibility bubble canopy, a side-stick controller, and a 30-degree reclined seat. Power is supplied by Pratt & Whitney F100 or General Electric F110 turbofan engines.
Internal armament consists of a 20 mm M61A1 Vulcan cannon. The airframe features 11 mounting locations, including nine hardpoints capable of carrying up to 17,000 pounds of payload. Compatible munitions include AIM-9 Sidewinder, AIM-120 AMRAAM, AGM-65 Maverick, AGM-88 HARM, laser-guided bombs, JDAMs, and B61 nuclear gravity bombs.
Entering USAF service in 1978, the F-16 saw combat in the Gulf War, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Libya. The Israeli Air Force logged the type's first air combat kill in 1981 and executed Operation Opera against Iraq's Osirak reactor. F-16s have served with 26 nations, seeing combat with Pakistan, Turkey, Israel, and Ukraine, as well as acting as NATO dual-capable nuclear delivery platforms.
Forty-seven years after entering service, the F-16 remains the most numerous combat aircraft in the world outside China and Russia, with 2,621 airframes active across 27 air forces in GlobalMilitary.net's 2026 inventory data.
Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine told the Senate Appropriations Committee on July 21, 2026 that a Ukrainian F-16 had shot down a Russian fighter, the first air-to-air kill for the type in Ukrainian service.
A Hellenic Air Force F-16C caught fire in flight and made an emergency landing at Zakynthos International Airport on July 9, 2026; the pilot escaped unhurt but the jet was engulfed in flames on the runway.