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.
European Defence Editor Craig Hoyle has reported on the UK, European and international military aviation sector for almost 30 years, and has also been the Editor of Flight International since 2015. He joined FlightGlobal in 2003, and also compiles 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.
Sikorsky anticipates Federal Aviation Administration certification of its S-92A+ heavy-twin helicopter in 2026, despite test-stand problems delaying approval of the aircraft’s redesigned main gearbox. Meanehile, the manufacturer is relocating production to Owego, New York, and building three ‘white tail’ aircraft while pursuing additional head-of-state orders.
Canadian investigators have underlined the importance of tactile inspection after de-icing, following an incident involving a departing De Havilland Dash 8-100. The Summit Air aircraft had taken off from Thunder Bay for a service to Moosonee in Ontario on 19 February. While climbing through 10,000ft the pilots felt a vibration ...
Ukraine expects to take delivery of additional Dassault Aviation Mirage 2000-5 fighters from France, following the arrival of its first donated examples early last year.
Another four of the UK Royal Air Force’s (RAF’s) Eurofighter Typhoons are to be flown to the Middle East, as the US and Israeli air campaign against Iran continues to impact security across the wider region.
Dassault Aviation is hopeful that a new order from India for 114 Rafale combat aircraft can be wrapped up this year, as it looks to further extend the backlog of the fourth-generation jet.
