F16 Falcon or F16 Fighting Falcon is a compact, multi role fighter and extremely capable combat jet aircraft. Able to withstand a 9G turn, it's likely the pilot will fail before the airframe does.
The first F16 took to the skies late in 1976, delivery to combat squadrons followed in Jan 1979. The Falcon was one of the first to use the now standard fly-by-wire control system whereby no direct mechanical link is provided, instead the pilot's controls communicate with F16 's electronics which in turn move the aircraft's flying surfaces. This system allows for a side-mounted control stick instead of the conventional between the knees joystick that came as standard with combat planes since the beginning.
In an air combat role, the F16's maneuverability and combat radius (distance it can fly to enter air combat, stay, fight and return) exceed that of all potential threat fighter aircraft. It can locate targets in all weather conditions and detect low flying aircraft in radar ground clutter. In an air-to-surface role, the F16 can fly more than 500 miles (860 kilometers), deliver its weapons with superior accuracy, defend itself against enemy aircraft, and return to its starting point. An all-weather capability allows it to accurately deliver ordnance during non-visual bombing conditions.
History
The F16 was built under an unusual agreement creating a consortium between the United States and four NATO countries: Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway. These countries jointly produced with the United States an initial 348 F16s for their air forces. Final airframe assembly lines were located in Belgium and the Netherlands. The consortium's F16s are assembled from components manufactured in all five countries. Belgium also provides final assembly of the F100 engine used in the European F16s. The long-term benefits of this program was technology transfer among the nations producing the F16, and a common-use aircraft for NATO nations. This program increases the supply and availability of repair parts in Europe and improves the F16's combat readiness.
USAF F16 multi-mission fighters were deployed to the Persian Gulf in 1991 in support of Operation Desert Storm, where more sorties were flown than with any other aircraft. These fighters were used to attack airfields, military production facilities, Scud missiles sites and a variety of other targets.
Originally conceived as a simple air-superiority day fighter, the aircraft was armed for that mission with a single six-barrel Vulcan 20-mm cannon and two Sidewinder missiles, one mounted at each wingtip. Over the years, however, the mission capability of the aircraft has been extended to include ground-attack and all-weather operations With full internal fuel, the aircraft can carry up to 12 000 pounds of external stores including various types of ordnance as well as fuel tanks.
The original F16 was designed as a lightweight air-to-air day fighter. Air-to-ground responsibilities transformed the first production F16s into multi-role fighters.
Variants
The A in F16A refers to a Block 1 through 20 single-seat aircraft. The B in F16B refers to the two-seat version. The letters C and D were substituted for A and B, respectively, beginning with Block 25. Block is an important term in tracing the F16's evolution. Basically, a block is a numerical milestone.The block number increases whenever a new production configuration for the F16 is established. Not all F16s within a given block are the same. They fall into a number of block subsets called mini-blocks. These sub-block sets are denoted by capital letters following the block number (Block 15S, for example). From Block 30/32 on, a major block designation ending in 0 signifies a General Electric engine; one ending in 2 signifies a Pratt & Whitney engine.
The US Air Force took delivery of its last F16 Falcon on March 18, 2005, the last of 2,231 F16s produced for the Air Force.
F16 Engine Specification
Constructor: Lockheed-Martin
Engine : 1x P&W F100-PW-220 turbofan or General Electric F110-GE-100/129 27,000 lbs thrust
Top Speed : Mach 2
Weight : max 37,500 lb
Wingspan : 32ft 8"
Length : 49ft 5"
Weapons : 1x M61 A1 20mm multi-barrel cannon plus 6 hard-points for AA or AG weapons
Crew : F-16C: one. F-16D: one or two
F16 Pictures Gallery
* www.f-16.net/gallery_item52.html
 |
| F-16 |
The first F16 took to the skies late in 1976, delivery to combat squadrons followed in Jan 1979. The Falcon was one of the first to use the now standard fly-by-wire control system whereby no direct mechanical link is provided, instead the pilot's controls communicate with F16 's electronics which in turn move the aircraft's flying surfaces. This system allows for a side-mounted control stick instead of the conventional between the knees joystick that came as standard with combat planes since the beginning.
In an air combat role, the F16's maneuverability and combat radius (distance it can fly to enter air combat, stay, fight and return) exceed that of all potential threat fighter aircraft. It can locate targets in all weather conditions and detect low flying aircraft in radar ground clutter. In an air-to-surface role, the F16 can fly more than 500 miles (860 kilometers), deliver its weapons with superior accuracy, defend itself against enemy aircraft, and return to its starting point. An all-weather capability allows it to accurately deliver ordnance during non-visual bombing conditions.
History
The F16 was built under an unusual agreement creating a consortium between the United States and four NATO countries: Belgium, Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway. These countries jointly produced with the United States an initial 348 F16s for their air forces. Final airframe assembly lines were located in Belgium and the Netherlands. The consortium's F16s are assembled from components manufactured in all five countries. Belgium also provides final assembly of the F100 engine used in the European F16s. The long-term benefits of this program was technology transfer among the nations producing the F16, and a common-use aircraft for NATO nations. This program increases the supply and availability of repair parts in Europe and improves the F16's combat readiness.
USAF F16 multi-mission fighters were deployed to the Persian Gulf in 1991 in support of Operation Desert Storm, where more sorties were flown than with any other aircraft. These fighters were used to attack airfields, military production facilities, Scud missiles sites and a variety of other targets.
Originally conceived as a simple air-superiority day fighter, the aircraft was armed for that mission with a single six-barrel Vulcan 20-mm cannon and two Sidewinder missiles, one mounted at each wingtip. Over the years, however, the mission capability of the aircraft has been extended to include ground-attack and all-weather operations With full internal fuel, the aircraft can carry up to 12 000 pounds of external stores including various types of ordnance as well as fuel tanks.
The original F16 was designed as a lightweight air-to-air day fighter. Air-to-ground responsibilities transformed the first production F16s into multi-role fighters.
Variants
The A in F16A refers to a Block 1 through 20 single-seat aircraft. The B in F16B refers to the two-seat version. The letters C and D were substituted for A and B, respectively, beginning with Block 25. Block is an important term in tracing the F16's evolution. Basically, a block is a numerical milestone.The block number increases whenever a new production configuration for the F16 is established. Not all F16s within a given block are the same. They fall into a number of block subsets called mini-blocks. These sub-block sets are denoted by capital letters following the block number (Block 15S, for example). From Block 30/32 on, a major block designation ending in 0 signifies a General Electric engine; one ending in 2 signifies a Pratt & Whitney engine.
The US Air Force took delivery of its last F16 Falcon on March 18, 2005, the last of 2,231 F16s produced for the Air Force.
F16 Engine Specification
Constructor: Lockheed-Martin
Engine : 1x P&W F100-PW-220 turbofan or General Electric F110-GE-100/129 27,000 lbs thrust
Top Speed : Mach 2
Weight : max 37,500 lb
Wingspan : 32ft 8"
Length : 49ft 5"
Weapons : 1x M61 A1 20mm multi-barrel cannon plus 6 hard-points for AA or AG weapons
Crew : F-16C: one. F-16D: one or two
F16 Pictures Gallery
* www.f-16.net/gallery_item52.html
 |
| F-16 |
 |
| F-16 |
