The F-16 ᴊᴇᴛ is cheap and pretty good at everything, the F-16 Fighting Falcon, the first of the US Air Force multi-role ꜰɪɢʜᴛᴇʀaircraft, is the world’s most prolific ꜰɪɢʜᴛᴇʀ with more than 2,000 in service with the USAF and approximately 3,000 operational F-16s are in service.

Today in 25 countries, by some estimates, F-16s make up an outsized 16% of the total number of jets flown by militaries around the world, a testament to what is easily the world’s most successful, combat-proven multi-role jet fighter ever produced. The fast and agile F-16 Fighting Falcon isn’t just one of the top fighters it is also amongst the most cost-effective.

While it lacks the range and payload of the larger twin-engine F-15 Eagle, it also costs less than half – which is why the fourth-generation F-16 has been in use since the 1970s and will likely keep flying for many more years to come.

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