Ukrainian F-16 shoots down Russian drone with its onboard cannon – and why this is an incredible feat
Incredible footage has recently surfaced of a Ukrainian F-16 downing a Russian kamikaze drone using its onboard 20mm cannon. Such a feat is a lot more difficult and dangerous than many realize. The drone in the footage appears to be a Russian-produced Geran-2, which is a copy of the Iranian Shahed-136. These kamikaze drones are […]
F-16XL: Why America didn’t get the best F-16 ever made
The fighter was so capable that it went from being a technology demonstrator to serving as legitimate competition for the venerable F-15E.
Approaching Mach 2 in an F-16: ‘The jet started to shake’
Thousands of incredible engineers designed the F-16 – and I was now realizing the potential of what they had built.
Let’s rank America’s fighter jets (and some of its other planes) based on their top speed
So, just how fast are American fighter jets? That can be a tougher question to answer than you might think.
The incredible true story of American fighters taking on an Iranian drone swarm and winning
On the night of April 13, 2024, Iranian and proxy forces throughout the Middle East launched “Operation True Promise” a massive aerial attack that would see hundreds of drones and missiles pour into the night sky.
F-16s in Ukraine are putting in the work, according to Ukrainian pilot
F-16s are now flying both offensive and defensive combat operations over Ukraine every day.
The Air Force is now adding AI pilots to combat-coded F-16s
The Air Force is officially installing artificial intelligence fighter pilots into a half dozen combat-coded F-16s.
Ukraine says it busted a Russian spy ring that was gathering information about its F-16s
This article by Sinéad Baker was originally published by Business Insider. Ukraine said it disrupted a Russian spy ring that was collecting information on the F-16 fighter jets it was given by its Western allies. The Security Service of Ukraine, or SBU, said on Tuesday that it had neutralized a network of Russian spies that […]
F-16s carrying the A-10’s 30mm cannon actually saw combat
The Air Force once tried mounting the A-10’s massive 30mm cannon on the F-16 to replace the Warthog in the Close Air Support role.
Ukraine’s getting powerful long-range glide bombs that will give its F-16s a new punch
This article by Jake Epstein was originally published by Business Insider. The U.S. is sending Ukraine long-range glide bombs for its F-16 fighter jets, giving it new strike options. President Joe Biden announced Thursday that he decided to provide Kyiv with the Joint Standoff Weapon to “enhance Ukraine’s long-range strike capabilities” as part of a […]
Video: Let’s talk about Ukrainian F-16s seeing action for the first time
Ukraine’s newly arrived F-16s just saw their first action in the country’s war against Russia. Watch our video about it below.
Ukraine’s F-16s could soon be carrying stealthy long-range cruise missiles
Ukraine may be set to receive America’s AGM-158 JASSM cruise missiles, which could spell trouble for Russian troops.
Everything you need to know about F-16s arriving in Ukraine
Ukraine has officially started operating F-16s, so let’s talk about what these aircraft can do for its ongoing war effort.
Ukrainian F-16 jets will have the same problem its Abrams tanks had says Zelenskyy
Western-provided F-16 fighter jets are on their way to Ukraine and set to start flying missions later this summer.
Video: Russia claims Ukraine’s F-16s will carry nukes
Russia claims the F-16s Ukraine will receive will carry nuclear weapons, and thus amount to an escalation. But how accurate are those claims?
A realistic analysis of what F-16s can really do for Ukraine
With dozens of F-16s now headed for Ukraine, let’s talk about what these aircraft can – and can’t – do for the nation’s defense.
The Air Force’s dogfighting AI is already roughly equal in skill to career pilots
The Air Force’s AI-piloted F-16 is now roughly equal in skill to career pilots with nearly two decades of flight experience.
AI-piloted F-16 takes on human pilot in ‘complex dogfights’
The U.S. Air Force just revealed new information about its AI-piloted F-16, including that it has flown “complex” dog fights.
Ukrainian pilots are training to fly F-16s. Here’s what we know
Ukraine is set to receive about 60 F-16s and a number of Ukrainian pilots have been training on the versatile aircraft since September.
How the F-16 changed air warfare forever
The F-16 Fighting Falcon may not break records like the Eagle, but it truly reshaped the way the world looks at fighter aircraft.
Pakistan wants to fly Chinese stealth fighters alongside its F-16s
China’s second home-grown stealth fighter, the FC-31, may soon be joining Pakistan’s Air Force alongside American F-16s.
BURNING 50,000 LBS OF FUEL PER HOUR: AERIAL REFUELING FROM A FIGHTER PILOT
The development of aerial refueling was one of the greatest leaps in fighter lethality. A fighter, just like any aircraft, consists of hundreds of tradeoffs – cost, payload, speed, stealth, size, weight, maneuverability – the list goes on and on. But, the Achilles heel of fighters has always been their fuel consumption. At the heart […]
WHAT IT’S LIKE TO HIT THE AFTERBURNER IN AN F-16 FOR THE FIRST TIME
The first time you select afterburner in a fighter is an experience you’ll never forget. Over a decade later, I can still remember every second of it. I had made it through the attrition of pilot training and was now in the 9-month B-Course learning to fly the F-16. After several months of academics—going over every system […]
HOW DO FIGHTER PILOTS PEE WHILE FLYING?
As a fighter pilot, one of the most common questions I get is: How do you go to the bathroom in an F-16 or F-35? Let me start off by describing the cockpit. A cockpit in a modern fighter is an engineering masterpiece. An incredible amount of effort goes into allowing us to interface with the aircraft. […]
AN F-35 PILOT EXPLAINS WHY THE JET’S BAD PRESS MISSES THE POINT
There’s no other jet I’d want to go into combat in than the F-35A, the Air Force’s newest supersonic stealth fighter. As a fighter pilot who’s flown several variants of the legendary F-16 as well as the F-35, I can say that, between the two aircraft, it’s not even a close competition. Comparing the two […]