General Dynamics F - 16 Fighting Falcon operational history The General Dynamics F - 16 Fighting Falcon has served the United States and the air arms of 25 other nations . Over 4 , 400 F - 16s have been sold . United States . The F - 16 is in service with US Air Force active , reserve , and Air National Guard units , and is used by the USAF aerial demonstration team , the U . S . Air Force Thunderbirds , and as an adversary / aggressor aircraft by the United States Navy . Operation Desert Storm ( 1991 ) . In Operation Desert Storm of 1991 , 249 USAF F - 16s flew 13 , 340 sorties in strikes against Iraq , the most of any Coalition aircraft . Falcons often had AGM - 65s ( up to six ) , or two Mk84 2 , 000 lb bombs ( middle underwing pylons ) , two 1 , 400 lt fuel tanks , two AIM - 9 and an underbelly ECM pod , such as the AN / ALQ - 131 . F - 16Ds from the 388th Tactical Fighter Wing at Hill AFB were used as spotter aircraft to search and find Iraqi SAMs and Republican Guard troops . They were armed with up to six Mk82s , Cluster Bombs , and LGBs . These aircraft were also equipped with LANTIRN and binoculars . Three aircraft were lost to confirmed enemy action : two to enemy radar guided SA - 6 and SA - 3 surface - to - air missile s ( SAMs ) and one to a shoulder launched SA - 16 missile . Other F - 16s were damaged in accidents and by hostile ground fire but were able to return to base and be repaired . In all , seven F - 16 were lost during Desert Storm combat operations between January 16 and February 28 . F - 16s formed the basis of the largest strike package ( 72 aircraft ) flown during the war – " Package Q " , a daylight raid against targets in downtown Baghdad on 19 January . It was during the " Package Q " mission that two F - 16s , from 614th TFS ' Lucky Devils ' , part of the 401st TFW ( P ) , flying from Doha , Qatar were lost to SAMs with their pilots ( Capt Mike " Cujo " Roberts and Maj ' Tico ' Tice downed , respectively , by a SA - 2 and SA - 3 ) becoming POWs . This mission also marked the largest single operational F - 16 strike package flown to date . F - 16s were used also as Wild Weasel shooters , with AGM - 88 HARM missiles , together with older F - 4Gs ( 480th TFS , 52nd Wing ) . There were only 13 F - 16s with HARMs , all based at Incirlik Air Base , together with 12 F - 4G s . Phantoms had the powerful AN / APR - 47 and with these systems , they did the more difficult tasks ( attacking the mobile radar sites ) ; F - 16s were only recently fitted with HARMs , and the bulk of USAF SEAD was still the F - 4G ( another 48 were at Sheik Isa , Bahrain ) . F - 16s flew escort / Wild Weasel missions escorting them and striking pre - planned targets . The 138th Fighter Squadron ( 174th TFW , New York ANG ) used 24 F / A - 16s equipped with a 30 mm gunpod , the GPU - 5 / A ' Pave Claw ' , a four - barreled derivative of the A - 10 Thunderbolt ' s GAU - 13 cannon , but this proved a failure owing to excess vibration and inadequate gunsights . Interwar Air Operations over Iraq ( 1991 – 2003 ) . From the end of Desert Storm until the invasion of Iraq in 2003 , USAF F - 16s patrolled the US / UK imposed no - fly zones in Iraq . Two air - to - air victories were scored by USAF F - 16s in Operation Southern Watch . On 27 December 1992 , a USAF F - 16D shot down an Iraqi MiG - 25 in the airspace over southern Iraq with an AIM - 120 AMRAAM ; this was the first USAF F - 16 kill since the F - 16 was introduced ; and was also the first AMRAAM kill . On 17 January 1993 , a USAF F - 16C destroyed an Iraqi MiG - 23 with an AMRAAM missile for the second USAF F - 16 victory . F - 16s returned to Iraq in December 1998 as part of the Operation Desert Fox bombing campaign to " degrade " Iraq ' s ability to manufacture and use weapons of mass destruction . Balkans ( 1994 – 1995 and 1999 ) . F - 16s were also employed by NATO during Bosnian peacekeeping operations in 1994 – 95 in ground - attack missions and enforcing the no - fly - zone over Bosnia ( Operation Deny Flight ) . The first incident took place on 28 February 1994 , 4 J - 21 and 2 IJ - 21 " Jastrebs " and 2 J - 22 " Oraos " had violated the no - fly - zone to conduct a bombing run on Novi Travnik . The pilots of the 2 J - 22s spotted the F - 16s above them and after their attack , they left the area in low - level flight towards Croatia , where the U . S . jets could not follow . Meanwhile , the rest of the group was engaged and attacked , first by two USAF F - 16Cs , which scored three kills . The remaining J - 21 was taken out by a different pair of USAF F - 16Cs . Of the six Yugoslavian jets engaged , four were shot down ( one by AMRAAM and the others by Sidewinders ) . On 2 June 1995 , one F - 16C was shot down by a Serb 2K12 " Kub " SAM ( NATO reporting name : SA - 6 " Gainful " ) while on patrol over Bosnia . Its pilot , Scott O ' Grady , ejected and was later rescued by USMC CH - 53 Sea Stallion helicopter on 8 June . NATO F - 16s also participated in air strikes against Serbian forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina during Operation Deliberate Force in August – September 1995 , and again in Operation Allied Force over the entirety of Yugoslavia from March – June 1999 . On 2 May 1999 , a USAF F - 16CG was shot down over Serbia . It was downed by an S - 125 " Neva " SAM ( NATO : SA - 3 ) near Nakucani . Its pilot ; Lt . Col David Goldfein , 555th Fighter Squadron commander , managed to eject and was later rescued by a combat search - and - rescue ( CSAR ) mission . The remains of this aircraft are on display in the Yugoslav Aeronautical Museum , Belgrade International Airport . On 4 May 1999 , a lone Yugoslav Mig - 29 flown by Col . Milenko Pavlović attempted to intercept a large NATO formation that was returning to base having just bombed Valjevo ( the pilot ' s home town ) It was engaged by a pair of USAF F - 16CJs from the 78th Fighter Squadron and shot down with AIM - 120 , killing the pilot with the falling wreckage also being hit by a Strela 2 M fired by the Yugoslav army in error . Operations in Afghanistan ( 2001 – present ) . F - 16s have been used by the United States in Afghanistan since 2001 . In 2002 , a tri - national detachment known as the European Participating Air Forces ( Danish , Dutch and Norwegian ) of 18 F - 16s in the ground attack role deployed to Manas Air Base in Kyrgyzstan to support Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan . Invasion of Iraq and post - war operations ( 2003 – 2011 ) . US F - 16s participated in the 2003 invasion of Iraq , and the only loss suffered over Iraq during this phase was an F - 16CG of the 388th Fighter Wing ’ s 421st Fighter Squadron that crashed near Baghdad on 12 June 2003 when it ran out of fuel . A US Army MIM - 104 Patriot SAM fire - control radar was damaged on 25 March 2003 following a hit by an AGM - 88 HARM anti - radiation missile fired from an USAF F - 16C on a patrol over southern Iraq , when the radar established a lock - on onto the fighter and the F - 16 RWR classified it as a SA - 2 radar . On 7 June 2006 , two USAF F - 16s dropped two guided bombs ( one GBU - 12 Paveway LGB and one GBU - 38 GPS - guided " smart " bomb ) destroying an al - Qaeda safehouse , killing Abu Musab Al - Zarqawi , the leader of Al - Qaeda in Iraq . On November 27 , 2006 one F - 16 was lost near Falluja during a close air support strafing run when the pilot remained focused on the target instead of pulling up . On 15 June 2007 , a F - 16C crashed when the pilot lost spatial orientation during a night close air support mission . The pilot was killed in the crash . On 15 July 2007 , another F - 16C crashed and burned out during take off when a tire blew . The pilot ejected safely . On 25 February 2009 , a USAF F - 16 shot down an Iranian Ababil - 3 UAV after it entered in Iraqi airspace . In September 2010 , USAF F - 16s dropped two bombs providing close air support for an Iraqi Army unit that was overwhelmed by armed insurgents . This was the first air raid in Iraq since July 2009 . Libya 2011 . USAF F - 16s participated in the enforcement of no - fly zone over Libya as part of Operation Odyssey Dawn . Israel . Bekaa Valley and Osiraq raid ( 1981 ) . The F - 16 ’ s first air - to - air combat success was achieved by the Israeli Air Force ( IAF ) over the Bekaa Valley on 28 April 1981 , against a Syrian Mi - 8 helicopter , which was downed with cannon fire following an unsuccessful attempt with an AIM - 9 Sidewinder air - to - air missile ( AAM ) . Several months later , on 14 July 1981 , the IAF achieved the first F - 16 " kill " of another fighter with a successful AAM shoot - down of a Syrian MiG - 21 . On 7 June 1981 , eight Israeli F - 16s , escorted by F - 15s , executed Operation Opera , their first employment in a significant air - to - ground operation . This raid severely damaged Osirak , an Iraqi nuclear reactor under construction near Baghdad , to prevent the regime of Saddam Hussein from using the reactor for the creation of nuclear weapons . Operation Peace for Galilee ( 1982 ) . The following year , during Operation Peace for Galilee ( Lebanon War ) Israeli F - 16s engaged Syrian aircraft in one of the largest air battles involving jet aircraft , which began on 9 June and continued for two more days ( Operation Mole Cricket 19 ) . At the end of the conflict , the Israeli Air Force credited their F - 16s with 44 air - to - air kills , mostly of MiG - 21 s and MiG - 23 s , while suffering no air - to - air losses of their own . F - 16s were also used in their ground - attack role for strikes against targets in Lebanon . Soviet / Russian sources state the Syrians lost six MiG - 23MFs , four MiG - 23MSs and fourteen MiG - 23BNs in the Bekaa Valley , Syrian claim to have shot down at least five F - 16s , two F - 4Es , and a BQM - 34 unmanned reconnaissance plane with MiG - 23s . Second Lebanon War ( 2006 ) . Israeli F - 16s , the bomber workhorse of the Israel Defense Forces , participated in the 2006 Lebanon War . The only reported F - 16 loss was an IDF F - 16I that crashed on 19 July when one of its tires burst as it took off for Lebanon from an air base in the Negev . The pilots ejected safely and there were no casualties on the ground . Israeli F - 16 ' s shot down three Hezbollah - operated Ababil UAVs during the war . Gaza War ( 2008 – 2009 ) . Israeli Defence Force F - 16s were used in attacks in the Gaza strip in December 2008 . The attacks hit at least 100 security compounds and rocket - launching bases and killed at least 225 people , including civilians and 140 members of Hamas security forces . No F - 16s were lost . 2009 - Present . IAF lost one F - 16I during training mission in November 2010 with the loss of crew . An IAF F - 16I shot down an unmanned " balloon " that had violated restricted airspace over Israel ' s Negev Nuclear Research Centre on December 16 , 2010 . It is widely believed that this center is where Israel ' s arsenal of nuclear weapons is produced . During the 2012 Israeli Bombing of Gaza as part of " Operation Pillar of Cloud " , Qassam Brigades , the military arm of Hamas , Shot down an Israeli F - 16 using a shoulder launched SAM on November 16 . The Netherlands . Balkans ( 1994 – 1995 and 1999 ) . F - 16s were employed by NATO during Bosnian peacekeeping operations in 1994 - 95 in ground - attack missions and enforcing the no - fly - zone over Bosnia ( Operation Deny Flight ) . NATO F - 16s also participated in air strikes against Serbian forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina during Operation Deliberate Force in August – September 1995 , and again in Operation Allied Force over Yugoslavia from March – June 1999 . During Allied Force , Dutch F - 16s also claimed one Yugoslavian MiG - 29 , with an AMRAAM , but actually the Yugoslav MiG - 29 flown by Maj . Dragan Ilic was just heavily damaged , managed to land on Niš Airport with one functional engine , and only later completely destroyed on the ground having been intentionally left in the open as a decoy since Yugoslavia did not have adequate facilities to repair a so heavily damaged aircraft . Operations in Afghanistan ( 2001 – present ) . Since April 2005 , eight Royal Netherlands Air Force F - 16s , joined by four Royal Norwegian Air Force F - 16s in February 2006 , have been supporting International Security Assistance Force ground troops the southern provinces of Afghanistan . The detachment is known as the 1st Netherlands - Norwegian European Participating Forces Expeditionary Air Wing ( 1 NLD / NOR EEAW ) . On 31 August 2006 , a Royal Netherlands Air Force F - 16AM crashed in Ghazni province and the pilot , Capt . Michael Donkervoort , was killed . No cause was determined , but the investigation referenced the fact that a camel spider and other creatures had recently been found in the cockpits of Dutch aircraft in Afghanistan . Libya 2011 . Six Dutch F - 16s operating from Italian base in the framework of Operation Odyssey Dawn . Belgium . Libya 2011 . Six Belgian F - 16 participating in missions in Libya in order to enforce the no fly - zone . Denmark . Kosovo ( 1999 - 2000 ) . Six Danish F16s , later extended to nine , flew air defence and escort missions over Kosovo along with the Norwegian Air Force F16s . During the final phases of the campaign , the fighters also partook in several offensive missions targeting Yugoslav radar installations , fuel depots and command centers . Afghanistan ( 2001 – 2003 ) . Six Danish F16s flew 743 missions over Afghanistan from Manas Air Base in Kirgistan during operation Enduring Freedom , as part of the European Participating Air Forces group along with Norway and the Netherlands , the missions included several weapon deliveries against various Taleban and Al Qaeda targets . Libya 2011 . Six Danish F - 16 fighters performed high - risk missions over Libya in order to enforce the no - fly zone . Norway . Libya 2011 . Six Norwegian F - 16 fighters participated in missions over Libya in order to enforce the no - fly zone . Pakistan . Incidents during the Soviet - Afghan War ( 1986 – 1988 ) . During the Soviet - Afghan war , between May 1986 and January 1989 , Pakistan Air Force F - 16s shot down at least 10 intruders from Afghanistan . Four of the kills were Afghan Su - 22s bombers , three were Afghan transports ( two An - 26s and one An - 24 ) , and one was a Soviet Su - 25 bomber . Most of these kills were achieved using the AIM - 9 Sidewinder , but a Su - 22 was destroyed by cannon fire and the one An - 24 crash landed after being forced to land upon interception . Afghanistan claimed to have shot down one Pakistani F - 16A during an encounter on 29 April 1987 ; the pilot ejected safely and landed in Pakistani territory . Pakistani authorities admitted to having lost a fighter jet to enemy fighters , but suggested that it may have been either an F - 16 or an F - 6 and insisted it was attacked over Pakistani territory . Subsequently , Pakistani officials confirmed that the loss was an F - 16 , but asserted it was accidentally shot down in a friendly fire incident during a dogfight with enemy aircraft over Pakistani territory . According to this claim , Flight Lieutenant Shahid Sikandar Khan ’ s F - 16 was hit by an AIM - 9 missile fired by another F - 16 piloted by Squadron Leader Amjad Javed . Kargil War ( 1999 ) . Although F - 16As of the Pakistan Air Force ( PAF ) did not see combat in the 1999 Kargil War , they were initially employed in patrolling the border to ensure Indian Air Force ( IAF ) fighters did not cross the line of control . Later in the war , lack of spare parts due to sanctions imposed on Pakistan forced the PAF to withdraw its F - 16 fleet from regular patrol duties . The PAF ' s main opposition was the MiG - 29 , used by the IAF to provide fighter escort for Mirage 2000s which were attacking enemy targets with precision guided munition s . According to Indian sources , IAF MiG - 29s of 47 ( Black Archers ) Squadron tracked two PAF F - 16As close to Indian air space with their radars , but they were ordered not to attack because no official declaration of war had been issued . Pakistani sources state that the number of border violations by Indian aircraft dropped noticeably when F - 16s were on patrol and that there were several cases of PAF F - 16s and IAF Mirage 2000s tracking each other with their radars , but again no combat took place . On 7 June 2002 , an Indian Air Force Searcher II UAV was shot down by a Pakistani AF F - 16 with an AIM - 9L IR missile . Operations in North - West Pakistan ( May 2009 – present ) . The Pakistan Air Force ( PAF ) has been using their F - 16A fleet to attack militant positions and support the Pakistan Army ' s operations in North - West Pakistan against the Taliban insurgency . Since May 2009 , PAF F - 16s have used 500 lb and 2 , 000 lb unguided and laser - guided bomb s to attack caves , tunnels , training camps , ammunition dumps and hide - outs used by the militants . Over 100 combat missions have been flown in South Waziristan and over 300 in the Swat Valley as of 29 July 2009 . Prior to the operations in the Swat Valley , approximately 10 of the PAF ' s F - 16s were fitted with high - resolution infra - red sensors for reconnaissance purposes , supplied by the United States , to provide the Pakistani military with detailed imagery of the area . Lockheed Martin had indicated back in May 2007 that it would be supplying Pakistan with 18 Sniper Advanced Targeting Pods ( ATP ) with deliveries starting in 2008 . Turkey . The Turkish Air Force acquired its first F - 16s in 1987 . Turkish Air Force F - 16 units participated in the Bosnia Herzegovina and Kosovo by deploying one of its squadrons to Ghedi Air Base , Italy from 1993 and to Aviano Air Base from May 2000 in support of United Nations resolutions . The units completed 35 , 647 flight hours and 10 , 626 sorties without incident . Turkish F - 16s also participated in the 2006 Baltic Aviation Police Mission in 2006 . On 8 October 1996 , during an air - to - air confrontation over the Aegean Sea in the Athens FIR , a Greek Mirage 2000 fired an R550 Magic missile and shot down a Turkish F - 16D . The Greek government claimed that the Turkish aircraft had violated Greek airspace , however , the Turkish government claimed that it had been on a training mission north of the Greek island of Samos , close to the Turkish mainland . The Turkish pilot died , while the co - pilot ejected and was rescued by Greek forces . Although the Turkish government has admitted the loss , the Greek government officially denies that the shootdown occurred . The loss was confirmed in 2012 , after the downing of a RF - 4E on the Syrian Coast . In response to a parliamentary question , Turkish Defence Minister İsmet Yılmaz stated that Turkish F - 16D Block40 ( s / n 91 - 0023 ) of 192 Filo was shot down by a Greek Mirage 2000 with a R . 550 Magic II missile on 8 October 1996 after violating Greek airspace near Chios island . Turkey ' s F - 16s were extensively used in the nation ' s ongoing conflict with Kurdish rebels in Southeastern Turkey and Northern Iraq . Most notably during winter bombing campaign of 2008 Turkish incursion into northern Iraq where Turkey launched its first cross - border raid on 16 December 2007 , involving 50 fighters before Operation Sun . This was the first time a night - bombing operation on a massive scale also the largest operation conducted by Turkish Air Force . On 23 May 2006 , two Greek F - 16 Block 52 + jets were scrambled to intercept a Turkish RF - 4 reconnaissance aircraft and its two F - 16 escorts off the coast of the Greek island of Karpathos , within the Athens FIR . A mock dogfight ensued between the two sides ' F - 16s , which ended in a midair collision between a Turkish F - 16 and a Greek F - 16 . The Turkish pilot ejected safely after his jet was destroyed , but the Greek pilot died when his canopy and cockpit were destroyed during the collision . On 16 September 2013 , a Turkish Air Force F - 16 shot down a Syrian Mi - 17 that had violated Turkish airspace . The Turkish Air Force has 196 F - 16C and 44 F - 16D fighters are in service as of January 2012 . Venezuela . Venezuelan coup attempt ( 1992 ) . On 27 November 1992 , two Venezuelan F - 16s took part in the November Venezuelan Coup Attempt on the side of the government over the city of Barquisimeto and its Military Air Base . In particular , the two F - 16As strafed targets on the ground and shot down two OV - 10 Bronco s with AIM - 9 Ps and one AT - 27 Tucano with cannon fire as these rebel - flown aircraft attacked loyalist army positions . To avoid hitting civilian targets , the two F - 16s flew in the outer perimeter of the city , while one rebel OV - 10 Bronco tried to engage combat . United Arab Emirates . Libya 2011 . F - 16s from Emirates participated in the enforcement of no - fly zone over Libya .