Newest and most advanced F-16 Fighting Falcon completed major assembly in Lockheed Martin’s Greenville Site Operations

The F-16 is now in the final phase of systems installation before heading into the final assembly and checkout process in Greenville, South Carolina.

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, F-16 production is getting ready to soar!

According to Lockheed Martin’s Facebook page, the photo in this post was taken in June and shows the newest and most advanced Fighting Falcon (for an unspecified customer) after having completed major assembly. The F-16 is now in the final phase of systems installation before heading into the final assembly and checkout process in Greenville, South Carolina.

On Jun. 16, 2022 the company announced that Jordan signed a Letter of Offer and Acceptance for the sale of eight new production F-16 Block 70 aircraft.

The selection of new production F-16 aircraft extends Jordan’s existing fleet of F-16s, bringing advanced capabilities to the mission combined with affordable operating and lifecycle costs.

Jordan’s new F-16s will be built in Greenville.

On Jan. 28, 2022 the company announced it delivered the first F-16 jet as part of the F-16 Sustainment Depot program back to the US Air Force (USAF).

Lockheed Martin was originally selected for the USAF’s F-16 Sustainment Depot program in December 2020, and the first jet arrived in Greenville for work in spring 2021.

Now the global home of the F-16, Greenville Site Operations provides the F-16 with total lifecycle support – from the production line of the newest and most advanced F-16 to being the first industry F-16 depot in the continental US for sustainment support services.

F-16 production in Greenville enables Lockheed Martin to meet the growing international demand for new F-16s and increase F-35 production in Fort Worth, Texas. F-16 production orders between now and the mid-2020s, potentially even longer, will be completed in Greenville.

Demand continues to soar for new production F-16s. Bahrain became the first F-16 Block 70 customer in June 2018, Slovakia signed Letter of Agreement in Dec. 2018 for 14 Block 70 aircraft, and Bulgaria ordered 16 new F-16 Block 70 aircraft.

The F-16 is a critical piece of the 21st century warfare network. With more than 3,000 F-16s operating today in 25 countries – including 900 with the US Air Force – we are focused on helping our customers seamlessly and securely connect all assets in the joint battlespace. The F-16 has flown an estimated 19.5 million flight hours and more than 13 million sorties. Today’s latest version, the Block 70/72, offers unparalleled capabilities and will be flown by at least five countries beginning in the mid-2020s.

H/T Earl Belz

Photo credit: Lockheed Martin