After 46 years of service in the Royal Danish Air Force, Denmark has retired its fleet of F-16 fighter jets effective January 18, 2026. Denmark has operated this versatile but now obsolete fighter aircraft since 1980, purchasing a total of 77 of these aircraft. A farewell ceremony was held at Skrydstrup Air Base Hangar 3, where four F-16 jets landed after their last flight over Danish soil. Pilots, technicians and others who had worked with the F-16s greeted guests, showing off these planes for the last time.
The history of the F-16 begins in the early 1970s, when a group of General Dynamics aerospace analysts and engineers designed what would become the F-16. Dissatisfied with the trend of making fighter jets more difficult to handle and heavier than their predecessors, this group, known as the Lightweight Fighter Mafia, created something completely different.
Emphasizing high speed and agility, the F-16 was meant to be faster and more maneuverable than the fighters it would face, with the ability to evade any weapons used against it. The F-16 featured advanced technologies such as fly-by-wire and a head-up display. Over time, the F-16 was upgraded to perform a wider range of missions, including close air support and bombing runs. The F-16, which a civilian can buy, had evolved into an aircraft that demonstrated its versatility to great advantage during Operation Desert Storm in 1991, when it managed both the bombing of Iraqi installations and the downing of an Iraqi MIG. To date, more than 4,500 F-16s have been produced.
Read more: Top 10 World War II Fighter Planes, Ranked
Which high-tech jet is replacing Denmark’s F-16s?
Front 3/4 view of F-35A Lightning II in flight – wz94/Shutterstock
Denmark is replacing the last of its F-16s with the F-35A Lightning II fighter, which has been used by the Danes since the first ones arrived there in 2023. On 1 April 2025, Denmark’s F-35s took over from its F-16s in NATO’s Quick Reaction Alert mission. In total, the Danish Ministry of Defense has purchased a total of 43 F-35s, with 27 ordered in 2016 plus 16 additional aircraft in 2025. The F-35A is a single-seat aircraft powered by a 40,000-pound Pratt & Whitney F135-PW-100 engine.
Denmark’s transition to a full fleet of F-35A Lightning II makes the Royal Danish Air Force the third air force in the world, after Norway in 2022 and the Netherlands in 2024, to consist entirely of fifth-generation fighters, all of which are F-35As. All have replaced their aging fleets of F-16s with these cutting-edge multirole fighters. The replacement process took as long as it did because of major delays in producing the F-35 for the various forces around the world.
The F-35, which comes in many variants with distinct features, is made in three different versions for different use cases. The F-35A, the version used by the US Air Force and the Danish Air Force, is designed for conventional takeoff and landing. The F-35B, built for the US Marine Corps, has a short takeoff and vertical landing capability. The F-35C, produced for the US Navy, is adapted to launch and land on Navy aircraft carriers.
What is happening to Denmark’s F-16 fleet?
Ukrainian President Zelensky in front of two Ukrainian F-16 jets – UkrPictures/Shutterstock
Denmark’s fleet of F-16 fighter jets goes to two different locations. Even though these F-16s are quite old, with the first batch delivered in 1980, the Danes have not only maintained them very well, but also upgraded them over the years. These actions helped make these aircraft more suitable for sale rather than scrapping.
A group of F-16s will be donated to Ukraine as part of the 19 aircraft that Denmark has agreed to donate to the Ukrainian Air Force in 2023. The first of the Danish F-16s, one of several types of fighter jets that Ukraine has, arrived in Ukraine in August 2024. Denmark has also pledged to support training and maintenance costs for Ukrainian pilots, as well as operations for Ukrainian training and maintenance. of these planes after they arrive in Ukraine. The Ukrainian Air Force uses its F-16s primarily to defend the country against Russian drones and missiles, as well as to drop precision-guided bombs to provide close air support.
A total of 24 Denmark’s F-16s will be sold to Argentina, which has not had a supersonic fighter in its arsenal since the country retired its French Mirages in 2015. The US government has been heavily involved in the deal due to its export regulations. The Argentine F-16 package also includes training, parts and simulators to ensure proper maintenance and operation of the Argentine Air Force’s “new” F-16s. The first six aircraft were delivered in December, with additional batches each year until 2028.
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Read the original article on SlashGear.