2024 marks the 50th anniversary of the legendary and lethal F-16 Fighting Falcon. Pilots call it the Viper, and the USAF F-16 Viper Demo Team just unveiled the coolest plane of the year. Check out their new FALCON 50 heritage jet!
It’s painted in the original livery worn by the YF-16 prototype that first flew in 1974 under the control of test pilot Phil Oestricher. The jet wasn’t actually supposed to fly that day, but Oestricher was faced with either taking off or crashing when nearly losing control on the high-speed taxi run.
He decided to takeoff, and was able to gain control of the jet and land safely. You can read all about that day in our previous story on the first F-16.
A lot of work to paint the demo jet
“When I was hired to be the commander and pilot last year, I made it known that I hoped to get our airplane painted in the prototype scheme,” said Capt. Taylor “FEMA” Hiester, commander and pilot of the F-16 Viper Demo Team.
“I want to take America back to the beginning of the story that started 50 years ago.”
Just getting a “yes” approval on the idea from leadership can be a huge challenge, and this was no different. However, with the support of the team’s home base 20th Fighter Wing, Hiester eventually got the yes.
A secret job
He contacted a friend at Edwards AFB, who recently directed a 50th anniversary event there for the F-16.
The idea was kept hush. More calls were made, and soon the personnel needed were onboard.
In an interview with The Warzone, Hiester recalled flying the jet to Edwards in secret. He even changed the flight’s call sign, to throw off any tracking avgeeks.
The 412th Corrosion Shop took on the paint job, with extreme care. A few slight changes were made to the design, to differentiate the demo jet from the original. They put “20th Fighter Wing” on the airframe instead of “General Dynamics,” and added “Viper Demo” to the vertical stabilizer.
Even now, new F-16s are being produced, modernized for the years ahead.
Coming to an air show near you, hopefully
The team has a busy year ahead, showing off the heritage Viper to millions of spectators across the U.S. and Canada.
Call sign, “FALCON 50”.
“The honor of a lifetime,” says Hiester.
