Interesting Facts About The F-16 Fighting Falcon

The F-16 Fighting Falcon Was Almost The F-16 Viper

An F-16 Viper taxies after flying during the 2017 Heritage Flight Training and Certification Course at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Ariz., Feb. 11, 2017.

Thanks to its snake-like design, the F-16 Fighting Falcon was almost officially dubbed the F-16 Viper. It’s still referred to as such by many who have worked closely with the aircraft. The “Falcon” monicker ended up winning the official title as it fit well with the previous F-15 Eagle concept and, according to Lt. Col. Pat “Gums” McAdoo, USAF Ret.,

“In any case, the Generals didn’t want a plane ‘named after some snake’!”

The unofficial Viper name did however stick around when it came to determining the name for the award given to outstanding F-16 pilot airmanship – the Semper Viper award.