F-16 Aircraft Database

First USAF F-16
This F-16 was the first to roll off the General Dynamics production line at Fort Worth, TX. It was delivered to the USAF in August of 1978 and thus became the very first production F-16 to be delivered worldwide. Initial deliveries went to the 388th TFW at Hill AFB, where initial pilot training on the type was performed.

Suffered a mishap on landing. The nose gear would not come down. The pilot tried everything to get it down, no luck. It was decided he would land on the runway and keep his nose up as long as he could. There was some concern the external wing tanks would drag so of course the crash trucks were there in case of fire. The pilot brought the plane in very slowly and landed on the mains, kept the nose up and almost came to a stop before the nose dropped. The radome was of course scraped up, the ring around the intake and the lower tacan antenna was gone. The wing tanks were about 5-6 inches from the ground. It was found out the seals in the nose gear were almost totally deteriorated. It was the original nose gear from the factory. Everything that was damaged was replaced and the plane was flying three days later. Anyone who knows the exact date, please let us know.

Update: A visitor wonders if this was the mishap involving pilot Dick Hoover who could not get the nose gear down at a Red Flag exercise, but also was not sure about the exact date.

Repaired.

Detachment 16 at Nellis AFB.

No unit markings

On a pedestal in Langley's Memorial Park, Virginia