F-16 Fighting Falcon News

January 26, 1998 (by Lieven Dewitte) - The Lockheed Martin F-16 continued to improve its safety record during 1997, ending the calendar year with an annual mishap rate of 2. 7losses per 100, 000 flight hours in U.S. Air Force service.
The USAF logged more than a third of a million flight hours with the Fighting Falcon last year. The service's F-16 cumulative loss rate since it first started flying the aircraft now stands at 4. 2 losses per 100, 000flight hours, with a trend of continuous improvement each year.

The F-16 safety statistics are consistent with the fact that 1997, overall, was one of the safest flying years ever for the entire Department of Defense.