F-16E Block 60 Fighting Falcon

F-16E BLOCK 60
- Next-Generation 'Viper' -

(The closest aircraft is the F-16 Block 60)

Origin: (Real World)
United States of America

Games Featured In:
Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War

Operators:
Osean Air Defense Force
Yuktobanian Air Force

Variants:
F-2A Viper Zero
F-16C Fighting Falcon
F-16XL

Armament: (Special Weapons)
Gun / M61A2 20mm Vulcan Cannon
Standard Missiles / AIM-9M Sidewinder
XMAA / AIM-120 AMRAAM (AC5)

Ace Combat 5 Stats:
Speed: 73
Mobility: 65
Stability: 60
Defense: 49
Air-to-Air: 76
Air-to-Ground: 40

Background:
The F-16E/F Block 60, adorned with the I variant (not to be confused with the F-16E/F/XL Cranked Arrow) is an aircraft with a reputation of being the first export-only aircraft actually more capable than the latest domestic variants fielded with the United States military. Fitted with a sophisticated sensor suite, conformal fuel tanks, and the F-110-GE-132 32,500lb thrust engine, the Block 60 is seen as being a worthy upgrade to the F-16 family. Initially produced for the United Arab Emirates, European countries, specifically Greece, have expressed interest in upgrading their current fighter fleets with this new aircraft, as has additional Euro-Asian nations such as Israel. Having yet seen combat, the Block 60's capabilities are of testing and speculation only, though the manufacturer, Lockheed Martin, sees tremendous potential in their new incarnation of the famous F-16 fighter. It should be mentioned that the Block 60 should be designated as the "F-16E" but for reasons unknown, Namco named it the F-16C Block 60 instead.

SOURCE:
Ace Combat 5: The Unsung War (In game Data)
http://www.defense-update.com

ACCREDITATION:

Well, it is actually called the F-16E. There is a Block 60 F version, too, which is a two-seater strike variant. They're different from previous F-16 models due to their conformal fuel tanks, which frees up more hardpoint space under the wings. The Block 60s also have avionic software that can handle approximately 100 times more data than the Block 40 F-16Cs and Ds. So far as I know, the only nation we've sold these to is the UAE, United Arab Emirates. This variant is actually more advanced than the F-16s the US has got right now. The F-16XL was going to be designated the E/F, but it was scrapped in favor of the F-15E. As far as the "Block" naming goes, the F-16s all actually have Block designations, each one denoting a level of upgrades. As the Block number increases, the more advanced the version of the F-16 is. The USAF is using mostly Block 40 F-16Cs and Ds currently, and smaller numbers of Block 50s. The highest level of Blocks for the F-16 right now is actually Block 60, which makes the F-16E/Fs we sold to the UAE the most advanced F-16s in the world right now. Also, the F-16E/F Block 60 is sometimes referred to as the "Desert Falcon."

Oh, and here's another interesting thing: There was going to be a thrust vectoring variant of the F-16, too. A prototype was made. It's called the F-16 VISTA. It never made it to production, though.