F-16S IN SERVICE IN PORTUGAL FOR "30 YEARS"

They arrived in Portugal on July 8, 1994, today they are a fleet of 28 aircraft and made their first Portuguese flight on July 18, 1994.

In 1990, Portugal signed an agreement with the United States, Peace Atlantis I, for the acquisition of 20 F-16A/B Block 15 aircraft.

The country needed to modernize its Air Force and replace the old Fiat G.91 and Northrop T-38 Talon, where Fiats had already served in the Colonial War.

Between 1998 and 1999, with the Peace Atlantis II Agreement, Portugal acquired another 25 used F-16 aircraft (21 F-16A and 4 F-16B) from the United States Air National Guard and there was a need to increase capacity and upgrade air defense systems.

The celebrations were held at air base nº5 in Monte Real on September 15, 2024 and as always we were on the ground, to get close to all the operators involved, publicize the brand and enjoy the spectacle that all the aircraft provided, it is not every day that we hear and feel the ground shaking when you have several F-16s taking off just a few meters away and at full power.