The Royal Danish Air Force officially ended one of the longest and most defining chapters of its combat aviation on January 18, 2026, by decommissioning the last F-16 Fighting Falcons.
The aircraft defended the country’s airspace for almost 46 years and mark the complete transition to the new fifth-generation fleet based on the F-35 Lightning II.
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The farewell took place at a ceremony at Skridstrup Air Base attended by Major General Jan Dam, Chief of the Air Force, and Lieutenant General Per Pugholm Olsen, Head of the Defense Procurement Authority. The event was announced by the Danish Defense Procurement Authority.
Almost half a century of service
The first Danish F-16 aircraft landed in the country on January 18, 1980. During the course of the program, the Royal Danish Air Force procured a total of 77 aircraft in the F-16A and F-16B versions in two large lots, as well as two additional orders to replace prematurely decommissioned airframes.
In the late 1970s, Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands — members of the European Participating Air Forces — began searching for a successor to the F-104 Starfighter. The group became the F-16’s first international customer and participated with the United States in a multinational development program for the fighter.
According to the industrial agreement, aircraft destined for European countries were to be manufactured on the continent. The Danish F-16s of the first batch were assembled by SABCA in Belgium, while those of the second batch came from Fokker’s production lines in the Netherlands.
The initial order was for 46 single-seat F-16A and 12 twin-seat F-16B, all of the Block 1 standard, with deliveries beginning in January 1980. In August 1984, a further 12 Block 15 extended vertical stabilizer aircraft — eight F-16A and four F-16B — were ordered from Fokker to replace aircraft worn out through intensive use.
Transition to the F-35
To replace the aging fleet, Denmark procured 27 F-35A fighter jets. The last aircraft produced in the United States are scheduled to be delivered during 2026; the entire fleet will be up Skridstrup stationed where the specific infrastructure for the new weapons carrier has already been completed.
The country has been participating in the F-35 program since 1997. After assessments between 2013 and 2016, the government officially recommended the purchase of at least 27 aircraft in May 2016. Parliament approved the program budget in 2017, with implementation until 2026.
The first Danish F-35A was taken directly from Lockheed Martin on April 7, 2021. Since then, the country decided to expand the fleet by purchasing an additional 16 aircraft, thereby further strengthening its air defense capabilities and power projection within NATO.
With the retirement of the F-16, Denmark closes an era characterized by decades of interoperability and high operational readiness, while at the same time finally cementing its entry into the most modern generation of combat aircraft.
Source and images: Forsvarsministeriets Material- og Indkøbsstyrelse – Facebook @FMI. This content was created using AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
