The Royal Danish Air Force officially ended, on 18 January 2026, one of the longest and most symbolic chapters in its fighter aircraft history by withdrawing the last F-16 Fighting Falcon from service.
The aircraft have defended the country’s airspace for almost 46 years and mark a full transition to the new fifth-generation fleet based on F-35 Lightning II.
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The farewell took place during a ceremony at Skridstrup airbase, with the presence of Major General Jan Dam, Chief of the Air Force, and Lieutenant General Per Pugholm Olsen, head of the Defense Procurement Office. The event was made public by the Danish Defense Procurement Authority.
Almost half a century in service
The first Danish F-16 aircraft landed in the country on 18 January 1980. Through the program, the Royal Danish Air Force acquired a total of 77 aircraft in the F-16A and F-16B versions, divided into two main deliveries, in addition to two additional orders to replace airframes that were taken out of service early.
In the late 1970s, Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands — members of the European Participating Air Forces — began the search for a replacement for the F-104 Starfighter. The group became the first international customer for the F-16 and participated, along with the United States, in a multinational development program for the fighter.
According to the industrial agreement, the aircraft for European countries were to be produced on the continent. The Danish F-16s in the first delivery were assembled by SABCA in Belgium, while the aircraft in the second delivery came from Fokker’s production lines in the Netherlands.
The original order included 46 single-seat F-16As and 12 two-seat F-16Bs, all in Block 1 standard, with deliveries starting in January 1980. In August 1984, a further 12 Block 15-standard aircraft with extended tailfins were ordered—eight F-16As and four F-16Bs—manufactured by Fokker to replace aircraft worn out by intensive use.
Transition to the F-35
To replace the aging fleet, Denmark has acquired 27 F-35A fighters. The last aircraft, produced in the USA, will be delivered during 2026, and the entire fleet will be based on Skridstrupwhere the necessary infrastructure for the new platform has already been completed.
The country has participated in the F-35 program since 1997. After evaluations carried out 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 planned until 2026.
The first Danish F-35A aircraft was received on 7 April 2021 directly from Lockheed Martin. Since then, the country has decided to expand the fleet with a further 16 aircraft, which strengthens Denmark’s air defense capability and power projection within the framework of NATO.
With the phasing out of the F-16, Denmark ends an era characterized by several decades of interoperability and high readiness, while at the same time the country consolidates its definitive entry into the most advanced generation of combat aircraft.
Source and images: Ministry of Defence’s Materiel- og Indkøbstyrelse – Facebook @FMI. This content has been prepared with the help of KI and reviewed by the editors.
