Lockheed Martin and the U.S. Air Force are again discussing new-build F-16s, including a possible F-16G based on the Block 70 design. The service has not committed to buying any new F-16s, leaving any purchase to depend on whether it defines requirements and chooses a path for its fighter fleet.
David Allvin and Block 80
In May 2025, Tom Cotton asked then-Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Allvin about buying a U.S.-configured Block 80 F-16 if Congress provided additional funding. Allvin did not endorse the idea. He said he needed to examine the time required to adapt the Block 70 design, where a U.S. aircraft could fit into Lockheed Martin’s production line, and what the industrial base could support.
Allvin also said the Air Force needed both the high-end capabilities required for an Indo-Pacific fight and other fighters that may not need to be as sophisticated. That split helps explain why a new-build F-16 keeps resurfacing: the service is trying to match different aircraft to different missions instead of treating every future fighter as a full F-35 replacement.
Lockheed Martin's F-16G pitch
Lockheed Martin has proposed an aircraft called the F-16G, an enhanced derivative of the F-16 Block 70. The proposed jet reportedly incorporates conformal fuel tanks, 600-gallon wing tanks, an infrared search-and-track system, a Sniper targeting pod, and a drag chute. Lockheed Martin is positioning the aircraft as a potential replacement for USAF F-16 units whose existing aircraft are approaching the end of their useful lives.
A Block 70 F-16 would be cheaper than replacing an aging F-16 with an F-35, and it would allow the Air Force to keep much of the infrastructure, training, and experience already tied to the existing aircraft. It would also be far cheaper to sustain and operate over its service life than an F-35, which is why the option keeps coming back when the service weighs how to manage a fleet that is aging, shrinking, and becoming more expensive to sustain.
Inside Defense and December 2025
In December 2025, Inside Defense reported that the Air Force had reached out to Lockheed Martin about pricing for Block 70 F-16s. Those conversations were described as exploratory, with no firm procurement plan. A congressional aide told Inside Defense that officials were looking at ways to “plug their holes” as part of future force-structure planning.
That leaves Lockheed Martin advancing a new-build F-16 proposal while the Air Force says it has not settled on the requirements or options and has not committed to any purchase. The next step is a decision on what the service wants the aircraft to do, which version fits that need, and whether the answer includes a U.S.-configured Block 80 or F-16G at all.
