Actually, I can see the F16 getting shopped around to other Air Forces, even when the shooting starts. Not the others, like the 15's, and 14's, even the 18's, though that is a maybe.
The F16 was designed, along with the FA18, to be simple, cheap, and easy to build, they wasn't supposed to be overly complex aircraft. The FA18 pushes that envelope, but isn't near as complex as either a F14 or F15. I can't recall where, but I remember it being said that with the F16 that during the design process there was a good deal of effort to build in a capability to be produced in immense numbers in a wartime situation. So, given the slow build up to war, then the warmup act over in China, I can easily see GD and Lockmark being tapped to really ramp up production.
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Member of the Bofors fan club! The M1911 of automatic cannon.
Proud fan(atic) of the CV90 Series.
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