Thanks about the reminder about the F-16s - wasn't aware that so many were still active. I think that I remember that the F-5 was in the original "Top Gun" mov

Thanks about the reminder about the F-16s - wasn't aware that so many were still active. I think that I remember that the F-5 was in the original "Top Gun" movie, that it was near its end-life when the movie was shown (I investigated after watching the movie), and that in the movie it had the role of a simulated MIG-antagonist. (gosh, I LOVED that movie when I saw it as a teenager) Maybe the stagnation of engineering/production of F-35 and/or alternative models is caused by Russia/China not pushing for similar capabilities? There have been news about some new fighters but I didn't read anything about them being mass-produced... .