The F-16 Kai Night Falcon is a 4.5th-generation stealth fighter based on the General Dynamics F-16C Fighting Falcon multirole fighter, and is operated by the United States Air Force. It incorporates various upgrades to turn the versatile jet into a highly potent night strike fighter. The Night Falcon makes its only on-screen appearance in Patlabor 2: The Movie, where one is used to carry out the Bay Bridge Bombing.
Design and Development[]
Real-world F-16 Fighting Falcon
Real-world F-2A
The F-16 Kai Night Falcon was developed in response to increasingly advanced Soviet radar and anti-air systems. Based on the versatile, nimble, and low-cost F-16J Fighting Falcon, the Night Falcon is intended to support larger 5th-generation fighters, such as the F-22A Raptor, which was undergoing flight testing while the Night Falcon was first put into service. Additionally, the Night Falcon is better suited to night attacks and reconnaissance on locations in contested or hostile airspace, making use of advanced weapons systems and stealth features.
Most prominently, the Night Falcon features a stealth coating and structural refinements to greatly reduce the aircraft's radar cross-section. New antennas and sensors are mounted at various points on the aircraft, granting the pilot high situational awareness. Internal weapons bays, like those featured on the aforementioned Raptor, are installed in fairings mounted on either side of the aircraft, increasing the stealth capabilities of the aircraft. To enhance maneuverability, the Night Falcon is equipped with redesigned stabilizers and a new wing, and is equipped with a thrust-vectoring nozzle. A revised nosecone houses the improved radar.
The Night Falcon is based on the fictional F-16J Falcon, a lightweight fighter itself based on the F-16C Fighting Falcon. The F-16J is a larger aircraft with better maritime interdiction capabilities, and is analogous to the real-world F-2A, which operates on the same premise. When Patlabor 2 was in development, the F-2A was itself in development and had not yet received its designation, leading to the F-16J designation seen in Patlabor media.
