F-36 Kingsnake The Return Of The F-16XL?

Recently the U.S. Air Force announced that it may be interested in obtaining a new low cost option to replace its fleet of F-16s, calling for a clean sheet design of a new either fourth and a half gen or fifth gen minus fighter.

The role that today’s F16s play cannot be understated: while the F22 and F35 are the air force’s fifth-generation frontline fighters, the F16 is by far the most numerous fighter the air force operates, with more F16 examples than all F15s, F22s and F35s combined. As a result, you could make the argument that the F16 is the backbone of today’s air force.

While the USAF’s F16s have served with distinction during its operational lifetime, current Air Force leaders feel that the viper lacks the mission systems capability and networked software sophistication to be a serious contender.

Last month, U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. C.Q. Brown admits that F-35 failed to replace F-16 as planned.

The United States Air Force announced the need for a new multi-use fighter jet to replace its aging F-16 fleet while stressing that it would not feature the same high-price tag and technological prowess of the F-35.

In response to the U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. C.Q. Brown, the alternative aviation magazine Hush-Kit unviled a new design that is a potential F-16 replacement. The result: the F-36 Kingsnake lightweight fighter.

See Details: F-36 Kingsnake: A Brand-new Fighter Jet That Could Replace the F-16

But the F-36 Kingsnake design looks very similar to General Dynamics F-16XL. The F-16XL is a derivative of the F-16 Fighting Falcon, with a cranked-arrow delta wing.

Here is a video by PilotPhotog, arguing that is F-36 Kingsnake the return of the F16XL?

A similar concept of F-36 Sterik Stealth-Fighter jet is also under development. A fictional aircraft seemed to be a hybrid of F-22 and F-35 featured in one of video of Raytheon based on cyber threats in Aviation.