It was more than 50 years ago when the U.S. Air Force put in a request. It wanted a lighter fighter jet. Soon the F-16 Falcon was born. And it is still going strong today. The plane known by pilots as the "Viper" is being used around the world by friends of America. Part of the America's Fighter Jets series: the F-16 Fighting Falcon places readers in the cockpit. It teaches them all about this incredible aircraft. and why it has been a mainstay in the U.S. arsenal for a half-century.