Two General Dynamics F-16XL were built as conversions of aircraft Full Scale Development, single seat and two-seat version. The aircraft were flight tested from mid-1982 to 1985 before being placed in storage. The No. 1 aircraft was removed from storage in 1989 and amended by a test job with NASA to study supersonic laminar flow and sonic boom research (with an SR-71). The second aircraft was returned to the Center Dryden Flight Research Center in 1992 and took over the project of supersonic laminar flow of aircraft No. 1.
The F-16XL is a radically different version of the standard F-16. The most obvious design change is the "cranked arrow" double delta wing. The aircraft is also more than four meters longer than the F-16A production. The XL was initially conceived as a multi-role aircraft shot competing against the F-15E Strike Eagle. The F-16XL never went into production, and only two prototypes were built.
