On February 5th, the US Air Force Life Cycle Management Center declared the successful conclusion of the “Phoenix Rising” initiative, a $4.5-billion project aimed at enhancing 139 of Taiwan’s F-16s to the F-16V (Block 70-72) configuration.This upgrade initiative is a crucial component of Taiwan’s overarching strategy to modernize its defense capabilities, ensuring readiness to counter any potential threat from China. Commencing in 2016 and marking its first aircraft delivery in late 2018, this comprehensive upgrade effort stands as the most extensive F-16 Foreign Military Sales retrofit program since the aircraft’s inception into the US Air Force in 1979.The final F-16V upgraded aircraft underwent thorough examinations and was delivered in December, concluding the initiative. In November 2021, the Taiwanese Air Force officially commissioned its first operational wing of F-16Vs.In this video, Defense Updates analyzes how the F-16Vs of Taiwan would go a long way in pushing back any Chinese onslaught ?#defenseupdates #f16viper #usvschina Chapters:00:11 INTRODUCTION02:23 BACKGROUND 03:24 PHOENIX RISING 04:11 F-16V FIGHTER JET UPGRADES07:28 ANALYSIS