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REPORT
Volume 23 No 05 MAY 2022

GUARDIAN
ANGELS RAPTORS
READY TO
DEFEND HAWAII
PLUS IDAHO A-10s, APACHES AND F-15Es
 WELCOME // MAY 2022
The fallacy
of war optimism
R
USSIA’S INVASION OF Ukraine
– well into its fourth week
as Combat Aircraft Journal
went to press, with forces
suffering significant losses in
personnel and materiel – has,
sadly, brought full-scale conventional
war back to the fields of Europe for the
first time in generations and resulted in
numerous civilian casualties.
That such a conflict would see a
permanent member of the United Nations
Security Council invade an apparent
weaker neighbor is not without precedent,
given China’s annexation of Tibet in 1951
– it remains to be seen how the situation
between Beijing and Taiwan will play out,
as friction continues to mount.
The sight of Ukrainian refugees fleeing
their homes with whatever they could
hold in their hands – mostly their children
– acted as a reminder of other crises in
Europe, during which reason appeared to
give way to madness.
On February 24, 2022, in a decision
that shook the European order, Russian
President Vladimir Putin ordered a war
to ‘demilitarize’ and ‘denazify’ Ukraine
– which, since 2014, has gravitated
west towards NATO and the European
Union. However, the Russian military war
machine, long considered to be one of, if
Above: Ukrainian not the most, formidable ‘domestic’ land
Sukhoi Su-27P1M power in Europe, has struggled against
‘Flanker’ multi-role
combat aircraft a foe benefiting from a stream of NATO
helped mark the munitions and other supplies through the
30th anniversary Polish border.
of Ukraine’s
independence from The United States has supplied in the
the Soviet Union on region of 1,000 Stinger man-portable air
August 24, 2021 defense missile systems to Ukraine, along
UK MOD/Crown
copyright with 100 loitering munitions – effectively
drones with an inbuilt warhead that can
be operated in an intelligence, surveillance
and reconnaissance (ISR) role or as a
single-use strike weapon – in order to
assist Ukraine in combating air threats and
aid in ground strike.
Meanwhile, Germany has sent 500
Stinger missiles from existing stocks,
and the Netherlands has also sent 200
Stingers to Ukraine. The UK has promised
to send Starstreak air-defense systems, in
the latest round of support shown from
London to Kyiv, having previously donated
thousands of Next-generation Light Anti-
tank Weapons (NLAW) to Ukraine, used to
devastating effect against Russian armor.
NATO countries have also supplied
tens of thousands of anti-armor missile/
grenade systems; thousands of small
arms; hundreds of thousands of rounds of
ammunition; as well as other equipment,
such as body armor, helmets, medical
supplies and combat rations.
The war – in which Russia attempted to
strike light and fast, seemingly planning to
take key cities without too much of a fight,
and even hoping to be seen as saviors –
has dragged on, with the invading forces
suffering steady casualties, as supply lines
are stretched. The tactic now, it seems, is a
replica of Russian doctrine from Chechnya
and Syria, with the mass use of indirect
fires against cities, accompanied with
extensive use of cruise missiles.
For Putin, the war he seemed to hope
would bring back Russia’s superpower
status could see the destruction of
swathes of its combat air, rotary, and
support fleets, along with huge loss of
personnel, reportedly many of whom are
conscripts. Far from a blitz into Kyiv, akin
to that of the US into Baghdad in 2003,
Ukraine is turning into a quagmire for the
Russian military. The next phase, and the
biggest risk, is how far will the Kremlin go
in order to get itself out?
To read more of our Russia-Ukraine war
coverage, go to www.key.aero for live
updates and in-depth analysis.
Richard Thomas
Group Executive Editor
Visit our website at
www.key.aero/combataircraftjournal
Contact the team at
editor@combataircraftjournal.com
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 3
 May 2022 • Vol 23 • No 05

IN THE NEWS
Aero’s pre-series L-39NG flies again
More JGSDF Ospreys delivered
USMC AV-8Bs deploy to Norway
US Approves MH-60R sale to Spain
Germany selects F-35A
500th C130J delivery

WAR REPORT
20 Holding off the Bear
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, after
months of posturing at the nation’s border.
We highlight the key events that took place
during the opening weeks of conflict

22 NATO’s response
On Europe’s eastern flank, defenses are being
bolstered as Russian President Vladimir Putin
continues his attack on Ukraine

24 Ukraine digs in
As the war gathered pace, Ukrainian forces
said significant numbers of Russian fixed- and
rotary-wing aircraft were shot down or hit in
the middle of March 26 Russian MOD

90 Northern Skies Aviation

26 Airpower absent
Russia was expecting to dominate the skies
over Ukraine early in the conflict. However,
Moscow has seemingly failed to project
airpower effectively during the opening
weeks of its invasion of its neighbor

30 Securing paradise
In our 14th US State Report, Tom Kaminski
explores the assets stationed across Hawaii

38 Sparkling gems
Continuing our US state-by-state saga, Tom
Kaminski looks into the air assets located in
mountainous and mineral-rich Idaho

44 French horn
Djibouti calls the tune for French forces in the
Horn of Africa. The country offers a secure base
in a notoriously volatile region

50 Adversarial F-5s
The F-5 Tiger II has supported naval aviation
training since 1975 and remains a core asset
for drilling US combat pilots

4 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

 SEE PAGE 99 FOR
FULL DETAILS

58 A silk road adventure

We report on the project keeping the Iranian
Air Force F-5E/F Tiger II fleet in service, despite a
number of setbacks

66 Portugal’s Falcões & Jaguares

As the Portuguese Air Force celebrates its 70th
anniversary, Esquadra 201 and 301, operating the
F-16A/BM (MLU) Fighting Falcon, continues to be
the tip of the spear

74 Raptors over UAE

Loitering drone strikes by Houthi and Popular
Mobilization Unit rebels in the United Arab
Emirates have led to a new role for United States
Air Force Raptors

78 The Roadrunners
Michael Keaveney catches up with the
commanding officer of the 586th Flight Test
Squadron ‘Roadrunners’, to find out more about
the unit’s unique role

82 Lightning chain
Dave Allport takes a closer look at the units and
bases operating the F-35 (and its variants) across
three pillars of the United States Armed Forces –
38 US Army National Guard
both at home and overseas

90 High Blaze
Frank Visser and Ludo Mennes spoke to the
commander of exercise High Blaze 2021, which
aimed to maintain mountain qualifications
among the Royal Netherlands Air Force’s
helicopter personnel

66 Josef Campion 97 Cutting edge

Multiple US military aircraft have appeared
recently wearing a highly reflective coating.
David Axe finds out more

ON THE COVER
Cover image:
An F-22A Raptor from
the Hawaii Air National
Guard’s 199th FS ‘Mytai
Fighters’ receives
fuel from a KC-135
Stratotanker while
conducting a sortie
near Hawaii
USAF/Tech Sgt
Samantha Mathison

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 5

 UKRAINE STANDS UP TO PUTIN

The Khinzal hypersonic missile seen here under a MiG-31K Foxhound is believed to reach speeds of up to Mach 10 and can carry both conventional or nuclear
warheads. It has a range of around 600 miles once fired Alexey Nikolskiy/Press and Information Office of the President of the Russian Federation

A MONTH after Russia’s unprovoked
invasion of Ukraine on February
24, the unexpected resilience of
the Ukrainian people has meant
Vladimir Putin’s military was not
fulfilling the very swift takeover
of the country he had planned.
Instead, the courage of Ukraine’s
military and civilian population
has surprised and impressed the
whole world. Thousands of Russian
soldiers have been slain – with
the Ukrainians claiming 14,000
casualties, although US intelligence
claims it’s nearer to 7,000. Either
way, it will be a lot more than was
ever envisaged by Putin.
Having failed to gain air
superiority over Ukraine, Russia has
resorted to launching long-range
strikes from outside the country
to avoid putting its aircraft in
unnecessary danger. Tu-95 Bears
and Tu-160 Blackjacks strategic
bombers operating over Belarus
and western Russia have fired Kh-55
air launched cruise missiles. While
the first combat use of the Khinzal
(‘Dagger’) air-launched ballistic
missiles was confirmed by the
Russian Ministry of Defence in an
announcement on March 19 that
the hypersonic weapon had been
deployed for the first time against
an underground arms depot in
western Ukraine, near the village of
Deliatyn, about 60 miles from the
Romanian border. The following
day, the Russian MOD claimed a
second strike with a Khinzal missile
had destroyed a fuel depot in
Konstantinovka in the Mykolaiv
region of southern Ukraine. Russia
has also provoked outrage due to
the use of cluster bombs, which
scatter sub-munitions over a wide
area. Their use is prohibited against
civilians under the Convention on
Cluster Munitions, to which 123
nations have committed to date,
although Russia is not one of them.
Putin’s threat on February 27 of
by NATO countries has been
considerably increased since the
invasion began, although Greece
and Turkey have been notably
absent from these missions.
There has been much talk about
imposing a no-fly zone over
Ukraine, but this is not really a
viable option. Aside from concerns
that it would effectively mean NATO
fighters undertaking direct attacks
on Russian aircraft, Russia would
still be able to launch long-range
missile strikes with impunity from
Belarus and western Russia. All it
would be likely achieve is escalating
the conflict by effectively putting
Russia at war with NATO.

HYPERSONIC KHINZAL
The Khinzal missile is usually carried by the Russian Air Force’s MiG-31Ks –
using a nuclear option during the
invasion also brought worldwide
concern and still remains a threat.
The cities of Kyiv and Mariupol
have both been under siege since
the beginning of the invasion,
airframes that have been converted from MiG-31DZs to carry the weapon. NATO-supplied weapons have although in both cases Russian
Observers point out that the use of Khinzal seemed a little unnecessary
proved very effective in Ukrainian progress has been stalled by
for the selected targets, which could easily have been struck by more
conventional weapons, with suggestions they may have been used due to hands, resulting in heavy Russian fierce resistance. Indiscriminate
depleted stocks of alternative weapons. losses. Many countries have bombing of the civilian population
Significantly, an unspecified number of Khinzal-armed MiG-31Ks were supplied these weapons as the in both cities has also brought
forward deployed to Chkalovsk Air Base, Kaliningrad, a base which is close world has rallied to support Ukraine condemnation and resulted in a
to the borders with Lithuania and Poland. These were first seen there on
in its hour of need. Ukrainian huge humanitarian crisis. Both cities
February 7, but were gone by mid-March. There are known to be around
20 Khinzal-capable MiG-31Ks operational, based at Akhtubinsk (about President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are strategically important, with the
1,500km east of Kyiv) and Savasleka (1,300km northeast of Kyiv). has also become something of a capital being seen as a major prize
A pair of Khinzal-equipped MiG-31Ks were previously deployed to Syria, cult hero by refusing to leave the by Putin, while capturing Mariupol
but were only used for naval exercises in summer 2021, just as HMS Queen country and being seen in the thick would give Russia full control of
Elizabeth entered the eastern Mediterranean.
of the action, supporting his people the Sea of Azov. After four weeks
For more on the Khinzal, please see Russia teases HMS Queen Elizabeth,
AirForces Monthly, August 2021, p6-7 and Putin’s Prize, AirForces Monthly, as they fight Russia’s aggression. of bombing, 90% of Mariupol had
September 2021, p46-48. On NATO’s eastern flank, the been destroyed, but its residents
number of combat air patrols still refused to surrender.

6 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

RUSSIA-UKRAINE CONFLICT LOSSES
A Russian Air Force Ka-52 was
shot down in Ukraine on February
24 during combat operations
against Kyiv-Gostomel Airport.
A second Russian Air Force
Ka-52 was shot down in Ukraine
on February 24 during combat
operations against Kyiv-Gostomel
Airport and came down in the
Dnepr River near Vyshorod. Both
crew members ejected.
A Russian Air Force Su-25 was
shot down on February 24 over
Kovalivka, Kyiv Oblast, Ukraine.
The pilot ejected safely.
An unidentified Russian Air
Force fighter was shot down on
February 24 in the Luhansk region
of Ukraine.
A Russian Air Force Su-24 was
shot down on February 24 near
Kramatorsk, Donbass, Ukraine.
A Ukrainian Air Force An-26
was shot down by invading
Russian forces on February 24
near Zhukivtsi. At least five of the
14 on board were killed.
An unidentified Russian Air
Force fighter was shot down on
February 25 near Voznesenske,
Ukraine. The pilot ejected.
A Russian Air Force Su-25 was
shot down on February 25 just
outside Kalynivka in the Vynnitsia
region of Ukraine.
A Russian Air Force Su-35 was
shot down on February 25 over
Kyiv, Ukraine, by a Ukrainian Air
Force MiG-29.
A Ukrainian Air Force Su-27
was shot down on February 25
over Osorkorky, Kyiv, by a SAM.
A Russian Air Force Mi-24
was shot down on February 26
over Sagi in the Kherson region
of Ukraine.
The Ukraine General Staff
claimed a Russian Air Force Il-76
had been shot down on February
26 near Vasylkiv, Ukraine. The loss
has not been confirmed. A second
Russian Air Force Il-76 was
reported shot down on February
26 near Bila Tserkva, south of Kyiv.
Two US officials confirmed this
loss but there has been no visual
evidence to confirm the crash.
Two Russian Air Force
helicopters were shot down on
February 26 during an assault on
Vasylkiv Air Base, Ukraine.
Ukrainian Air Force Su-25M1K
‘19 Blue’ was shot down near
Nikolaev in the Kherson region of
Ukraine on February 26. The pilot
was killed. On the same day, the
pilot of a Ukrainian Air Force Su-
25 was shot down and killed, also
near Nikolaev.
Two unidentified Russian Air
Force helicopters were shot down
on February 27 in the Ivanovsky
district of Ukraine.
A Russian Air Force Mi-35 was
shot down on February 28 near
Oleshky in Kherson Oblast, Ukraine.
The mayor of Mariupol, Ukraine,
said an unspecified Russian Air
Force aircraft had been shot down
near the city on February 28.
A Ukrainian Air Force fighter
was shot down over Kyiv. Ukraine,
on February 28. The pilot was killed.
Russian Air Force Mi-24P
RF-94966 was shot down in
Ukraine, most likely on March 5.
A Russian Air Force Su-25 was
shot down over Kharkiv, Ukraine, on
March 6. The pilot ejected.
A Russian Air Force Il-76 was
destroyed on March 1 while parked
during a rocket attack on Taganrog
Air Base in Russia’s Rostov region.
A Russian Air Force Ka-52 was
found crashed and abandoned
on March 1 in Babintsy, in the Kyiv
region, Ukraine.
A Russian Air Force Su-30 or
Su-34 was shot down on March 1
near Losk market, Kharkiv, Ukraine.
Two Russian Air Force Su-35Ss
were shot down on March 1 during
Above: The still burning wreckage of Russian Air Force Su-25SM3 RF-93026 after it was shot down on March 4 near Volnovakha in the Donetsk
region of Ukraine Ukrainian Ministry of Defence
air combat over the Kyiv region
with two Ukrainian Air Force
MiG-29s – one of which was lost.
An unidentified Russian Air
Force fighter was shot down on
March 3 near Belgorod-Dniester,
in the Odessa region, Ukraine. The
pilot ejected.
A Russian Air Force Su-30 was
shot down on March 3 over Irpin, in
Ukraine’s Kyiv region.
A Russian Air Force Su-34
was shot down on March 3 near
Volnovakha, Ukraine.
Russian Air Force Su-25SM
RF-91958/‘White 04’ was shot down
on March 4 in the Chernihiv region
of Ukraine.
A second Russian Air Force
Su-25 was also shot down on
March 4 in the Chernihiv region.
Another Russian Air Force
Su-25SM3, RF-93026, was shot
down on March 4 near Volnovakha
in the Donetsk region.
An unidentified Russian Air
Force aircraft attacking military
infrastructure in Zatoka on March 4
was shot down. The pilot ejected.
A Russian Air Force Mi-8
helicopter was shot down near
Volnovakha in the Donetsk region
of Ukraine on March 4.
Russian Air Force Mi-8AMTSh
RF-91165/‘58 Blue’ was shot down
on March 5 in the Mykolaiv region
of Ukraine.
A Russian Air Force Su-30
crashed in a field at Ochakiv,
Ukraine, on March 5.
An image released on March 5
showed the wreckage of a Russian
Air Force Su-34 north of Cherniyiv.
A Russian Air Force Su-30M was
shot down near Mykolaiv, Ukraine,
on March 5. The pilot ejected.
A Russian Air Force Mi-24 or
Mi-35 was shot down near Kyiv
on March 5.
Russian Air Force Mi-35M
RF-13017 was shot down near
Mykolaiv on March 5.
An unspecified Russian Air
Force helicopter was shot down
on March 5 near Odessa, Ukraine.
An unknown Russian Air Force
fighter was shot down on March
5 near Shapaevka, Mykolaiv.
Russian Air Force Su-34 RF-
81879/‘24 Red’ crashed on March
5 near Chernihiv, Ukraine.
Russian Air Force Mi-24P
RF-94966 was shot down in the
Kyiv region on March 6. Both crew
were killed.
Russian Air Force Su-34
RF-95070 was shot down over
Kharkiv on March 6.
A Ukrainian Air Force Mi-24
was shot down on March 8 near
Kulagynci, Kyiv oblast, killing
both crew.
Russian Air Force Su-25M
RF-91969/‘10 Red’ was shot down
on March 9 in Ukraine. The pilot
was killed.
Ukrainian Air Force Su-25M1
‘31 Blue’ crashed on March 10
near Nova Kakhovka, Kherson,
Ukraine.
A Russian Air Force Su-34
crashed on March 10 near
Kozhan-Gorodok, Luninets
district, Brest region, Belarus. Both
pilots ejected safely.
Russian Air Force Su-25BM RF-
90965 was struck by a MANPADS
during a mission over Ukraine on
March 12, but returned to its base,
although extensively damaged.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 7
 IOWA ANG RETIRES ‘FREE BIRD’ KC-135R
THE IOWA Air National Guard
(ANG) 185th Air Refueling Wing
carried out the final flight of
KC-135R serial 57-2606, when the
Stratotanker was flown from Sioux
City, Iowa, to Davis-Monthan AFB,
Arizona, on March 1.
It will be preserved there for
long-term storage by the 309th
Aerospace Maintenance and
Regeneration Group. The aircraft
is the first of 15 KC-135Rs that the
US Air Force will retire during
2022. The Stratotanker had seen
more than 63 years of service with
Iowa Air National Guard/185th Air Refueling Wing KC-135R serial 57-2606 taxies out at Sioux City, Iowa,
for its final flight to Davis-Monthan AFB, Arizona, on March 1 USAF/Senior Master Sgt Vincent De Groot
SIX MORE CHINOOKS ON
ORDER FOR SPECIAL OPS
AN ADDITIONAL six MH-47G
Block II Chinooks have been
ordered for USSOCOM – US
Special Operations Command.
The US Department of Defense
announced on March 2 that
Boeing had been awarded
a $194,628,000 contract on
February 25, representing a
firm-fixed-price modification
to an existing delivery order, to
procure the six helicopters.
They will be remanufactured
from existing airframes. No date
was announced for completion
GERMANY SELECTS F-35A AS TORNADO REPLACEMENT
IN A surprise move, German
Defence Minister Christine
Lambrecht announced on March
14 that “having looked through
all the available options”, the
8 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
the USAF and had been the wing’s
‘flagship’ since it received special
tail markings in late-2020. The
markings, which depicted a giant
bat, mimicked those worn by
the squadron’s F-16Cs and were
applied by the ANG Paint Facility
at Sioux Gateway Airport to
celebrate the 174th Air Refueling
Squadron’s 75th Anniversary.
The jet also received nose art
that included the name Free Bird
and silhouettes of the seven
aircraft models flown by the
squadron since 1946.
of the contract. This is the
second recent contract award for
delivery of rebuilt MH-47G Block
IIs to USSOCOM.
A previous deal, also for six of
these helicopters, was awarded
on November 24, 2021 – see
‘Boeing to supply six more
MH-47Gs’, February, p14. With
the latest award, Boeing is now
under contract with USSOCOM
for 36 MH-47G Block IIs. To date,
the company has delivered five
of these, while deliveries of the
new order will begin in 2024.
Lockheed Martin F-35A Lightning
II will after all be purchased by
Germany. It had previously been
discounted as a contender for the
country’s new fighter requirement.
The KC-135R was chosen to be
the first retirement due to its age
and flight time, which totaled
nearly 25,000 hours and almost
10,000 landings.
Additionally, it had not yet
been upgraded with the Block 45
avionics package.
Serial 57-2606 had served
with the 174th Air Refueling
Squadron since 2007, when it was
transferred from the Washington
Air National Guard’s 141st Air
Refueling Wing at Fairchild AFB
near Spokane.
LAST MISSION FOR KANSAS
SQUADRON’S STRATOTANKER
IN PREPARATION for its
transition to the KC-46A, the
22nd Air Refueling Wing’s (ARW)
349th Air Refueling Squadron
(ARS) conducted its final KC-135R
flight at McConnell AFB, Kansas,
on March 4, 2022.
The squadron’s 18-month
airframe transition from the
Stratotanker to the Pegasus
began on January 1, 2022 and
will be complete in mid-2023.
The 22nd ARW’s 344th ARS
became the first USAF unit to
receive the Pegasus on January
A total of 35 F-35As will be
acquired to replace the Panavia
Tornado, in addition to around 15
electronic warfare variants of the
Eurofighter Typhoon. It had been
Originally delivered as a KC-135A
in February 1959, serial 57-2606
was converted to KC-135E
configuration in 1983 and
later received the large CFM56
turbofan engines associated with
the KC-135R variant in 2004.
The 174th received a
replacement for its retired jet
when serial 62-3549 arrived from
McConnell AFB, Kansas, one week
earlier.
Tom Kaminski
25, 2019, and had taken 20 of the
aircraft on strength by the end
of that year.
Although both squadrons
will operate the Pegasus, the
Wing’s 350th ARS will continue
to fly the KC-135 for several years
before it too transitions to the
Pegasus. In the interim, it will
increase its Primary Assigned
Aircraft (PAA) from a dozen to
14 aircraft.
The wing will eventually
operate as many as 36 KC-46As.
Tom Kaminski
expected that Germany would buy
the Boeing F/A-18E/F Super Hornet
and EA-18G Growler to replace
its Tornado fleet, which is due to
begin retirement from 2025.
 COAST GUARD JAYHAWKS FOR NEW ORLEANS
AS PART of a plan to transition
to a single rotary wing fleet, the
Coast Guard will assign MH-60T
Jayhawks to Air Station New
Orleans. Considered a medium
range recovery helicopter, the
Jayhawks will replace the station’s
MH-65D short range recovery
Dolphins. The transition from the
MH-65D to the MH-60T will begin
this summer.
In support of that change, a pair
of Jayhawks from the US Coast
Aviation Training Center Mobile
in Alabama paid a visit to Air
Station New Orleans on January
US Coast Guard personnel prepare to tow MH-60T tail number 6049 visiting from the US Coast Aviation Training Center Mobile in Alabama, into the hangar at Air Station New Orleans, Louisiana,
on January 23, 2022, for hangar fit check. The Jayhawk was the seventh produced by the Coast Guard Aviation Logistics Center in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, by converting former US Navy
SH-60Fs to the MH-60T configuration US Coast Guard
DEATH DEALERS’ LAST FLIGHT
THE US Army’s 4th Battalion,
2nd Aviation Regiment, at Camp
Humphreys, South Korea, moved
one step closer to completing its
transition to the latest AH-64E
Version 6 model of the Apache
Guardian on February 16, 2022. Its
final AH-64D flight was conducted
from Desiderio Army Airfield at
Camp Humphreys.
Known as the ‘Death Dealers’, the
attack reconnaissance battalion
is the first unit based outside
the continental US (OCONUS) to
receive the V6 model. Fielding of
LIGHTNING TRIO ARRIVES AT LAKENHEATH
A FURTHER three US Air Force
F-35A Lightning IIs were delivered
to the UK on February 10 to join
the 48th Fighter Wing’s 495th
Fighter Squadron ‘Valkyries’ at RAF
23, 2022, when they were used
in towing exercises and were
fit checked inside the hangar.
Located aboard Naval Air Station
Joint Reserve Base New Orleans,
the unit currently operates five
MH-65Ds and is the Coast Guard’s
busiest all-helicopter search and
rescue unit. The Coast Guard had
previously transitioned Air Station
Borinquen, Puerto Rico, from the
MH-65D to the MH-60T in 2021.
The Coast Guard originally
received 42 HH-60J Jayhawks that
underwent progressive upgrades
resulting in the MH-60T model.
the AH-64Es began in September
when crew training began and on
November 7 the first examples were
delivered to Osan Air Base aboard
a USAF C-17A. Once the Apaches
were re-assembled they were flown
to Camp Humphreys.
When the final AH-64D flight took
place, the battalion had received 20
of its planned complement of 24
AH-64Es; each of the three attack
reconnaissance companies will
operate eight AH-64Es.
The V6 features an improved
cockpit map display, multiple
Lakenheath, Suffolk.
They are 19-5484 ‘LN’/‘48 FW’, 19-
5485 ‘LN’, and 19-5486 ‘LN’, which
arrived as ‘Retro 31/32/33’ direct
from Fort Worth, Texas. Support
Although three examples have
been written off, the service’s
Aviation Logistics Center (ALC) in
Elizabeth City, North Carolina, has
converted at least seven former
US Navy SH-60F Seahawks to
Jayhawk configuration.
Plans call for continued
conversion of Seahawks and
the service’s budget request for
Fiscal Year 2022 included $83m to
continue that program.
In January 2021, the Coast
Guard ordered the first of 31 new
production MH-60T hulls from
Sikorsky. The service expects to
upgrades to the Modernized Target
Acquisition Designation Sight/Pilot
Night Vision System, and third-
generation Day Sensor Assembly
– which doubles the sensor’s field of
view and increases resolution. Color
imagery improves target detection
and identification. Additionally,
Link 16 communications, Manned-
Unmanned Teaming Expanded
(MUMT-X) software permits Apache
pilots to directly control army
unmanned aerial systems and
receive UAS video in the cockpit.
Tom Kaminski
was provided by KC-135Rs 62-3578
‘Blue 81’, 63-8879 ‘Blue 82’, and
58-0100 ‘Blue 83’. They join the first
four, which arrived on December
15 – see March, p10.
take delivery of the first of these in
early 2023 with delivery of around
one each month to the ALC
occurring later that year.
The ALC will assemble the hulls
and populate them with dynamic
components including engines
and rotors as well as wiring and
avionics, all of which will be
completed at the ALC. Although
the new hulls will be designed
with a 20,000-hour service life, the
ALC is providing the current fleet
with a service life extension that
adds another 10,000 hours to the
airframes. Tom Kaminski
HITRON’S
DOLPHINS
DELIVERED
THE US Coast Guard’s Helicopter
Interdiction Tactical Squadron
(HITRON) received its tenth
upgraded MH-65E helicopter on
March 1, 2022, when tail number
6554 was delivered to the unit’s
Cecil Airport base in Jacksonville,
Florida. This completed the
squadron’s transition from the
earlier MH-65D variant.
The Dolphin was the 38th of
98 in the fleet to have service life
extension and avionics upgrades.
On February 10, HITRON
received its ninth MH-65E when
tail number 6501 arrived at Cecil
Airport; a day earlier, number
6518 arrived from Elizabeth City,
North Carolina. Tom Kaminski
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 9
 COD OSPREYS ACHIEVE INITIAL
OPERATIONAL CAPABILITY
THE US Navy has announced
that the carrier onboard delivery
(COD) variant of the Bell-Boeing
Osprey tiltrotor formally achieved
initial operational capability (IOC)
on February 18, 2022, following
the successful completion of its
eight-month maiden deployment.
The declaration of the IOC for the
CMV-22B was actually made on
December 14, 2021.
The Osprey’s maiden deployment
was conducted as part of Carrier
Air Wing 2 (CVW-2) on board the
aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson
Above: US Navy CMV-22Bs operated by Fleet Logistics Multi-mission Squadron 30 (VRM-30) Detachment 1 taxi to the Squadron’s parking area
after returning home to NAS North Island in California on February 12, 2022. The return of these Ospreys marked the completion of the squadron’s
eight-month deployment with the USS Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group and Carrier Air Wing 2 (CVW-2). The deployment was also the first for the
F-35Cs from Strike Fighter Squadron 147 (VFA-147) and the CMV-22B US Navy/MC2 Olympia O McCoy
(CVN 70) beginning on August 2,
2021. During this initial tour, Fleet
Logistic Multi-Mission Squadron
30 (VRM-30) ‘Titans’ Detachment 1
operated a pair of CMV-22Bs that
chalked up a mission completion
rate of 98% and a mission capable
rate of 75%. The ‘Titans’ returned to
NAS North Island in California on
February 12, 2022.
According to US Marine Corps
Col. Brian Taylor, V-22 joint
program manager, the CMV-22B
“went from first flight to first
deployment in 19 months.”
Differences between the
CMV-22B and the MV-22B version
operated by Marine Corps include
a 50% increase in internal fuel
in redesigned forward sponson
tanks and two additional wing
tanks. The increase permits the
Osprey to transport up to 6,000lb
of cargo and personnel over
1,150nm. The US Navy has already
accepted 14 Ospreys against
orders for 44 of the tiltorotors. The
CMV-22B is expected to achieve
full operational capability in 2023.
Tom Kaminski
FMS ISR
AIRCRAFT
ORDER FOR
UNKNOWN
CUSTOMER
L-3 COMMUNICATIONS
Integrated Systems of
Greenville, Texas, has been
awarded a $26,020,883 cost-
plus fixed-fee contract for the
modification and delivery of an
intelligence, surveillance and
reconnaissance (ISR) aircraft to
an unidentified operator. The
Foreign Military Sales (FMS)
contract was awarded on
March 10 by the US Air Force’s
645th Aeronautical Systems
Group, Wright-Patterson Air
Force Base, Ohio.
The contract provides for all
labor and material necessary
to complete the modification,
installation, test and data
requirements. Work will be
performed in Greenville and
is expected to be completed
on May 31, 2024. This contract
is a 100% FMS deal and is
the result of a sole-source
acquisition but no indication
was given as to the end user
of the aircraft.

500TH C-130J DELIVERY

Above: US Air Force C-130J-30 19-5934 marked the 500th Super Hercules delivered by Lockheed Martin. It joined the West Virginia Air National Guard’s 130th Airlift Wing/130th Airlift Squadron
‘Mountaineers in Green’ at McLaughlin Air National Guard Base in Charleston, West Virginia, on March 14. This was the second factory-new example delivered to the unit and the seventh of eight
C-130Js overall that are replacing the Wing’s legacy C-130H-3s. The unit is expected to be fully mission capable with the new aircraft by June 2023 Lockheed Martin

10 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

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 RNOAF P-8A ARRIVES IN NORWAY

P-8A Poseidon 9583 ‘Viking’ has become the first to be delivered to the Royal Norwegian Air Force (RNoAF). The aircraft is seen here after arriving
at Evenes Air Station at 2130hrs on February 24, following a ferry flight from Seattle, Washington, to join 333 Squadron Forsvaret/Philip P Linder

UAE AGREES DEAL FOR CHINESE L-15

A DEAL was agreed between
the UAE Ministry of Defense
(MoD) and CATIC (China National
Aero-Technology Import & Export
Corporation) on February 23 for the
purchase of 12 Hongdu L-15s, with
options for another 36. The UAE Air
Force and Air Defense (UAEAF&AD)
becomes the second export
customer for the L-15 (Chinese
designation JL-10 Falcon) after
Zambia acquired the type in 2016.
Although the UAE MoD statement
did not reveal their role, it is
thought the initial 12 will replace
the MB339A (NAT) aircraft of the
UAEAF&AD Al Fursan aerobatic
team. This would make sense, as
there are plans to retire the Italian
trainer by the end of 2022, which
would give the pilots time to train
on the L-15s for a performance at
the 2023 Dubai Airshow.
If exercised, the 36 optioned
L-15s, suggests the UAEAF&AD is
looking to fill the requirement for
an advanced jet trainer role that
has existed since the Hawk Mk 63s
were retired in 2012. Initially, the
Finmeccanica T-346 was selected
in 2009 to replace them but was
subsequently cancelled while
the Pilatus PC-21 was purchased
instead. More recently, the UAE
has decided, along with Qatar, that
it needs a lead-in combat trainer
for the introduction to fighter
fundamentals role.
His Excellency Tariq Abdul Rahim
Al Hosani, CEO of the Tawazun
Economic Council, said the UAE’s
military modernization policy now
places the emphasis on diversifying
weapons sources. “We have reached
the final stages of negotiations
with the Chinese side and a final
agreement will be concluded soon,”
he explained.
Two L-15s appeared at the Dubai
Airshow last November, having
been in the UAE since October 20,
so UAE personnel could evaluate
the aircraft. CATIC said recent
improvements to the L-15 include
an embedded tactical training
system, a mission planning system,
a datalink to work scenarios with
students flying the jet, along with
a much-improved head-up display
with a wider screen.” Alan Warnes

HERITAGE F-16 CELEBRATES

AETC’S 80TH ANNIVERSARY

Above: US Air Force F-16CM 90-0768 ‘LF’/‘310TH FS’ from the 56th Fighter Wing’s 310th Fighter Squadron (FS) ‘Tophats’ at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona, during a sortie from the base on February 16.
The aircraft sports a new Heritage paint scheme, to celebrate Air Education and Training Command’s (AETC) 80th anniversary. The markings replicate the scheme worn by 310th FS 42-29091 P-47D
Thunderbolt ‘Passionate Patsy’ during World War Two USAF/SrA Leala Marquez

12 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

B-52’S DAY-LONG SORTIE TO THE MIDDLE EAST
ONE OF the US Air Force B-52H
Stratofortresses deployed to the
UK for a Bomber Task Force-
Europe rotation at RAF Fairford,
Gloucestershire, undertook an
ultra-long-range sortie to the
Middle East on February 14,
during which it was airborne for
23hrs 25mins.
Initially, two aircraft – 61-0039
‘MT’/‘The Warrior’ (callsign ‘Chief
11’) and 61-0018 ‘MT’/‘Night
Train’ (‘Chief 12’), from the 5th
Bomb Wing’s 69th Expeditionary
Bomb Squadron ‘Knighthawks’
– departed for the long-range
presence patrol mission, taking off
from Fairford around 2326hrs on
February 13. After skirting around
Spain and Portugal, they crossed
the Strait of Gibraltar and into the
Mediterranean Sea, where they
AERO’S PRE-SERIES L-39NG FLIES AGAIN
AERO VODOCHODY’S second
L-39NG, pre-series aircraft 7004
took to the air again on January
6, after being laid up for nearly
a year to undergo avionics and
ergonomic improvements. The
work, which included shortening
the pilot’s control stick and
moving the forward console
closer to the pilot, was introduced
into the aircraft following
feedback from aircrew and
potential customers. With factory
test pilots Vytautas Požela and
Vladimir Továrek on board, the
flight lasted about 50 minutes.
L-39NG 7004/0476 took to the air again on January 6 after being laid up for improvements for nearly a year Alan Warnes
met up with three KC-135s for air-
to-air refueling. However, Chief 12
then had an engine problem and
returned to land back at Fairford
around 0930hrs on February 14.
This left Chief 11 to head to the
Middle East alone, being joined by
a pair of RAF Typhoon FGR4s from
the detachment at RAF Akrotiri,
Cyprus, en route.
While in the United States Central
Command area of responsibility,
the B-52 was escorted at various
times by two US Marine Corps
F/A-18 Hornets, four Royal Saudi
Air Force F-15SAs, two Israeli Air
Force F-15s, two Egyptian Air
Force F-16Cs and a pair of Royal
Jordanian Air Force F-16AM/BMs.
The Stratofortresses then returned
to the UK and finally landed back at
Fairford at around 2252hrs.
Since making its first flight on
December 9, 2019, 7004 had flown
for nearly 18 months painted only
in primer but is now sporting
a new grey scheme. After the
successful bedding down of the
improvements, the aircraft will join
the flight-test program while the
prototype 7001 (0475) is now being
converted into a light attack aircraft.
To date, only the Vietnamese
Air Force has bought the L-39NG,
ordering 12 of the light attack
variant, while Ghana has a
requirement for six – also the
light attack versions but, unlike
Above: Egyptian Air Force F-16C Block 52s 9753 and 9765 fly in formation with US Air Force
B-52H Stratofortress 61-0039 ‘Chief 11’ during its long-range presence patrol from the UK to
the Middle East on February 14 USAF/Airman 1st Class Zachary Wright
Vietnam, they will be configured
with western avionics, not
Russian. Ghana’s Parliament gave
the green light to an €111.4m
purchase of six L-39NGs on
December 17, but there are still
several hurdles to overcome,
including financing, which put
an end to an earlier Senegalese
deal. Austria, Czech Republic,
Hungary and Slovakia, which all
have flying training requirements,
are monitoring progress of the
L-39NG program, which was
launched in 2015.
Alan Warnes
SIKORSKY
GAINS INITIAL
ISRAELI CH-53K
PRODUCTION
CONTRACT
SIKORSKY AIRCRAFT has been
awarded a Foreign Military Sales
contract to manufacture the first
four CH-53K King Stallions for the
Israeli Air Force. The deal, worth
more than $372m, was awarded
by US Naval Air Systems Command
on February 15. It is a modification
to a previously awarded contract
and exercises an option for the
production and delivery of four
low-rate initial production Lot 6 CH-
53K heavy-lift helicopters, as well as
associated aircraft programmatic
and logistical support. First
deliveries are planned for 2025 and
work is expected to be completed
in November of that year.
Israel plans to order 12, with
options on a further six. These
will replace the elderly Israeli Air
Force CH-53D Yasur aircraft, which,
although upgraded, have been in
service for more than 50 years.
Israel’s Defense Minister, Benny
Gantz, first announced selection of
the CH-53K for the requirement on
February 25, 2021.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 13
 PHILIPPINES
TO ACQUIRE
FOURTH BANGLADESH AIR FORCE
ANOTHER C-130J ARRIVES IN KURMITOLA
A FOURTH former Royal Air Force refuelling stops in Cairo, Egypt Cambridge on August 23, 2019,
32 BLACK C-130J Hercules C5 has been
delivered to the Bangladesh Air
and Muscat, Oman, it arrived in
Bangladesh the following day
followed by 99-5482/S3-AGF
(ex-ZH884) on May 18, 2020, and
HAWKS IN Force (BAF) by Marshall Aerospace at BAF Base Bangabandhu in 99-5480/S3-AGG (ex ZH882) on

FOUR YEARS and Defence Group (MADG). The

aircraft, 99-5485/S3-AGJ (c/n 5485,
Kurmitola, Dhaka, where it was
greeted by a water cannon salute.
September 16, 2020. The fifth
aircraft will be ZH883, for which a
LOCKHEED MARTIN’S Polish ex RAF/ZH887), left the MADG In total, the BAF are acquiring five new BAF serial is expected to be
subsidiary, PZL Mielec, signed facility at Cambridge Airport on ex-RAF C-130Js. The three earlier 99-5481/S3-AG-? It is being
a contract with the Philippine February 19 on its delivery flight, deliveries comprised 99-5479/ prepared by MADG at Cambridge
Department of National flown by a BAF ferry crew. After S3-AGE (ex-ZH881) which left for delivery later this year.
Defence on February 22
for the manufacture of 32
additional Sikorsky S-70i Black
Hawks. The last of the 32 are
scheduled for delivery by
2026, considerably increasing
the operational capacity of
the Philippine Air Force (PAF)
to carry out search-and-
rescue, humanitarian and Above: C-130J Hercules C5, 99-5485/S3-AGJ, at BAF Base Bangabandhu in Kurmitola, Dhaka, after arrival on February 20 Marshall ADG
disaster-relief missions, as
well as the ability to transport
troops across the country.
The first batch of five Black
NEW KING AIR 360ER FOR SRI LANKA
US ARMY Contracting Command published on the US government’s RDR-1700B synthetic aperture radar
Hawks will be delivered in awarded Textron Aviation a Foreign federal contract opportunities with LN-251 inertial navigation
2023, followed by a second Military Sales contract worth website by the US Army. This system. It should also have a
batch of ten in 2024, a third more than $11.4m on February specified procurement of up to two dual side-facing mission system
batch of ten in 2025 and a 14. The contract is for a single King Air 360ER Extended Range console for two operators and be
final batch of seven in 2026. new commercial Beechcraft King (B300) aircraft equipped with the equipped with a full motion video
All 32 helicopters will be Air 360ER aircraft for Sri Lankan ProLine Fusion cockpit and in a line-of-sight tactical data link with
delivered to the PAF’s 205th Air Force (SLAF) service, with an commercial maritime patrol MANET capability (airborne) and
Tactical Helicopter Wing in a estimated completion date of aircraft configuration. Cobham Flexcomm RT-7000 PMR
universal utility configuration. September 26, 2025. Specified equipment fit includes tactical radio. All equipment is to be
Each helicopter will be Plans for the acquisition were a FLIR Star Safire 380-HD electro- non-developmental/commercial
equipped with a weather originally revealed on February optical/infrared (EO/IR) sensor off-the-shelf. Training of pilots and
radar, digital map, seats for 26, 2021, when a sources-sought installed in a radome, pod or technicians in the US and Sri Lanka
soldiers in the cabin and a synopsis of the requirement was extended nose, plus a Telephonics is also to be provided.
load hook with a 9,000lb
(4,082kg) capacity. Pilots and
ground crews will receive
training in the United States FIRST JASDF GLOBAL HAWK
TOUCHES DOWN IN JAPAN
and the Philippines.
The Filipino contract is the
largest single order for S-70i
Black Hawk helicopters for
PZL Mielec since the start
of their production in 2009,
and the contract itself was
signed less than two months
after PZL Mielec completed
deliveries of an initial 16 of the
type to the PAF in December
2021. With the additional
helicopters in place, the PAF
can finally retire its elderly
The first Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) RQ-4B Global Hawk (serial 23-6003) arriving at Misawa
fleet of UH-1H Hueys. Air Base, Japan, on March 14, after an 18.7hr delivery flight from Palmdale, California JASDF

14 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

MORE JGSDF OSPREYS DELIVERED
Above: Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) V-22B Ospreys 91706 ‘JG-1706’ and 91709 ‘JG-1709’ are shown after being unloaded at Marine
Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan, on February 22 following shipping from the US. This was the third batch to be delivered to Japan, although it has
not been confirmed whether there were more than these two aircraft in this batch USMC/Cpl Calah Thompson
AH-6I ORDER FOR THAI ARMY
BOEING HAS been awarded
a Foreign Military Sales (FMS)
contract to provide AH-6
helicopters to the Royal Thai Army.
The $103,774,884 deal, awarded by
US Army Contracting Command
on February 18, is a modification
to an earlier contract. Deliveries
will take place through 2024 and
the estimated completion date is
scheduled for May 30, 2025.
The deal has been financed by
fiscal year 2010 FMS funds. The
US Defense Security Cooperation
agency (DSCA) announced on
September 24, 2019, that US State
JMSDF US-2 PARTICIPATES
IN COPE NORTH 2022
Above: Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) ShinMaywa US-2 amphibian 9904 (from 71 Kokutai at Iwakuni Air Station) at Andersen Air Base,
Guam, on February 10. The aircraft deployed to Andersen to participate in Exercise Cope North 2022 USAF/Airman 1st Class Yosselin Perla
Department approval had been
granted for Thailand to purchase
eight AH-6i light attack and
reconnaissance helicopters and
related equipment at an estimated
cost of $400 million. US Congress
was notified of the possible sale on
the same day.
At the time, the DSCA said that
weapons included in the proposed
deal would be 50 AGM-114R
Hellfire missiles, 500 Hydra 70
rockets, 200 Advance Precision Kill
Weapon System (APKWS) rockets,
ten M134 mini guns, four GAU-19/B
.50 Cal machine guns, ten M260
rocket launchers and ten M299
Longbow Hellfire launchers.
The AH-6is will replace the Royal
Thai Army’s current fleet of seven
Bell AH-1F Cobras. As part of a
broader military modernization
effort, the helicopters will provide
light attack reconnaissance
for close air support to special
operations forces, Stryker infantry
soldiers and border guard units.
Thailand has become the second
customer for the AH-6i, 23 of
24 on order have so far been
delivered to the Saudi Arabian
National Guard
AW139S ACT
AS STOP-GAP
FOR ROYAL
MALAYSIAN
AIR FORCE
TWO LEONARDO AW139s
have been delivered to the
Royal Malaysian Air Force
(RMAF) as an interim solution
to increase readiness and
enhance capability. The RMAF
announced the helicopters’
arrival on January 21, although
they had been delivered in
December on lease from local
company Weststar Aviation
Services. The aircraft will be
operated in RMAF markings by
3 Squadron at No 6 Air Base,
Butterworth. The RMAF is also
seeking to lease a further
four similar helicopters early
next year.
They will act as stop-gap
replacements for the Sikorsky
S-61A-4 Nuri fleet, which was
grounded after an accident on
August 2, 2019. Subsequently, on
January 7, 2020, Gen Datuk Seri
Ackbal Abdul Samad (Chief of the
RMAF at the time) announced
during a press conference in
Kuala Lumpur that the Nuris
would be grounded indefinitely,
due to high maintenance and
operating costs, along with
difficulty in obtaining spares. On
October 15, 2020, a local tender
was issued inviting
offers of leased helicopters to
replace them.
Bids closed on December
17 of that year and, following
evaluation of the tenders,
on November 2, 2021, the
RMAF Chief announced (when
speaking to the media at
Kuantan Air Base) that the
AW139 had been selected as the
preferred option – providing
a short-term solution pending
purchase of 24 more permanent
replacement helicopters in the
long-term.
An alternative bid from an
unspecified company offered
second-hand Black Hawks.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 15
 BOEING’S USMC AV-8Bs DEPLOY TO NORWAY
LOYAL FOR EXERCISE COLD RESPONSE ’22
WINGMAN
DESIGNATED
MQ-28A
GHOST BAT
DURING A ceremony at Royal
Australian Air Force (RAAF)
Base Amberley in Queensland
on March 20, Australia’s
Minister for Defence, Peter
Dutton, announced that the
Australian-built Boeing Air
Power Teaming System/Loyal
Wingman uncrewed combat
air vehicle has been officially
designated the MQ-28A Ghost
Above: Specially marked US Marine Corps squadron commander’s AV-8B Harrier II 164554 ‘WP-01’ assigned to Marine Attack Squadron 223
Bat. Dutton also confirmed that (VMA-223) ‘Bulldogs’ arrives at Bodø Air Station, Norway, on March 3. The aircraft was one of ten from the Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point,
it had successfully completed North Carolina-based unit arriving to participate in Exercise Cold Response ’22 (CR22), which ran from March 14-31. Other USMC assets involved
its three test flight series. in the CR22 exercise were KC-130Js, MV-22Bs, AH-1Zs and UH-1Ys USMC/Cpl Adam Henke
RAAF Head of Air Force
Capability, Air Vice-Marshal
Robert Denney, explained
that “this unique name aligns
US APPROVES MH-60R SALE TO SPAIN
US STATE Department approval $950m, including support and system (APKWS) II guidance
well with the intent of the has been granted for the potential related equipment. US Congress sections, all up rounds, 2.75in
aircraft. Ghost Bat reflects Foreign Military Sale (FMS) of eight was notified of the possible sale on rockets and GAU-21 crew
the intended mission and Sikorsky MH-60R multi-mission the same day. served guns. Other equipment
operational capabilities of helicopters to the government of The weapons in the deal would comprise eight Link 16
the aircraft. A ghost bat is an Spain. The US Defense Security would potentially include 32 Multifunctional Information
Australian hunter which uses Cooperation Agency (DSCA) AGM-114R(N) Hellfire missiles, Distribution Systems Joint Tactical
sophisticated multi-spectral formally announced the approval two Hellfire II captive air training Radio Systems (MIDS JTRS) and
sensors to detect, hunt and kill on March 15, stating that the FMS missiles (CATM), 100 WGU-59/B four Airborne Low Frequency
prey both in the air and on the deal had an estimated value of advanced precision kill weapon Sonars (ALFSs).
ground. They team together in
large numbers to confuse and
overwhelm their adversaries
and are native to Australia.”
FIRST NEW PRODUCTION WEDGETAIL
While the RAAF Loyal
Wingman development
project name will be phased
FOR RAF TAKES MAIDEN FLIGHT
out in favour of the MQ-28A
designation, Boeing’s product
name for global customers will
remain the Airpower Teaming
System.
During 2022, the program
will continue to accelerate the
development and testing of the
MQ-28A Ghost Bat, with a focus
on sensor and missionisation
capabilities to deliver on
RAAF commitments. These
requirements will continue
to expand as Boeing moves
towards the aim of delivering Above: Boeing 737-700 N576JK (c/n 66840/9103) taxiing in on March 15, 2022, at Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington, after completing its
an operational capability for maiden flight from Renton, Washington, via Moses Lake. The new production aircraft will be converted to the third and final E-7A Wedgetail AEW1
for the UK’s Royal Air Force (RAF), following on from two second-hand aircraft that are currently being converted in the UK by STS Aviation in
the ADF. Birmingham in the West Midlands. The RAF had originally been planning to acquire five aircraft, but it was announced in the Defence Command
Paper published on March 22 that the order had subsequently been reduced to just three examples Joe Walker

16 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

 RECENT LOSSES
A US Marine Corps MV-22B Osprey assigned to VMM-261 prepares to depart from Royal Norwegian Air Force Base Bodø, Norway, during Exercise Cold Response 2022 on March 16. One of VMM-
261’s Ospreys was lost in a crash during the exercise on March 18, killing all four crew USMC/Lance Cpl Elias E Pimentel III
• South Sudanese Air Force An-26
serial number SP-402 was badly
damaged on February 8 when the
port wing snapped off outboard
of the No 1 engine while landing
at South Sudan’s Agok Airstrip. No
injuries were reported.
• ATAC Mirage F1CR registration
number N633AX crashed near
Buckeye, about 30 miles west of
Phoenix, Arizona, on February 10,
during a sortie from Luke Air Force
Base. The pilot ejected safely.
• Myanmar Air Force A-5C Fantan
serial number 1529 crashed into
a Lake on February 16, during
a mission from Tada-U Air Base,
Mandalay. The pilot was killed.
• A Syrian Air Force Mi-14 crashed
on February 17 while attempting
an emergency landing on a steep
hillside in Al-Rumaymiyah, Latakia
Province. The two pilots were killed
and two others on board injured.
• Islamic Republic of Iran Air
Force F-5F Tiger II serial number
3-7168/50695 from the 21st
Tactical Fighter Squadron crashed
on February 21, after a technical
malfunction over Tabriz. Both crew
were killed.
• Venezuelan Military Aviation
Mi-17V-5 serial number 00764 was
written-off in a crash on February
22 in Pavia, west of Barquisimeto,
Lara State. Two crew were killed
and the other two were rescued
with serious burns.
• Two US Army UH-60L Black
Hawks, one serialled 01-26882,
from the Utah Army National
Guard/2-211th AVN crashed
while attempting to land near
the Snowbird Ski Resort in Little
Cottonwood Canyon, Mineral
Basin, Utah. None of the crew
members were seriously injured
but the Black Hawks were
damaged substantially.
• Croman Corp/US Navy S-61N
registration number N615CK
crashed on February 22 while
operating under contract to the
US Navy north of the Pacific Missile
Range Facility (PMRF) Barking
Sands in Hawaii. All four on board
were killed.
• Russian Air Force An-26 serial
number RF-36074 from the 535th
Independent Mixed Aviation
Regiment crashed on February
24 near Ostrogozhsk in Russia’s
Voronezh region. All the crew
members were killed.
• A UAE Air Force and Air Defence
RQ-1E Predator XP was shot
down on February 25 over Jawf
province, Yemen, by the Yemen
Army, using a surface-to-air missile.
• A Chinese People’s Liberation
Army Air Force Shanaxi Y-8
crashed into the South China Sea
on March 1, southwest of Sanya in
China's Hainan Province.
• Romanian Air Force MiG-21MF
LanceR-C serial number 5913
from the 861st Combat Aviation
Squadron crashed on March 2 in
Romania’s Constanta county. The
pilot was killed.
• Romanian Air Force IAR330L
Puma serial number 57 from Esc
572 Elicoptere crashed on March
2, about seven miles from Mihail
Kogălniceanu Air Base, while
searching for the above LanceR-C.
All seven on board were killed.
• A US Marine Corps F/A-18D
Hornet from VMFA(AW)-533
crashed on March 3, near
Halfmoon Island, Beaufort County,
South Carolina, following an
in-flight fire during a routine
training mission from Marine Corps
Air Station Beaufort. Both crew
members ejected safely.
• Royal Thai Air Force F-16A
serial number 10331, from 103
Squadron, crashed on March 8 in
Chatturat, Chaiyaphum, after a
technical malfunction. The pilot
ejected safely.
• An unidentified Pakistan Air
Force jet aircraft crashed on March
9 near Mian Channu. The pilot
ejected safely.
• Royal Canadian Air Force CH-
149 Cormorant serial number
149903 crashed and rolled over
onto its side on March 10 during
a hover training flight at 9 Wing,
Gander. All six crew members
were injured.
• An unidentified Sudanese Air
Force aircraft crashed on March 10
at El-Obeid, following a technical
malfunction during a training
flight. The two crew were unhurt.
• An Indian Air Force HAL Chetak
crashed on March 11 in Jammu
and Kashmir. One pilot was killed
and the other seriously injured.
• Republic of China Air Force
Mirage 2000-5EI serial number
2017 crashed into the sea off
Chihang Air Base on March 14.
The pilot ejected safely and was
subsequently rescued.
• Turkmenistan Air Force M-346
serial number ‘06 Blue’/CSX55268
crashed in Italy near Lake Como on
March 16. Both pilots ejected but
one was killed.
• Honduran Air Force UH-1H
Iroquois serial number FAH-953
crashed and burst into flames in a
field at Gracias a Dios on March 17.
All three crew were injured.
• A US Marine Corps MV-22B
Osprey from VMM-261 crashed
near Gråtådalen, Beiarn, Norway,
during Exercise Cold Response
2022 on March 18. All four crew
members were killed.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 17
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 WAR REPORT // RUSSIA INVADES UKRAINE
Holding off
the Bear
Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, after months of
posturing at the nation’s border. Combat Aircraft Journal
highlights the key events of the opening weeks of the conflict
O
n February 24, President
Vladimir Putin ordered the
Russian military forces to
launch an invasion of Ukraine,
just days after signing an
edict formally recognising
two proxy states in the east of the country
– the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s
Republics – as independent regions, which
he said would be supported militarily
through a “peacekeeping” force.
Putin stated: “I made a decision to
conduct a special military operation.
Its goal is to protect people who have
been abused by the genocide of the Kyiv
20 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
the international community, with US
Above: Despite being
President Joe Biden saying: “When the the superior power
in terms of numbers
history of this era is written, Putin’s choice and technology, the
to make a totally unjustifiable war on Russian Aerospace
Ukraine will have left Russia weaker and Forces are suffering
significant losses
the rest of the world stronger.” during its campaign
Since then, the world has essentially over Ukraine.
moved to ‘cancel’ Russia. Many Western Suppression of enemy
air defense (SEAD/
nations and their global allies have DEAD) by Russian
imposed heavy and hard-hitting economic Su-34s (pictured)
sanctions on Russia and many individuals haven’t been
witnessed, enabling
with connections to Putin’s regime. In the Ukrainian air
addition, a number of companies have cut defense network to
ties with Russia and the nation’s economy remain operational
Russian MOD
is rapidly spiralling towards collapse. This
attempt to isolate Russia from the global
Right: A non-
community aims at putting the squeeze modernised MiG-29
on Moscow to cease hostilities and pull its 9-13 (serial ‘57
White’) of the 114
regime for eight years and, to this end, forces out of Ukraine.
brTA from Ivano-
we will strive for the demilitarisation and Two weeks into this bloody and unjust Frankivs’k. It is armed
denazification of Ukraine.” conflict, there have been two major with a pair of 20-shot
The airspace over Ukraine and western surprises in this war. The first has been B-8M pods below the
wings for 80mm S-8
Russia was closed to civil air traffic and the continued steadfast resilience of unguided rockets.
Russian air/ground forces began entering the Ukrainian people, led by President Although it can carry
the country on three axes: from western Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who remains in a maximum of four
such pods (or four
Russia, the Russia-controlled Crimean Kyiv and has quickly proven himself to bombs), the standard
peninsula and Belarusian territory. be a true wartime leader. The second has air-to-ground loadout
What Putin had initially described as a been the apparent failure of the Russian during the summer
of 2014 when Russia
limited incursion into the Donetsk and war machine across all domains. It has annexed Crimea
Luhansk regions proved to actually be struggled to maintain momentum on the was either two
a full-scale invasion of the independent ground, making small gains at significant bombs or two B-8M
pods – as seen here
European nation. As expected, this cost, when it was initially expected to Press Centre of Air
unprovoked move was condemned by sweep through the nation and encircle Command ‘West’
Kyiv within days. The Russians have also
been unable to keep their frontline forces
supplied, a major factor in the lack of
progress.
In the air, Ukrainian airspace remains
heavily contested. While the Russian
Aerospace Forces (RuASF) field a much
larger and more technologically advanced
fleet, the Ukrainian Air Force (UkrAF) –
which many believed would be destroyed
within a matter of hours – is holding its
own, engaging Russian air/ground targets
with significant results. The same can be
said of Ukraine’s outdated air defence
network – along with the use of man-
portable air defence systems (MANPADS)
– which is still online and continues to be a
thorn in the side of the RuASF.
While Ukrainian air bases have been
attacked by Russian cruise missiles, their
runways have largely remained intact.
It is assumed that Russia expected the
UkrAF to surrender quickly and did not
anticipate it to fight back hard, and while
Ukraine has lost aircraft and pilots, it
has also shot down a large number of
Russian air assets. It seems Putin may
A non-modernised Su-27S (serial ’52 Blue’) from 831 brTA with live
AAMs - two R-73s and three R-27ERs - on the dolly next to it. This is a
common sight at Ukrainian fighter bases these days. The Su-27S is the
standard Soviet AF single-seat variant, with air-to-ground capability
Press Centre of the Ukrainian Air Force
A downed Russian SU-34 at have deeply underestimated the resolve
the Kommunar tractor factory of the Ukrainian people and is suffering
grounds in Kharkiv, March 8 as a result of this miscalculation. This is
Fotoreserg/ Depositphotos
proved by the ever-growing figures of
Russian losses, which are being reported
as upwards of 10,000 killed or captured.
Since the conflict began, the
international community has pledged
its support for Ukraine, be it through
financial, humanitarian or defensive
means. Many NATO nations are providing
weapons and supplies to the Ukrainians in
a bid to bolster theirts ability to maintain
opposition against the Russian offensive.
This includes the delivery of AIM-92
Stinger MANPADS and FMG-148 Javelin
fire-and-forget anti-tank missiles.
NATO maintains that it will not put
troops on the ground or enforce a no-fly
zone over Ukraine, despite calls to do
so from many parties. Direct military
involvement from NATO could further
escalate hostilities and end up engulfing
more of Europe, placing other countries
in Putin’s crosshairs and increasing the
potential threat of nuclear warfare.
As the outside world continues to rally
behind Ukraine, the nation’s military and
those who have taken up arms against
the invaders have held their ground and
highlighted the cracks in Russia’s military
might, which is struggling to maintain its
edge in a very public manner.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 21
 WAR REPORT // NATO’S RESPONSE

NATO’s response

Above: Royal Air

Defenses on Europe’s eastern flank are being bolstered as Force Typhoon FGR4
to Spangdahlem AFB and the final two
deployed to RAF aircraft deployed returned to Germany on
Putin’s attack on Ukraine continues. Josef Campion reports on Akrotiri in Cyprus March 1.
NATO’s unfolding strategy takes off to conduct
NATO Air Policing
The US Army has also sent attack
over Eastern Europe. helicopters to the eastern flank of Europe.

I
N THE BUILDUP to Russia’s invasion (FS) and its F-15Cs were also called to Crown Copyright The (1-3rd Attack Battalion, 12th Combat
of Ukraine, NATO increased its detach to Lask, weeks prior to the aircraft Aviation Brigade – CAB) deployed 20
presence nearby. At the time of type’s retirement in Europe. Eight of the AH-64s to Latvia to strengthen NATO’s
going to press, this reaction is F-15Cs returned on February 28 after a defense during the uncertain times.
ongoing and more aircraft have two-week detachment, arriving with nose The UK’s Royal Air Force (RAF) and
been arriving at bases in Romania, art displayed on the front fuselage of the Joint Helicopter Command of the
Estonia, Lithuania, and Poland. aircraft, a tradition of aircraft returning British defense ministry (MOD) have
Various nations have deployed multiple from operational theatre. also deployed multiple CH-47 Chinooks
aircraft on short notice to these areas Another forward deployed unit from the and AH-64 Apaches to Lithuania as
Below: The 480th
to strengthen the defense in Eastern US is the USAF’s 34th FS from the 388th EFS brought many part of Operation Sabre Strike, to train
Europe. The United States Air Forces in Fighter Wing (FW) at Hill AFB, Utah – the different units to interoperability between the nations while
Europe (USAFE) has fighters permanently unit has detached 12 F-35A Lighting IIs to Fetesti Air Base also strengthening NATO’s defense.
to support the
stationed in Europe as well as forward Spangdahlem AFB in Germany. The aircraft F-16 Fighting Italy, leading the NATO Enhanced Air
deployed units with home bases back in have been forward deployed further, Falcons, including Policing mission at Mihail Kogălniceanu
the US. split into twos and deployed to multiple maintenance, AB in Romania, augmented its presence by
communication, and
The latter include F-15E Strike Eagles countries including Estonia, Lithuania, civil engineer experts adding a further four Eurofighter F-2000As
from the 4th Fighter Wing (FW) at and Romania. They have since returned US Air Force to the originally scheduled four aircraft.
Seymour Johnson Air Force Base (AFB),
North Carolina. These have been in Europe
since October 2021, but their return
Stateside has been delayed multiple times
because of the conflict. Due to head home
before the new year, this was extended to
January, the squadron forward deploying
to various bases in Eastern Europe with
four aircraft of the detached 15 sent to
each location. The latest movement of
the unit was to Lask in Poland days before
Russia’s invasion; it is still there.
In addition to the ‘SJ’ F-15Es, the soon
to be disbanded 493rd Fighter Squadron

22 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

Working alongside the Italians is Germany,
sending three Eurofighter EF2000s for air
policing operations, then increasing that
number to six after Putin’s invasion.
Adding to NATO’s footprint in the region,
USAFE detached eight F-16CJs of the
480th FS, 52nd FW from Spangdahlem
AFB to add to the aircraft currently
running Combat Air Patrol missions
in Eastern Europe. The 480th’s F-16s
detached to Fetesti AB, Romania.
Spain has deployed four ALA14,
Eurofighter EF2000s to Graf Ignatievo
AB in Bulgaria and the RAF has four
Eurofighter Typhoon FGR4s and four
F-35Bs at RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus. The RAF
has also been performing CAP missions
from RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire with
armed aircraft witnessed taking off and
heading east from the base. Above: An F/A-18E All these fighters are running 24/7 ‘RRR’ callsign or ‘KAYAK’. NATO’s Multi-Role
Belgium’s 2 Fighter Wing with four F-16A Super Hornet, combat air patrol missions over Eastern Transport Tanker fleet has also been
attached to the “Blue
MLUs currently leads the air policing at Blasters” of Strike Europe – and to do so they need support extremely busy since the February 24
Ämari AB in Estonia, with three USAF Fighter Squadron and air to air refueling (AAR) capability invasion – using the callsign ‘MMF’, various
495th FS F-35A Lightning IIs just weeks 34, launches from to keep them airborne around the clock. aircraft have been providing fuel from
the flight deck of the
after they arrived from the factory at RAF Nimitz-class aircraft Providing this support are numerous home base Eindhoven in the Netherlands.
Lakenheath, Suffolk, joining them. It was carrier USS Harry S air-to-air tankers from various nations. France has provided a KC-135 for
a very quick call for a new squadron to be Truman in support of Since the invasion, aircraft tracking sites refueling over Poland, with the callsign
enhanced air patrols
deployed away from the base it hadn’t US Navy have seen multiple tankers performing ‘Total’. It is unconfirmed, but the new
even settled into. At the time of writing, ‘racetrack’ flight patterns, clearly fueling A330 MRTT Phénix is also believed to
four French Air Force Mirage-2000-5Fs the patrolling fighters. These tankers be providing AAR capabilities to French
deployed to Ämari AB to add to the include forward deployed USAF examples. Rafale fighters.
fighters already operating in the country. KC-10A Extenders have headed from Travis What is clear is that there is certainly a
In neighboring Lithuania, the Royal AFB (California) and New Jersey’s McGuire large movement of aircraft and personnel
Danish Air Force has deployed four Below: A Royal Air AFB to RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk, using the in a team effort by NATO’s nations to
F-16AMs alongside four F-16Cs from the Force F-35B Lightning callsign ‘NACHO’ and constantly sending defend the skies over Eastern Europe since
Aircraft of 617
Polish Air Force to Siauliai AB. Portugal has Sqn RAF Marham, aircraft towards the eastern flank. the Russian invasion.
sent four F-16AM (MLU) Fighting Falcons Norfolk, in the snow The 100th Air Refueling Wing (ARW) Adding to the augmentation from
up to Keflavik AB in Iceland to guard the at Ämari Air Base in based at RAF Mildenhall has deployed various NATO air forces, the US Navy and
Estonia – taking part
skies over NATO’s northern flank. in enhanced vigilance multiple KC-135R Stratotankers to the French Navy have aircraft carriers
The latest movement was two 555th FS activity in the Baltic Ramstein AB in Germany and has been located in the Aegean Sea, which are
F-16s from Aviano AB in Italy to Croatia to region as part of constantly airborne and using the callsign supporting CAP missions with F/A-18E/F
NATO’s increased
execute Agile Combat Employment patrol presence there. ‘LAGAR’. The RAF has been performing Super Hornets, F-35C Lighting IIs and
missions in support of NATO’s defense. The activity focuses AAR operations via the KC.2 Voyager Dassault Rafale Ms.
Other nations have also been running on increased air operating out of both RAF Brize Norton in The aircraft are operating from carriers
policing patrols along
CAP operations from home airfields: the NATO borders Oxford and RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus. These USS Harry S Truman (CVN-75) and FS
Netherlands has designated four F-35As Crown Copyright aircraft can be seen displaying the usual Charles de Gaulle.
and four F-16s to run CAP missions from
its Leeuwarden and Volkel AFBs; France
has also designated four Dassault Rafales
to patrol the skies over Europe.
As the French Air Force reported at the
time: “The French fighter aircraft take off
from their home base at Mont-de-Marsan
to fly so-called Combat Air Patrol missions
along the Alliance’s eastern flank. While
the fighters are on station for three hours
two times every day, the A-330 MRTTs
conduct refueling.”
They have been flying these missions
since February 24.

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 23

 WAR REPORT // UKRAINE DIGS IN
Ukraine claim
successes as
war enters
week four
As the war gathered pace, Ukrainian forces said that significant
numbers of Russian fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft were shot
down or hit in the middle of March. Richard Thomas reports
F
IGURES FROM THE Ukrainian
Ministry of Defence (MOD)
depicted a battlespace still
being hotly contested on land
and in the air since the Russian
invasion began on February
24. Although it was not possible to
independently verify those figures, social
media videos purport to show numerous
incidents of Russian aircraft being struck
by man-portable air defence systems,
many of which are being funnelled into
the country by NATO.
On March 14, the MOD claimed that
in the previous 24-hour period “four
planes, three helicopters and unmanned
aerial vehicles” were hit by the Ukrainian
Air Force, with information on the type
of aircraft “being clarified”. Next, in the
24 hours prior to 0600hrs on March 15
Russia lost “four helicopters, one plane”
24 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
the Royal United Services Institute think Above: A MiG-29
tank, said the estimate for Russian fixed- Fulcrum takes off
from Starokostiantyniv
wing losses was “between 15 and 20 Air Base, Ukraine, as
fast jets so far”, based on those that have part of the Clear Sky
been visually confirmed as wreckage 2018 exercise
on October 9
or seen to fall in Russian-controlled US Air National
or Belarusian territory. “For [Russian] Guard/Tech Sgt
helicopter losses, confirmed losses Charles Vaughn US
Air National Guard/
currently stand at around 30 – and might
Tech Sgt Charles
be slightly higher in reality,” Bronk said. Vaughn
Meanwhile, a fourth round of
economic sanctions by the European
Union against Russia saw the targeting
of “key companies in the aviation,
military and dual use, shipbuilding and
machine building sectors”, said a March
15 release from the European Council.
Russia and neighbouring Belarus have
Below: A C-17
Globemaster III rests
been hit hard by sanctions from Western at Rzeszów-Jasionka
and other global powers, but both Airport, Poland, on
countries have moved to secure key lines
February 11, prior to
Russia’s invasion of
of material support to help mitigate the Ukraine. Members of
the USAF 521st Air
shot down, as well as a cruise missile impact. During bilateral meetings on
Mobility Operations
intercepted, it said. Figures from March March 14, Russian officials announced Wing and 435th Air
16 stated ”three planes” from Russia’s that they were “confident” that Ground Operations
military, including two Su-34 multi-role “illegitimate economic sanctions” will not Wing deployed to
Poland to prepare the
fighters, shot down, as well as another hinder development of Russia-Belarus airport and receive the
helicopter, three “tactical UAVs” and two ties, while Belarusian officials said they arrival of the US Army
cruise missiles. were “counting on Russian support”, to support allies and
partners in the region
Since the start of operations, Ukraine has seeking debt restructure and the fixing US Air Force/Senior
claimed significant success in defending of country’s natural gas prices in roubles, Airman Taylor Slater
its territory against Russian forces. Figures
posted on social media on March 15 by
the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
say 81 fixed-wing aircraft, 95 helicopters,
and nine UAVs of various types from
Russia’s military have been lost in combat.
A March 16 update from the Ukrainian
MOD said 84 fixed-wing, 108 helicopters,
and 11 UAVS, representing an increase
of three, 13 and two aircraft respectively
between March 15-16.
Justin Bronk, airpower research fellow at
current with wholesale gas prices for
Russian regions. On defence, officials
said that they were looking to remove
“administrative barriers” in military-
technical co-operation, and the need to
take “a very detailed look at co-operation
in the military-industrial sphere”.
NATO support
Poland’s Rzeszów-Jasionka Airport in the
southeast of the country just 50 miles
(80km) from the Ukraine border, is playing
a significant role in supporting the NATO
response to the ongoing Russian invasion.
Over a 24-hour period in late February,
aircraft from the US (C-17), UK (C-17),
Greece (C-130), Spain (A400M), and
Germany (A400M) visited the small, single
runway airport, which offers a direct trunk
road to Korczowa crossing on the Poland-
Ukraine border. Ukraine’s largest city in
the west of the country, Lviv, sits less than
100km to the east of the crossing.
Flights from allied nations have
continued since, dropping off huge
quantities of weapons and supplies
destined for the Ukrainian front lines.
NATO and Western allied countries have
pledged significant quantities of defence
support to the embattled Ukrainian
government, with Germany on February
27 committing to send 1,000 anti-tank
weapons and 500 Stinger missiles in
a significant departure from its multi-
generational stance on arms exports.
Spain on February 27 confirmed it had
dispatched two A400M aircraft loaded
with medical supplies to Poland, destined
for Ukraine. The UK had previously sent
thousands of NLAW anti-tank missile
systems, with its use in the early stages of
the war widely reported on social media.
The UK and others have pledged to
continue providing material support
to Ukraine, amounting to thousands
of additional anti-armour and anti-air
missiles systems. Despite the overt nature
of this, with systems being used to counter
Above: Poland has Russian forces, NATO will not deliver
offered to donate its equipment into Ukraine itself, instead
MiG-29 jet fighters
to the US. Here, an using border sites as transhipment hubs
example assigned for their onwards journey to the war zone.
to the Polish Air
Force’s 1st Tactical
Air Wing flies over An offer too far
Polish airspace However, one offer from a NATO member
USAF/Senior fell foul of the leading partner (the United
Airman Taylor
Slater States), which moved to quash Poland’s
plan to donate its entire fleet of MiG-29
fighters to Washington, a thinly disguised
move to see them contribute to the
Ukraine war effort without having to be
the party to sign on the dotted line.
Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said
on March 8 that it was prepared to send
all of its MiG-29 fighters to the US air base
at Ramstein in Germany “immediately
and free of charge” and place them at
the disposal of the US. The statement
requested the US provide its military
with “used aircraft with corresponding
operational capabilities”, likely referring to
surplus F-16 fighters in USAF inventory.
The statement added that Poland was
“For [Russian] helicopter losses, confirmed losses
currently stand at around 30 – and might be
slightly higher in reality” – Justin Bronk, RUSI
ready to “establish the conditions” for
the acquisition of the aircraft, while also
requesting that other NATO allies that
operate MiG-29 aircraft to “act in the same
vein” and make them available to the US.
However, US Pentagon press secretary
John Kirby, immediately said that the
decision to transfer Polish aircraft to
Ukraine was “ultimately one for the Polish
government”, adding that the prospect
of fighter jets “at the disposal” of the US
departing from US/NATO base in Germany
to fly into Ukrainian airspace currently
contested by Russia “raises serious
concerns” for the entire NATO alliance.
“We will continue to consult with Poland
and our other NATO allies about this issue
and the difficult logistical challenges it
presents, but we do not believe Poland's
proposal is a tenable one,” Kirby said.
There are limits, then, to the level of
support that NATO is willing to provide
without risking an escalation from Russia,
which could then feel it has no resource
but to turn to a nuclear option.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 25
 RUSSIAN AIRPOWER FAILURE OVER UKRAINE

AIRPOWER
ABSENT
A
irpower has been a deciding
factor in conflicts for more
than a century. Starting in
World War One with the first
utility of reconnaissance and
surveillance aircraft against
Russia was expecting to dominate the skies over Ukraine early into
the conflict but it didn’t happen as former fighter pilot turned aviation
researcher, Sqn Ldr (Ret’d) Fahad Masood (MRAeS) explains

the Turks by the Italians, to the use of

bombing runs aimed at coercing enemy
ground forces by Bulgarian duo Prodan
Tarakchiev and Radul Milkov and the
dogfights flown by fighter aces – such
as Germany’s Lt Kurt Wintgens and
his Fokker E.I – this third dimension of
warfare has brought many adversaries to
a grinding halt. A subsequent win for the
side that employs it in the most effective
manner inevitably follows.
In recent years, we have seen many
combat aircraft being used to project
airpower effectively and successfully over
theaters in the Middle East, as well as other
parts of the world in a variety of roles.
However, since the beginning of hostilities
between Russia and Ukraine, there has
been no decisive role of airpower. Even
with the quantum of assets held by the
Russian Aerospace Forces (RuASF), the
Ukrainian Air Force (UkrAF) still remains
active and continues to strike Russian
military targets across Ukraine.

Victory in the Air

Since the initial airpower theories and
the creation of related doctrines – such
as Guilio Douhet’s Command of the
Air publication; former USAF Col John
Warden III’s ‘Five Rings’ theory and Royal
New Zealand Air Force Wg Cdr Shaun
Clarke’s Strategic Persuasion Oriented
Targeting (SPOT) bombing paradigm
– one element has remained a constant

26 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

throughout: ‘Air Superiority’ (known in
USAF literature as ‘Air Dominance’).
The aim of air superiority is to ensure
the freedom of military operations,
whether they be air- or ground-based.
There are two major classes of airpower
employment: Offensive Counter-Air
(OCA) and Defensive Counter-Air (DCA)
operations. Typically, air superiority is
attained during the earlier days of a
conflict, in which suppression/destruction
of enemy air defenses (SEAD/DEAD)
sorties play a pivotal role. This is where the
Russians have been left wanting in their
ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Above: The Sukhoi by USAF F-117A Nighthawk stealth attack the RuASF does not appear to have
Su-35S Flanker-E aircraft, supported by other fighters widely employed this strategy during the
Lessons Learned is one of the most
technologically
– such as F-15E Strike Eagles and F-16 opening weeks of conflict in Ukraine.
Delving into recent conflicts, starting advanced fighters Fighting Falcons – that were conducting The air arm is supposedly losing critical
from the first Gulf War (Operation Desert in operational High-Altitude Dive Precision Bombing human resources (aircrews), as well as
Storm) in 1991 to the present, enemy air RuASF service. Its (HADPB) operations beyond the outer aircraft in the form of fighter jets, ground
primary role is air
defense systems and aircraft have largely superiority; it is ranges of Iraqi surface-to-air missile attack platforms and helicopters. To add
been the first element to be neutralized also capable of air- (SAM) systems. Following the conclusion to this, the UkrAF still resists the onslaught
by other air forces. This was one of the to-ground missions of this phase, air superiority had been from the Russian military and remains a
but has not helped
harshest lessons learned by coalition the RuASF achieve largely secured by coalition forces, which thorn in the side of RuASF air operations.
forces against Iraq in the first Gulf War, its expected early then had the freedom to employ a range There is a major difference in the
after multiple combat aircraft (including results over Ukraine of airpower operations that were geared numbers of the two air forces involved
Below: SEAD/DEAD
RAF-operated Panavia Tornado GR1s) assets are essential at dismantling Saddam Hussein’s regime in this conflict. The active number of
were lost during the opening days of the to the early gaining in Iraq. combat aircraft according to AirForces
conflict. This was mostly due to Iraq’s of air superiority Intelligence believed to be in the RuASF’s
as they seek and
still-credible ground-based air defense destroy enemy Failing over Ukraine inventory is 1,250, versus 120 in UkrAF
system, rather than the DCA Combat Air radar and air What has been witnessed since the start service, which ratios out at 10:1 in favour
Patrols (CAPs) carried out by Iraqi defense systems. of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Russia. With this numerical superiority
The Fullback was
Air Force fighters. noticeably absent of Ukraine in the early in mind, combined with the fact that
Due to this, air operations in the first week hours of February 24 is Ukraine still has an operational air force,
were halted for a while, and this lack of the limited, if not something must have been gravely wrong
SEAD/DEAD means
risks were reassessed and Ukrainian airspace half-hearted airpower in the modus operandi of Russian military
SEAD/DEAD operations is highly contested effort from the former, planning and execution.
were initiated. Iraqi air and its air defense taking into account the
network remains
defense systems were operational on-paper competency of Lack of Results
subsequently pounded All images the RuASF. Considering A few plausible reasons in which the
Russian MOD the aforementioned numbers were not translated into
unless
stated pre-requisite for success battle-level victories for Russia in the
of SEAD/DEAD operations, opening weeks of its invasion of Ukraine

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 27

 RUSSIAN AIRPOWER FAILURE OVER UKRAINE
are listed below.
Objectives: Two types of objectives
– specifically political and military – have
to be penned down as clear as day before
the start of any military conflict. War is an
instrument of policy and both levels have
to make clear that the fight is initiated
with an end result in mind, as per the ‘End-
Ways-Means’ paradigm. In this present
situation, the Russians may not have been
pragmatic in their approach and erred in
this process.
Unclear Rules of Engagement (RoE):
Success is attained in the mind before
it is manifested on the battlefield. The
tactical-level fighter pilots require
clarity of thought and action to gain a
victory mindset, attained through the
RoEs passed on from the strategic to
operational level and in turn to the fighter
pilot. The RuASF pilots seem to have an
absence of such lucidity in the RoE of who
to engage at what ranges. Identification
friend-or-foe (IFF) of friendly aircraft
– including Mil and Kamov helicopters, as
well as Sukhoi and MiG fighters – is hugely
important in this conflict, as such types are
28 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
flown by both sides.
Politics: Looking at the realpolitik being
actively played out through the conflict;
the Russian side was willing to keep
Ukrainian infrastructure intact with plans
to dismantle the incumbent government
and demilitarize the country before
installing an administration that is more
favourable of Russia. Civil infrastructure
related to and required for running of
the ‘new and improved’, revamped
and replaced governing bodies. Via this
modus operandi, Russia could then ensure
that Ukraine’s move closer to the NATO
alliance and the West could be negated
and that the country would remain as a
buffer state between Russia, the European
Union (EU) and NATO. As an afterthought,
politically correct and more diplomatic
methods of engaging Ukraine by Russia
could have also avoided all the mayhem
leading to this tumultuous state of affairs.
Surprise at Ukrainian Resilience:
Russia was probably never expecting
Ukraine to retaliate in such a passionate
manner of insolence against such a
numerically superior military might. The
mysterious Ukrainian fighter ace known
as the ‘Ghost of Kyiv’ and his matured,
Soviet-era MiG-29 Fulcrum is such a sign
of defiance against all odds that will be
remembered for decades, whether the
legend is true or not. Perhaps the Russians
were largely overconfident in keeping
their on-paper military might in mind and
wrongly assumed that the UkrAF would
have been easily defeated in the opening
days, if not hours, of the conflict.
Risk Management: The Russians have
exhibited risk-adverse behaviour, at least
during the start of this conflict. Possible
risks that come with the process of
war-making were perhaps not quantifiably
gauged before the invasion began. As
said, whatever cannot be quantified,
Above: The cannot be managed.
S-300V1 is the Military conflict in general and airpower
most potent
ground-based air employment is an extremely risk-dynamic
defense system scenario, in which clarity of thought
fielded by the through appropriate levels of risk
Ukrainian Armed
Forces. It boasts management is a pre-requisite to success.
high-speed, Unless and until these risks are managed
long-legged at the strategic, operational and tactical
missiles in
addition to levels, huge unwanted losses are likely to
multi-target occur. This is visible in the ongoing war
engagement, between Russia and Ukraine with both the
high mobility
and survivability loss of life and equipment.
capabilities. It is The current narrative stipulates that
unclear as to how Russia may not have anticipated the losses
many of these
specific systems it has seemingly suffered as a result of this
have survived conflict.
Russia’s invasion Nuclear Overhang: Giving Russia the
of Ukraine, but
along with the benefit of the doubt, it is wanting to keep
nation’s wider air the turmoil below the nuclear threshold.
defense network, In the fog of war, one wrong move can
it will have been
working overtime push the escalation ladder beyond the
to deter, seek atomic brink. It may want to keep things
out and destroy simmered down to ensure conventional
invading Russian
air assets capability is relied upon to attain military
Ukrainian MOD as well as political objectives.
While Russian President Vladimir Putin
quickly postured his nuclear forces to
a heightened state of alert, it is more
likely that he is using this threat to deter
NATO and other Western forces from
intervening in his invasion of Ukraine
through direct military involvement.
Lack of Co-ordination with Ground
Forces: Wars are never won by an
independent military component,
whether the battles are in the air, on the
ground or at sea. Synergy is key and this
has been seemingly absent from Russia
in this invasion. Russian ground forces
have advanced beyond the overreach
of air cover and have suffered high
troop casualties, losses of ground-based
military hardware (such as T-72/T-80
main battle tanks) and a number of
Russian troops have been captured and
held as prisoners of war (POWs).
Lack of Precision-Guided Munitions
(PGMs): The Russians are known for
their wide use of dumb bombs or
unguided rockets and have routinely
employed them throughout the recent
conflict in Syria. The Sukhoi Su-34
Fullback has been the only fighter using
PGMs to engage targets under the
Above: Russia ‘one target-one weapon’ philosophy. In to modern, high-fidelity simulators for
has four Sukhoi modern-day conflicts, targets cannot be additional training, improved cockpit
Su-30SM Flanker-H
units based in close neutralized with a high degree of accuracy ergonomics and weapon interfaces than
proximity to the unless GPS- or laser-guided weapons are their Russian counterparts.
border with Ukraine used. The heightened use of unguided Along with the technological
at Kursk-Khalino
and Millerovo. munitions also increases the chances improvement in hardware, there appears
While these aircraft of collateral damage, which has been to be a lack of a parallel methodical
are predominately widely reported across Ukraine during the increase in the number of live and
used in the air
superiority role, opening weeks of this conflict. simulated flying hours being completed
they have also been Fratricide Possibility: A fear of being by a RuASF fighter pilot, when compared
used to supplement shot down by friendly SAM systems is with Western counterparts.
Su-34s in deep strike
operations. A number probably taking a toll on the performance
of Su-30SMs have of Russian fighter pilots. This is probably Looking Ahead
reportedly been shot due to a lack of co-ordination between the All points taken, one should never look at
down over Ukraine
due to the UkrAF two military facets. Without clear, concise where the organisations have been, but
and the nation’s air and correct communication between all where they intend to go. On paper, the
defense network components of the military effort, success RuASF has the capacity and capability to
still being largely
active, even after the can never be attained. overwhelm the UkrAF without the onus of
opening weeks Being shot down as a result of friendly doubt. However, in the face of a larger and
of the invasion fire is the worst method of losing one’s more technologically advanced attacking
own aircraft and aircrew. This is also a force, the Ukrainian air arm has fought and
demonstration of a lack of peacetime continues to fight against the RuASF, with
Left: A UkrAF- training in synergistic efforts to use all the skies over Ukraine remaining heavily
operated Mikoyan- aspects of military exertion. contested.
Gurevich MiG-29
Fulcrum departs Number of Flying Hours: The One aspect that probably holds Russia
Starokostiantyniv proficiency of fighter pilots is directly back is the clarity of thought behind the
Air Base in western proportional to the number of flying political and military intent to achieve
Ukraine to take part
in a training sortie hours they get over a specific period of their objectives in the times to come.
under Exercise Clear time. Considering the RuASF, the official Perhaps Putin only wants a buffer zone
Sky on September statement (as per the Russian Ministry of between Russia and the EU/NATO. They
10, 2018. It was
expected that the Defense website) states that each pilot can achieve this with the eastern part of
UkrAF would be requires between 100 and 120 hours to Ukraine, which is already relatively under
easily overcome by remain proficient. Russian control. A preferred alternative
its larger and more
advanced Russian Russian fighter pilots are expected to would have been to seek this end product
counterpart in the achieve a minimum of 100+ flying hours through peaceful and diplomatic means.
early days of this per year. The greater the number of hours Airpower is the only force which has the
conflict, but this
turned out to be in the cockpit training for the real thing is capacity to influence all three tiers, namely
wrong and the air the surest method to attaining expertise, strategic (policy), operations and tactics.
arm continues to experience and skillsets. While the RuASF’s airpower in this conflict
engage Russian air
and ground forces, On the other hand, USAF and RAF fighter has not been as effective as many thought
inflicting heavy pilots are more often asking to increase during the opening weeks of the conflict,
damage on the the quota beyond the allocated 180 to it ought to be looking to influence all three
invading parties
USAF/Tech Sgt 240 flying hours per annum to maintain tiers in the times to come with increased
Charles Vaughn combat readiness, even with more access concentration of force.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 29
 #13&14
STATE
REPORT HAWAII

An F-22A Raptor from the Hawaii Air National

Guard’s 199th FS ‘Mytai Fighters’ prepares to
refuel from a KC-135R during a training mission
over the Pacific near Oahu, on March 22, 2012
USAF/Staff Sgt Mike Meares

As a gateway to the Indo-Pacific region, Hawaii plays an important

role for the US military. In the 14th edition of CAJ’s ongoing ‘State
Report’ saga, Tom Kaminski explores the USAF, USMC, US Army and
US Navy assets that are stationed across the ‘Aloha State’

SECURING
30 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
H
awaii was an organized
incorporated territory of the
US from April 30, 1900 until
the archipelago became
the 50th state on August
21, 1959. Located in the
Northern Pacific Ocean – around 2,000
miles southwest of the US mainland
– Hawaii is composed of 137 volcanic
islands that span 1,500 miles from the
southeast to northwest and include
around 750 miles of ocean coastline.
Along with Vermont, Texas and
California, Hawaii was an independent
republic until it was annexed by the US on
July 4, 1898. The Northwestern Hawaiian
or Leeward Islands, including Midway –
where one of the US Navy’s most famous
sea battles was fought in June 1942 – are
not part of the state. Hawaii is the eighth
smallest state in terms of land area, and
the 11th least populous – only seven
of the eight Southeastern or Windward
Islands are inhabited.
The archipelago’s location provided the
US with a place to monitor and support
its interests in the Far East. Hawaii’s
strategic importance to the US spurred
the construction of numerous military
facilities throughout the islands between
1907-22, and several of those facilities
remain in use today.
Hawaii’s importance was reinforced in
the aftermath of Japan’s surprise attack on
Pearl Harbor and other Hawaiian military
installations on December 7, 1941.
Following these attacks, the
US fortified the islands and
greatly expanded military
operations. Today,
such military
operations
have been
scaled back
but Hawaii
KC-135R (serial 63-8030) from the 154th Wing’s 203rd ARS taxies before
take-off at JB Pearl Harbor-Hickam on August 21, 2019, to support Exercise
Sentry Aloha 19-2 US ANG/Senior Airman John Linzmeier
continues to be an important strategic
location for the US.
Island bases
Nicknamed ‘the Gathering Place’, Oahu is
the third largest of the Hawaiian Islands,
boasts the largest population, is home to
the state capital (Honolulu) and supports
the largest number of military facilities.
Established on October 1, 2010, when
Naval Station Pearl Harbor and Hickam
Air Force Base (AFB) were merged under
a single command, Joint Base (JB) Pearl
Harbor-Hickam combined two of the US
Navy’s and US Air Force’s (USAF’s) most
famous facilities. Formation of the JB –
located around eight miles northwest
of Honolulu – took place following the
recommendations of the 2005 Base
Realignment and Closure commission.
Spread over multiple locations, the JB
has a combined area of about 28,000
acres. It is the Navy’s largest and most
strategic island base in the Pacific, and
hosts seven major naval commands,
including the Commander, US Pacific Fleet
(COMPACFLT), and Commander, Navy
Region Hawaii. Reporting to COMPACFLT,
the latter command is the regional
coordinator for all shore-based Navy
activities in Hawaii, as well as Midway
Atoll, Kure Atoll and the more distant
islands of Wake, Johnston, Palmyra and
Kingman Reef.
Both facilities became household names
on December 7, 1941, when two waves
of 350 aircraft from the Imperial Japanese
Navy’s combined fleet attacked US Pacific
Fleet ships that were berthed in the
harbor, along with Army and Navy aircraft
parked at installations around the island,
including Hickam Field, Wheeler Field and
Naval Air Station (NAS) Ford Island.
Established on September 15, 1938,
Hickam Field relieved overcrowding
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 31
 #13&14
STATE
REPORT HAWAII
HAWAII
at Luke Field and became the Army’s
principal airfield for the Hawaiian Air
Force (HAF). Activated at Fort Shafter on
October 28, 1940, the HAF was the first
Army Air Force outside the continental
US. It was relocated to Hickam Field and
re-designated as the 7th Air Force on
February 5, 1942.
Located on Ford Island in Pearl Harbor,
Luke Field was turned over to the US
Navy and became NAS Ford Island. The
island was first used by the Army Air
Corps in September 1917, after the War
Department procured land and Luke Field
was constructed. Six years later, the US
Navy acquired the land on the other side
of the island and created a naval facility. It
became a Naval Auxiliary Landing Field in
1962 and was closed on July 1, 1999.
Hickam’s heavy-hitters
Named in honor of Lt Col Horace Meek
Hickam – an Army Air Corps officer who
was killed in an aircraft accident at Fort
32 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
Crockett, Texas, on November 5, 1934
– Hickam shares runways with Oahu’s
Daniel K Inouye International Airport. It is
home to numerous USAF and Air National
Guard (ANG) units, along with the Pacific
Air Forces (PACAF) headquarters.
Reporting to PACAF’s 11th Air Force,
the 15th Wing has been stationed at
Hickam since November 1971, when it was
known as the 15th Air Base Wing. It was
re-designated the 15th Airlift Wing (AW) in
May 2010. Today, the ‘composite’ wing’s
15th Operations Group (OG) is responsible
for three flying squadrons that each
operate different aircraft types.
Tracing its history to June 26, 1917,
when the 14th Aero Squadron was
re-designated the 19th Aero Squadron,
the 19th Fighter Squadron (FS) has been
assigned to the 15th OG since October
2010. Previously based at Elmendorf AFB,
Alaska, the squadron is an associate unit
and partners with the Hawaii ANG’s 154th
Wing. Known as the ‘Fighting Gamecocks’,
the squadron’s personnel operate and
maintain Lockheed Martin F-22A Raptors
assigned to the Hawaii ANG’s 199th FS
under the USAF’s Total Force Initiative.
Activated on March 10, 1992, the
65th Airlift Squadron (AS) operates
two Gulfstream C-37As from Hickam.
Nicknamed ‘Special Air Missions Hawaii’,
the unit operated a single Boeing C-40B
Clipper from 2003-19, when the aircraft
was reassigned to the 89th AW at JB
Andrews, Maryland. It is tasked with
providing global airlift to the US Indo-
Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) and
PACAF commanders, US and foreign
dignitaries, and distinguished visitors.
The wing’s 535th AS was activated
at Hickam on April 18, 2005. It was
assigned to the 15th OG the same day.
The squadron was the first to operate the
Boeing C-17A Globemaster III outside the
contiguous US and is currently responsible
for nine aircraft. Known as the ‘Tigers’, the
535th executes airlift and airdrop missions
in support of US Transportation Command
and USINDOPACOM operations.
The C-17A is capable of performing the
rapid strategic delivery of troops, cargo
and equipment to main operating bases
or directly to forward bases. It can also
conduct tactical airlift and airdrop missions
and perform aeromedical evacuations.
Fleet Logistics Support Squadron 1 (VR-
1) Detachment Hawaii is a naval reserve
squadron and the only US Navy aviation
squadron based at Hickam. Operating a
single C-37A, and known as the ‘Starlifters’,
the detachment was designated as
Below: Two Executive Transport Detachment Pacific
USCG-operated
MH-65Ds (serials before it was realigned under VR-1 on
6608 and 6547) October 27, 2021.
from CGAS Barbers It provides executive airlift for the
Point conduct a
formation flight COMPACFLT, which is headquartered at
around Oahu on JB Pearl Harbor-Hickam. VR-1 is located
March 4, 2016 at and reports directly to Naval Air
USCG/Petty
Officer 2nd Class Facility Washington at JB Andrews. The
Tara Molle detachment was located at Marine Corps

Air Station (MCAS) Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii,
until it relocated to Hickam in 2006.
Also calling Hickam home is the US
Army Priority Air Transport Command’s
Pacific Flight Detachment. Headquartered
at JB Andrews, the command reports
to The Army Aviation Brigade at Fort
Lesley J McNair in Washington DC. Like
its USAF and US Navy counterparts, the
detachment operates a C-37A, and
plans, co-ordinates and conducts
worldwide executive airlift in support
of the USINDOPACOM and US Army
Pacific commanders.
Protecting Hawaiian skies
Stationed at Hickam, the Hawaii ANG’s
154th Wing and its subordinate OG are
responsible for a trio of squadrons that
operate three different aircraft models.
The wing’s 199th FS became the second
ANG squadron to transition to the F-22A
in July 2010, but it remains the only guard
unit to be responsible for its own Raptors.
It initially operated 18 F-22As but gained
two more aircraft in 2019.
Activated by the ANG on May 24, 1946,
the squadron operated a series of fighter
aircraft, including the F-47N Thunderbolt;
F-86E/L Sabre; F-102A Delta Dagger; F-4C
Phantom II and the F-15A/C Eagle, before
transitioning to the Raptor. The unit
shares the responsibility for operating and
maintaining the ‘Hawaiian Raptors’ with
the 15th Wing’s 19th FS.
In January 1993, the 203d Air Refueling
Squadron (ARS) was activated by the
National Guard Bureau at Hickam. The unit
reports to the 154th Wing and operates
eight Boeing KC-135R Stratotankers from
THE BIG
ISLAND
The island of Hawaii is the largest and
easternmost of the state’s main islands.
Situated on the eastern coast, Hilo
International Airport is owned and operated
by the Department of Transportation.
Originally dedicated on February 11, 1928,
the facility was renamed General Lyman
Field on April 19, 1943. It honored Gen
Albert Kuali’i Brickwood Lyman, who was
the first US general of Hawaiian ancestry.
The 1,007-acre installation is one of two
major airports on the ‘Big Island’ and is home
to the Hawaii ARNG’s AASF #3. The units
assigned to this facility include Company
C, 1st Battalion, 183rd AVN, which operates
ten UH-60Ms in the assault helicopter
role. These Black Hawks are tasked with
providing air assault and air movement
Below, left: Two operations. The main body of the battalion
CH-47Fs (serials 855 is located in Idaho.
and 833) depart the
former NAS Barbers
Point en route to Maui the base. Initially, the squadron operated
and Kauai on April 13,
just four aircraft, but the fleet was
2020 Hawaii National
Guard/Sgt John expanded to include eight tankers in 1995.
Schoebel Originally established on August 1, 1994,
the 204th AS initially operated Lockheed
Below, right: An
F-22A (serial 03- C-130H2/3 Hercules tactical transports.
4050) from the Hawaii The last C-130H departed Hickam on
ANG’s 199th FS lands
February 15, 2006, and the squadron
at Andersen AFB,
Guam, during Exercise transitioned to become a classic associate
Resilient Typhoon on unit. It is aligned with the 15th Wing’s
April 22, 2019 US
535th AS and provides 40% of the flight
ANG/Senior Airman
John Linzmeier crews and maintenance personnel for
the latter’s C-17As.
Bottom: Maintenance
personnel tow HC-
130J (serial 2014) Crossroads of the Pacific
into a hangar at CGAS Kalaeloa Airport is located on the south
Barbers Point, Hawaii
shore of the island in Kapolei – roughly ten
on January 21, 2022
USCG miles west of Honolulu – and operated by
Detachment 1, Company A, 3rd Battalion,
140th AVN operates four Airbus Helicopters
UH-72A utility helicopters in the security
and surveillance role. Until it was assigned as
the Army’s primary training helicopter, the
Lakota fleet was tasked with non-combat
missions and roughly half of the rotorcraft
were assigned to the ARNG. The National
Guard’s Lakotas are tasked with conducting
aviation security, reconnaissance, support
and other operations for Homeland Security
and Defense, Counter Drug Operations,
Defense Support to Civil Authorities and
other agencies. The main body of Company
A is located in Stockton, California.
Situated at the center of the island,
between Mauna Loa, Mauna Kea and the
Hualalai Volcanic Mountains, the Pohakuloa
Training Center is a joint/combined arms
facility that serves as a live-fire training
range for US Army and USMC ground and
air units. First used in 1943, the 108,863-
acre range is the largest US Department
of Defense installation within the state of
Hawaii, or anywhere in the Pacific.
the Hawaii Department of Transportation.
From 1942 until its disestablishment on
July 1, 1999, it served as NAS Barbers Point,
and was known as the ‘Crossroads of the
Pacific’. It was home to numerous US Navy
aviation units, including around half of the
Pacific Fleet’s maritime patrol squadrons.
Originally planned to be an Outlying
Field for NAS Ford Island, Barbers Point
was established on April 15, 1942, and
was closed in accordance with the
1993 Base Realignment and Closure
commission decisions.
The airfield has been home to Coast
Guard Air Station (CGAS) Barbers Point
since 1949, when it was established as
an air facility. Known as the ‘Guardians of
the Pacific’, the station took on its current
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 33
 #13&14
STATE
REPORT HAWAII
HAWAII STATE REPORT
Location Command
Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam
94th Airlift Wing/Operations Group
154th Wing/OG
NAF Washington
USAPAT Command
Kalaeloa Airport, Oahu
14th Coast Guard District
AASF #3 Hawaii Army National Guard
Wheeler Army Airfield, Schofield Barracks
25th CAB/2-25th AVN (AHB)
‘Diamond Head’
25th CAB/3-25th AVN (GSAB)
‘Hammerheads’
25th CAB/2-6th CAV (ARS) ‘Lightning Horse’ B/2-6th CAV (AR) ‘Ghostriders’
AASF #1 Hawaii Army National Guard
MCB Hawaii/MCAS Kaneohe Bay
Marine Aircraft Group MAG-24
Hilo International Airport, Hilo
AASF #2 Hawaii Army National Guard
Naval Station Barking Sands, Kauai
Pacific Missile Range Facility
Notes: {1} Active associate unit operates F-22A assigned to the Hawaii Air National Guard’s co-located 199th FS. {2} Squadron
operates C-17A as an associate to the co-located 535th AS. {3} Squadron will be deactivated in 2022
Five MH-60Rs operated by the US Navy’s HSM-37 ‘Easyriders’ conduct a formation flight around the Island of Oahu on November 26, 2019.
The squadron deploys its Seahawks aboard Pearl Harbor-based Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyers and Ticonderoga-class
guided-missile cruisers and is home-based at MCAS Kaneohe Bay US Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Logan C Kellums
34 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
title in 1965. Reporting to the 14th Coast
Guard District, the facility operates both
Tail
Unit Aircraft
Code
Notes fixed-wing and rotary aircraft.
It is currently undergoing conversion
19th FS ‘Fighting Gamecocks’ F-22A HH {1} between the HC-130H Hercules and
65th AS ‘Special Missions Hawaii’ C-37A Lockheed Martin HC-130J Hercules
535th AS ‘Tigers’ C-17A HH models. The first example of the latter
199th FS ‘Mai Tais’ F-22A HH was delivered on June 11, 2021, when
203d ARS KC-135R HH serial 2008 arrived. The station received
204th AS C-17A HH {2} its second HC-130J on January 21, 2022,
VR-1 Det. Hawaii Star Lifters C-37A when serial 2014 touched down.
USAPAT Pacific Flight Detachment C-37A The HC-130J boasts more-advanced
capabilities than the legacy HC-130H,
MH-65E, including a 40% increase in range and a
AIRSTA Barbers Point
HC-130J
20% increase in both speed and service
B(-)/2-211th AVN (HH) CH-47F
ceiling, thus enhancing CGAS Barbers
Det. 3 C/2-641st AVN/OSACOM Det. 55 C-12U
Point’s ability to respond throughout
A/2-25th AVN (ASLT) ‘Blackjacks’ UH-60M
its Pacific Ocean area of responsibility,
B/2-25th AVN (ASLT) ‘Knighthawks’ UH-60M which covers Hawaii, Guam and American
C/2-25th AVN (ASLT) ‘Wolfpack’ UH-60M Samoa. Two additional HC-130Js should
A/3-25th AVN (CMD) ‘Stingrays’ UH-60L be delivered to the air station by the
close of this year.
B/3-25th AVN (HH) ‘Hillclimbers’ CH-47F
C/3-25th AVN (AA) ‘Lightning Dustoff’ HH-60M Barber Point’s conversion from the
A/2-6th CAV (AR) ‘Renegades’ AH-64D, RQ-7B Airbus Helicopters MH-65D to the MH-65E
AH-64D, RQ-7B Dolphin started on January 28, 2021,
C/2-6th CAV (AR) ‘Chaos’ AH-64D, RQ-7B when serial 6544 arrived at the air station
Det. 1 G/3-126th AVN (AA) UH-60A+/L aboard one of its resident HC-130Hs. The
Det. 1 G/1-189th AVN (AA) HH-60M helicopter was the 15th of 98 planned
conversions currently being carried out
HSM-37 ‘Easyriders’ MH-60R TH by the Coast Guard Aviation Logistics
VR-51 ‘Windjammers’ C-40A (RG)
Center in Elizabeth City, North Carolina.
H&HS C-20G
The Dolphin transition was completed on
HMLA-367 ‘Scarface’ UH-1Y, AH-1Z VT {3}
September 12, 2021, when serial 6513 was
HMH-463 ‘Pegasus’ CH-53E YH {3}
VMM-268 ‘Red Dragons’ MV-22B YQ
delivered to Kalaeloa Airport.
VMM-363 ‘Red Lions’ MV-22B YZ
VMU-3 ‘Phantoms’ RQ-21A Guarding the Aloha State
The Hawaii Army National Guard (ARNG)
C/1-183rd AVN (ASLT) UH-60M broke ground for the construction of a
Det. 1 A/3-140th AVN (S&S) UH-72A new Army Aviation Support Facility (AASF)
at Kalaeloa Airport in February 2015.
Air Operations Department RC-26D, EC-26D Formally opened as AASF #3 on January
11, 2018, the facility is home to Company
B(-), 2nd Battalion, 211th Aviation
Regiment (AVN), which operates six
Boeing CH-47F Chinook heavy-lift tactical
transport helicopters.
A detachment of Company B is
located in Alaska and the 2nd Battalion
headquarters is based in Utah. Previously
designated as Company B, 1st Battalion,
171st AVN, the unit completed a nine-
month deployment to Afghanistan in
support of Operation Freedom’s Sentinel
in February 2019. The company was the
first Army National Guard unit to transition
from the CH-47D to the CH-47F in 2011.
A single Beechcraft C-12U Huron is in
service with Detachment 3, Company C,
2nd Battalion, 641st AVN at AASF #3. While
it was formally dedicated in Hawaiian
tradition in October 2020, the King Air-
based C-12U arrived at Oahu in August
aboard the amphibious assault ship, USS
Essex (LHD-2). It replaced a Fairchild C-26E
Metroliner, which had been flown by the
unit since late 1992.
The unit is also known as Operational
Support Airlift Command Detachment 55,
as part of the Operational Support Airlift
Activity (OSA-A), which is headquartered
at Fort Belvoir’s Davison Army Airfield in
Virginia. Tasked with executing state-wide
and worldwide contingency missions
and fixed-wing cargo/utility priority air
transport missions, it supports the State
of Hawaii and OSA-A missions. Although
the main body of Company C is located
at JB Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska, the
battalion headquarters can be found in
Salem, Oregon.
Situated adjacent to Schofield
Barracks in Wahiawa – about 20 miles
from Honolulu – Wheeler Army Airfield
supports active-duty US Army Pacific units
assigned to the 25th Infantry Division,
along with the Hawaii ARNG. Then known
as Wheeler Field, the facility was one of
the numerous sites attacked by Imperial
Japanese Navy aircraft in December 1941.
Prior to the US involvement in World War
Two, it had become the primary base
for the Army Air Corps’ pursuit aircraft,
including the Curtiss P-36A Hawk and
P-40B/C Warhawk.
Covering 1,389 acres, the airfield was
named to honor Maj Sheldon H Wheeler
– the former commander of Ford Island’s
Luke Field – on November 1, 1922.
Wheeler was killed in the crash of an Airco
(de Havilland) DH-4B on Ford Island in July
1921. Renamed Wheeler AFB in 1947, the
facility was transferred to the US Army on
November 1, 1991, when it assumed its
current name.
Reporting to the 25th Infantry Division
and known as the ‘Wings of Lightning’,
the 25th Combat Aviation Brigade (CAB)
is responsible for five aviation battalions,
including four that are stationed at
Top left: The US Wheeler. Known as ‘Diamond Head’, the troops transitioned from the Bell OH-58D
Navy’s VR-51 2nd Battalion, 25th AVN’s three assault Kiowa Warrior to the AH-64D and Shadow
‘Windjammers’
operates a pair of helicopter companies operate 30 Sikorsky six years ago.
Boeing C-40As from UH-60M Black Hawks. Wheeler is also home to the Hawaii
MCAS Kaneohe Bay, Tasked as a General Support ARNG’s AASF #1, which supports the
Oahu USMC/Sgt Jesus
Sepulveda Torres Aviation Battalion, the 3rd Battalion operation of two detachments that are
‘Hammerheads’, 25th AVN is responsible equipped with Black Hawks and serve
Top right: MCAS for three different aircraft types, with in the air ambulance/medevac role.
Kaneohe Bay’s H&HS
is responsible for a Company A operating eight UH-60Ls in Detachment 1, Company G, 1st Battalion,
pair of C-20Gs. Known the command aviation role. The heavy- 189th AVN and Detachment 1, Company
as the ‘Gray Ghost’, lift role is assigned to Company B, which G, 3rd Battalion, 126th AVN operate
C-20G BuNo 165153
was operating in employs 12 CH-47Fs, while Company C three HH-60Ms and three UH-60A/Ls,
restricted airspace carries out air ambulance/medevac duties respectively. The latter unit was deployed
over southern with its 15 UH-60Ms. in support of Operation Inherent Resolve
California’s Chocolate
Mountain Impact Area The 6th Cavalry Regiment’s 2nd between June 2018 and May 2019.
R-2507 on June 22, Squadron is tasked as a heavy attack
2010 Ted Carlson reconnaissance unit. The ‘Lightning Kaneohe Bay
Horse’ is responsible for three troops The 2,951-acre Marine Corps Base (MCB)
equipped with 24 Boeing AH-64D Apache Hawaii is located northeast of Honolulu,
Longbow attack helicopters and three between Kaneohe and Kallua on the
Below: Personnel
from the 2nd Cavalry AAI Corporation RQ-7B systems, each Mokapu Peninsula. Forming part of the
Squadron, 6th Cavalry comprising four Shadow unmanned MCB, MCAS Kaneohe Bay is situated on
Regiment refuel one of aerial vehicles (UAVs), along with launch/ the western side of the peninsula.
the unit’s AH-64Ds at
a forward arming and recovery and other associated equipment. Construction of NAS Kaneohe Bay
refueling point at the These UAVs provide both real-time began in 1939 and the first units
Pohakuloa Training reconnaissance and target acquisition, arrived in November 1940. The station
Area on September
29, 2020 US Army/Sgt serving as force multipliers for the was commissioned in February 1941.
Sarah D Sangster Apaches on the battlefield. The cavalry At the time of the Japanese attack,
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 35
 #13&14
STATE
REPORT HAWAII
the base supported three squadrons
of Consolidated PBY-5 Catalina
maritime patrol/bomber aircraft. It was
decommissioned by the Navy in 1949,
when operations were relocated to NAS
Barbers Point.
The United States Marine Corps
(USMC) assumed control of the base in
1951 and MCAS Kaneohe Bay was soon
commissioned on January 15, 1952.
The Marine Corps consolidated all of its
installations in Hawaii on April 15, 1994. At
that time, MCAS Kaneohe Bay and Camp
H M Smith – located in Oahu and home to
the headquarters of US Pacific Command
– were consolidated under MCB Hawaii.
While it was downgraded to Marine
Corps Air Facility status on July 30, 1994,
MCAS Kaneohe Bay was re-established on
May 22, 2009. At the time, the airfield was
36 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
named Marion E Carl Field to honor the
major general who became the first USMC
fighter ace, claiming 18.5 kills during
World War Two.
By June 1999, the base had welcomed
the arrival of the US Navy’s Patrol
and Reconnaissance Wing 2 and four
Lockheed P-3 Orion units, along with
Helicopter Anti-Submarine Squadron
(Light) 37 (HSL-37), after they were
relocated due to the closure of NAS
Barbers Point.
By October 2017, three of the four Orion
squadrons had been transferred to NAS
Whidbey Island, Washington.
Patrol Squadron Special Projects
Unit 2 (VPU-2) ‘Wizards’ was the last to
depart Hawaii when it moved to NAS
Jacksonville, Florida, in April 2020 and
transitioned from the P-3C to the Boeing
P-8A Poseidon. Although no longer based
at Kaneohe Bay, these units conduct
rotational deployments to the base. Patrol
Squadron 4 (VP-4) ‘The Skinny Dragons’
was the first to support these rotational
deployments in September 2017, when a
pair of P-8As arrived at the station.
The remaining US Navy units at Kaneohe
Bay comprise Helicopter Maritime Strike
Squadron 37 (HSM-37, formerly HSL-37)
and Fleet Logistics Support Squadron
51 (VR-51). Known as the ‘Easyriders’.
HSM-37 operates 15 MH-60R Seahawks in
the expeditionary role, where it deploys
Below: A pair of aboard the Navy’s Pearl Harbor-based
USMC-operated
MV-22Bs arrive at a guided-missile destroyers and cruisers.
landing zone at the Established in June 1997, VR-51
Pohakuloa Training ‘Windjammers’ operated two Gulfstream
Area on October,
26, 2017 USMC/Sgt C-20Gs until it converted to the C-40A in
Ricky Gomez the late 2010s. The squadron’s conversion
finished on July 26, 2019, when its second
Clipper – BuNo 169792 (c/n 65395/7477) –
touched down at Kaneohe Bay.
The base is currently home to five USMC
flying squadrons that report to Marine
Air Group 24 (MAG-24). However, Marine
Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 367
(HMLA-367) and Marine Heavy Helicopter
Squadron 463 (HMH-463) are both
scheduled to stand down this year, in line
with the USMC’s Force Design 2030.
Known as ‘Scarface’, HMLA-367 arrived
in Hawaii from MCAS Camp Pendleton,
California, in September 2012 and had
operated 12 Bell UH-1Y Venom utility
helicopters and 15 AH-1Z Viper attack
helicopters from Kaneohe Bay. HMH-463
‘Pegasus’ has employed ten Sikorsky CH-
53E Super Stallions since it transitioned
from the CH-53D model in 2012. HMH-463
has been stationed at the base since 1971.

The Bell Boeing MV-22B Ospreys
operated by Marine Medium Tiltrotor
Squadron 268 (VMM-268) ‘Red
Dragons’ and VMM-363 ‘Red Lions’ will
remain at Kaneohe Bay. These Osprey
squadrons relocated from MCAS
Miramar, California, in August 2016 and
September 2019, respectively.
Also being retained is Marine
Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 3
(VMU-3). Based at Kaneohe Bay since
2014, the ‘Phantoms’ currently operate
four Boeing Insitu RQ-21A Blackjack
systems. Each platform comprises
five UAVs and two ground-control
systems, along with associated launch/
recovery and support equipment. First
flown on July 28, 2012, the Blackjack is
launched from a pneumatic launcher
and recovered via a Skyhook system,
eliminating the need for runways.
Under Force Design 2030, MAG-24 will
gain a Marine Aerial Refueler Transport
Squadron equipped with 15 KC-130J
Hercules tactical tanker/transports.
Reporting to Marine Corps Installations
Pacific (MCIPAC) G3 Aviation Branch at
MCB Camp Foster in Okinawa, Japan,
the MCAS Kaneohe Bay Headquarters
and Headquarters Squadron (H&HS)
operated a single C-20G until October
2018, when it received a second aircraft
– BuNo 165152 – from VR-51. Operating
in the OSA role, the C-20G can carry 26
passengers or 4,500lb of cargo.
The Garden Isle
Kauai is the seventh of the eight main
islands and lies at the western end of
the Hawaiian archipelago, 73 miles
northwest of Oahu. One of the few
Left: Initially based military facilities on the island is the US
at MCAS Camp
Pendleton, California, Navy’s 2,385-acre Pacific Missile Range
HMLA-367 ‘Scarface’ Facility (PMRF), Barking Sands.
relocated to MCAS Located on the island’s west coast, about
Kaneohe Bay in
September 2012. eight miles northwest of Kekaha, the PMRF
The squadron will be is the world’s largest multidimensional
deactivated before the testing and training missile range. It is the
end of 2022. An AH-
1Z and UH-1Y (BuNos only range in the world where submarines,
168399 and 168044) surface ships, aircraft, missiles and space
from the unit are vehicles can operate together. Offshore,
seen here operating
over the Marine Corps the facility is not only responsible for more
Air Ground Combat than 42,000 square miles of controlled
Center in Twentynine airspace but also 1,150 square miles of
Palms, California, on
October 16, 2011 underwater space.
Ted Carlson The base’s 6,000ft runway was once
a privately owned airfield, which was
established as Mana Airport by Hawaii’s
Territorial Aeronautics Commission in
1928. That June, the famed Australian
aviator, Charles Kingsford Smith, refueled
his Fokker F.VIIb/3m triplane (named
‘Southern Cross’) at the airfield during
his historic transpacific flight between
Oakland, California, and Australia.
Expansion began in the late 1930s, and
Mana Airport was used by Inter-Island
Airways (which later became Hawaiian
Airlines), and occasionally by Pan
American Airways.
Mana Airport was taken over by the
Below: A pair of
MV-22Bs (led by US Army in 1940 and commissioned as
BuNo 168008) from Barking Sands Air Base in June 1942. The
VMM-363 conduct base was used heavily by the US Army Air
operations over South
Dakota during a long- Force, US Navy and USMC throughout
range cross-country World War Two, and was renamed
flight on September Barking Sands AFB on March 26, 1948,
30, 2013. The ‘Red
Lions’ were based before being inactivated in 1949. It was
at Miramar at the officially reactivated and redesignated
time, but relocated to Bonham AFB in June 1953, and the Navy
MCAS Kaneohe Bay in
September 2019 began testing its Chance Vought SSM-N-8
Ted Carlson Regulus I cruise missile there in 1956.
In February 1957, the Navy assumed
responsibility for operating and
maintaining the base and it established
the PMRF Hawaiian Area there in 1962. In
1964, the service took ownership of both
the PMRF and Bonham, which had been
renamed Auxiliary Landing Field Bonham.
At that time, the facility became PMRF
Barking Sands.
Testing at the PMRF is supported by
the facility’s air operations department,
which operates two Fairchild RC-26Ds and
a single EC-26D. Based on the Metro 23
turboprop-driven regional airliner, these
aircraft were acquired from the USAF in
1998 to replace a pair of Beechcraft RC-
12Fs. The first of three aircraft arrived at
the PMRF on August 18, 1999.
Acting as a range surveillance aircraft
(RANSAC), the Metroliners are equipped
with the AN/APS-140(V)5 RANSAC radar
system. In addition to range surveillance,
these aircraft provide electronic warfare,
missile range clearance capability and
logistical support for the PMRF.
Additional support for the PMRF is
provided by the Croman Corporation,
which operates a pair of Sikorsky S-61N
helicopters under a commercial air
services contract. Headquartered in White
City, Oregon, Croman has supported
the PMRF by providing passenger/cargo
transportation and target retrieval services
since 2006, when the Navy withdrew its
own Sikorsky UH-3Hs from the facility.
Hawaii may be among the smallest,
and newest, American states, but this
remote collection of islands, slap bang
in the middle of the Pacific Ocean has a
strategical and historical importance that
belies its size.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 37
 #13&14
STATE
REPORT IDAHO

SPARKLING
GEMSContinuing our US state-by-state review,
Tom Kaminski looks into the air assets
located in mineral-rich Idaho

38 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

A
N ABUNDANCE OF gem
stones and minerals led to
Idaho being nicknamed
the Gem State. Located
in the Pacific Northwest
region of the United States,
Idaho is the 14th largest but the 13th
least populated of the 50 states. It
borders Montana and Wyoming to the
east and northeast, Nevada and Utah
to the south, and Washington and
Oregon to the west. At its narrowest
north point, Idaho, which achieved
statehood in 1890, also shares a 45-mile
border with the Canadian province of
British Columbia. Idaho is known for
mountainous landscapes, and large
areas of protected wilderness
and outdoor recreation areas.
Meanwhile, the state capital, Boise, is
Idaho’s largest city.
Situated three miles south of downtown,
Boise Airport was opened in 1938. The
facility was later named Gowen Field,
on July 29, 1941, to honor 1st Lt Paul R
Gowen – an Idaho native and graduate
of the US Military Academy at West Point.
Gowen was killed during the crash of an
Army Air Corps Martin B-10 bomber in
Panama in July 1938.
Beginning in 1941, the US Army
Air Force (USAAF) used the newly
constructed airfield as a training base
for Boeing B-17 and Consolidated B-24
bomber crews. Between 1943 and 1945,
nearly 15,000 men were trained at Gowen.
The base’s USAAF instructors included
acclaimed actor Jimmy Stewart, who went
Idaho Air National on to fly B-24s in the European theater
Guard A-10C serial and attained the rank of Brigadier General
80-0250 pops flares
during a training in the US Air Force Reserve. The airfield
sortie over the Utah was closed when the war ended and,
Test and Training in 1946, it was turned over to the city of
Range on February 25,
2016 Jim Haseltine Boise. Today, the airport is a joint-use civil
and military facility, operated by the city’s
Department of Aviation.
124th Fighter Wing
Located on the south side of the airport,
the Gowen Field Air National Guard
(ANG) Base is home to the 124th Fighter
Wing. The wing’s 190th Fighter Squadron
received Federal recognition on October
13, 1946, and was allotted to the Idaho
Air National Guard. The unit was initially
equipped with North American P-51Ds.
Called up for active-duty service as part
of the Korean War activations in April
1951, the squadron was returned to state
control on January 1, 1953, and
re-equipped with F-51H Mustangs.
In late 1953, the squadron received
jet-powered fighters when it converted
to the North American F-86A. Over
the next 11 years, the 190th Fighter
Interceptor Squadron progressed
through a series of fighters that
included the Lockheed F-94B, Northrop
F-89B, F-86L, and Convair F-102A.
IDAHO
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 39
 #13&14
STATE
REPORT IDAHO

Above: A pair of ‘Skull In 1975, a new mission arrived with the

Bangers’ represented McDonnell Douglas RF-4C and a new
by A-10C serials
78-0628 and 80-0250 designation as a Tactical Reconnaissance
operate above low Squadron. As part of its subsequent
mountains and plains conversion to the F-4G variant of the
over the Utah Test
and Training Range. Phantom, the unit became the 190th
The Idaho Air National Tactical Fighter Squadron on October 16,
Guard’s Thunderbolt 1991. The squadron transitioned to the
IIs are operated by
the 124th Fighter Fairchild Republic A-10A in 1996 and the
Wing’s 190th last F-4Gs departed Boise on April 20,
Fighter Squadron 1996, marking the end of the Phantom’s
Jim Haseltine
operational career with the USAF.
Today, the 190th Fighter Squadron,
Left: Displaying its which has the nickname ‘Skull Bangers’,
newly applied World reports to the 124th Fighter Wing as part
War Two heritage
paint scheme, Idaho of the 124th Operations Group.
Air National Guard
A-10C serial 78-0618
banks away from a
Battle history
KC-135R operated by Idaho’s A-10As first saw combat during
the Iowa Air National Operation Allied Force in 1999, when
Guard’s 185th ARW, they flew combat missions over Kosovo.
during its return flight
to Boise on May 11, The unit was already deployed to Kuwait
2021. The special supporting Operation Southern Watch
paint scheme marked when it was called to combat again for
the 190th Fighter
Squadron’s 75th Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003. The
Anniversary US Air squadron made subsequent deployments
National Guard/SSgt to Iraq in 2007 and Afghanistan in 2008,
Mercedee Wilds
which also marked its last with the A-10A.
The unit was then converted to the
Left: Parked on the A-10C and was declared combat ready
ramp in front of with the updated variant in 2010. A 2016
building 1530 at deployment marked the unit’s first in
the Gowen Field Air
National Guard Base, support of Operation Inherent Resolve.
A-10C serial 78-0618 During that deployment, the squadron
displays its newly flew 1,769 combat sorties.
applied World War
Two heritage paint Most recently, the 190th Expeditionary
scheme on May Fighter Squadron deployed to Southwest
24, 2021 Asia in May 2020 to support Operation
US Air National
Guard/SMSgt Joshua Freedom Sentinel, Operation Inherent
C Allmaras Resolve and Operation New Normal.

40 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

The unit returned to Idaho four months
later, that September.

Army neighbors
Located adjacent to the ANG facility,
the Idaho Army National Guard’s
Aviation Support Facility (AASF) is
home to several units, including the
headquarters for the 1st Battalion,
183rd Aviation Regiment.
Units operating from the
AASF include Company A and
B of the 1st battalion, which
operate 20 Sikorsky Black Hawks in the
assault helicopter role. Both companies
completed the transition to the UH-60M
variant when the final pair of helicopters
arrived in Boise on January 22, 2022.
The battalion’s transition to the UH-60M
began in 2019 and it accepted its first new
Black Hawk in June 2020.
Previously designated as an attack
reconnaissance battalion, the 1-183rd
had operated the AH-64A as such until
January 2012, when the AH-64D variant
was assigned. Under the Army’s Aviation
Restructure Initiative, the Apaches were
exchanged for UH-60A/L Black Hawks in
Above: A-10C serials 80-0250 and 78-0628 display a formidable weapons load that includes laser and imaging infrared-guided AGM-65
2016. The last five AH-64Ds assigned to Maverick missiles, 500lb laser guided GBU-12 bombs, AIM-9 Sidewinder missile, LANTIRN targeting and AN/ALQ-119 jamming pods. The
the battalion left Boise on July 21, 2016. Thunderbolt IIs are operated by the 190th Fighter Squadron as part of the Idaho Air National Guard’s 124th Fighter Wing Jim Haseltine
Also located at the AASF, Detachment 1,
Below: In August 2020, the Idaho National Guard sent three UH-60Ls and personnel from Gowen Field to assist in battling the California
Company G, 1st Battalion, 168th Aviation wildland fires. The crew of UH-60L serial 89-26173 conducts training with a ‘bambi bucket’, designed specifically for aerial firefighting, in
Regiment operates the UH-60A/L in the advance of the deployment on August 26, 2020 US National Guard/MSgt Becky Vanshur
air ambulance role. The main body of
the company is based in Santa Fe, New
Mexico, and the battalion headquarters
is located at Joint Base Lewis-McChord
in Washington. Another air ambulance
unit known as Detachment 1, Company
D, 1st Battalion, 112th Aviation Regiment
operates two Airbus Helicopters UH-
72A light utility helicopters. The
headquarters for the company and
the battalion are both located in
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

Airlifting and firefighting

The final unit stationed at the Boise facility
currently operates a single Beechcraft
C-12R. The King Air is assigned to
Detachment 3, Company C, 2nd Battalion,
245th Aviation Regiment, which is also
known as OSACOM Detachment 35 as
part of the Operational Support Airlift
Activity (OSA-A).
The fixed-wing unit conducts both
statewide and worldwide contingency
missions, and fixed-wing, cargo/utility
priority air transport missions, as directed
by the OSA-A, which is headquartered on Operated by the Idaho Army National Guard’s Detachment 1, Company D, 1st
Davison Army Airfield at Fort Belvoir in Battalion, 112th Aviation Regiment, UH-72A serial 10-72152 hover-taxies during
northern Virginia. a training exercise at Gowen Field in 2019 US Air National Guard/Ryan White

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 41

 #13&14
STATE
REPORT IDAHO
Boise Airport is also home to the
National Interagency Fire Center
(NIFC), which co-ordinates the national
mobilization of resources for wildland
fire and other incidents throughout
the United States. Opened in 1969 and
dedicated on July 25, 1970, it initially
merged duplicate operations of the US
Department of the Interior’s Bureau of
Land Management, the US Department of
Agriculture’s US Forest Services (USFS) and
the National Weather Service.
The center’s functions have expanded
greatly, however, the NIFC remains the
nation’s support center for wildland
firefighting. It also supports numerous
emergency responses, including floods,
hurricanes, earthquakes, volcanic
eruptions, riots and terrorist attacks.
During the wildfire season, the NIFC ramp
serves as the Boise Airtanker Base, which is
operated by the USFS.
Meanwhile, the 143,000-acre Orchard
Combat Training Center is a premier joint
combined arms training site located 18
miles south of Boise. Managed by the
42 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
Idaho Army National Guard, the site’s Above, left: A pair Home Army Air Field on December 2 that
Digital Air Ground Integrated Range of AH-64Es from year. The base supported the training
the US Army’s 1st
enables air and ground units to train of bombardment crews for the B-24.
Battalion, 229th
together and offers pop-up and moving Aviation Regiment Although placed on inactive status in
targets that provide pilots and helicopter prepare to land at October 1945, it reopened as Mountain
the Orchard Combat
gunners with more realistic training than Home AFB on December 12, 1948.
Training Center in
most ranges. 2016 US Army/ In 1953, the base was assigned to the
In July 2021, the Republic of Singapore Capt Brian Harris Strategic Air Command (SAC), which
Air Force’s Peace Vanguard detachment Above, right: F-15E initially stationed B-29 bombers and KB-
serial 88-1705,
completed a month-long deployment to serving as the 389th
29 tankers at Mountain Home. Although
the center, during which its AH-64D crews Fighter Squadron it later supported Boeing B-47 and KC-97
conducted aerial gunnery training. flagship, going bombers and tankers, in early 1966 the
nearly vertical over
the Saylor Creek
base was transferred from SAC to the
Mountain Home AFB Range on May 18, Tactical Air Command (TAC). Under the
Mountain Home Air Force Base (AFB) is 2016 Jim Haseltine TAC, the base supported the 67th Tactical
the only active military aviation facility Below: A-10C serial Reconnaissance Wing from January 1966
78-0703 from
in Idaho. It is located about 40 miles the 190th Fighter to July 1971 and the 347th Tactical Fighter
southeast of Boise. It is one of two Squadron executes Wing (TFW) from May 1971 until October
stateside bases that support operationally an austere landing on 1972, when the 366th TFW arrived with
the Freedom Landing
tasked Boeing F-15E Strike Eagles. The Strip at the National three squadrons of General Dynamics
366th Fighter Wing has been the host Training Center, Fort F-111F fighter bombers.
wing on the Air Combat Command base Irwin, California, in Over a ten-year period that began
June 2019 US Army
since October 1972. National Guard/ Sgt in 1991, the 366th served as USAF’s
Mountain Home Army Air Base was Mason Cutrer premier ‘air intervention’
formally opened on August 7, 1943,
but was renamed Mountain
RSAF IN IDAHO
The Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF)
has stationed personnel at Mountain Home
since May 2009, when the USAF activated
the 428th Fighter Squadron in support of
the Peace Carvin V program.
Known as the ‘Buccaneers’, the squadron
operates the Boeing F-15SG and
provides advanced weapons and tactics
continuation training for RSAF pilots,
weapon systems officers and maintenance
personnel. USAF and RSAF personnel are
assigned to the squadron.

composite wing. During that period, Above: Mountain Electronic Combat Squadron (ECS) ‘Wild the Idaho Air National Guard’s 266th
Home flagships F-15E
the wing had five squadrons that were serials 90-0233,
Boars’ report to the 366th OG as a GSU. Range Squadron. Although located at
respectively equipped with the F-16C, 88-1705, 88-1707; Although the squadron had operated Mountain Home AFB, the squadron is a
F-15E fighters, B-1B bombers and KC- F-15SG serial 05- the single-seat F-15C as the 390th FS, the GSU assigned to the Air National Guard’s
2005, and EA-18G
135R tankers. In 2002, the B-1Bs were BuNo 168893 over
last Eagles departed Mountain Home on 124th Fighter Wing. The complex features
relocated to Ellsworth AFB, South Dakota. Saylor Creek Range in September 23, 2010. Just four days later, 9,600sq miles of airspace and 122,000
The KC-135Rs were distributed to other 2016 Jim Haseltine the unit assumed its current identity. The acres of land that stretches over parts of
squadrons that year, and the wing took squadron is tasked to provide aircrew Idaho, Oregon and Utah. It includes the
on its current title. Below: B-1B serial for the US Navy’s expeditionary EA-18G 109,466 acre Saylor Creek and 12,100
Known as the ‘Gunfighters’, the wing’s 86-0118 from the Growler electronic attack squadrons in acre Juniper Butte Bombing Ranges. The
34th Bomb Squadron
366th OG is currently responsible for three over the Grand Canyon support of the Joint Airborne Electronic former is situated on a prairie around 25
squadrons at Mountain Home and another during a mission while Attack Program. miles southeast of Mountain Home AFB
that reports as a Geographically Separated assigned to the 366th Responsibility for the Mountain and is one of the most advanced bombing
Wing at Mountain
Unit (GSU). The 389th Fighter Squadron Home Ted Carlson Home Range Complex is assigned to ranges in the country.
‘Thunderbirds’ operated the F-16C until
March 2007, when the last Fighting Falcons
departed and the squadron transitioned to
the F-15E Strike Eagle.
The 391st FS ‘Bold Tigers’ has operated
the F-15E since 1992, when it was
activated to operate the ‘Mud Hen’. Like
the 389th FS, the unit is responsible for 24
F-15Es. The ‘Bold Tigers’ became the first
operational unit to deliver the GBU-53/B
StormBreaker small-diameter bomb on
November 2, 2021, when four F-15Es
dropped the weapons during a mission
over the Utah Test and Training Range. The
F-15E Strike Eagle can carry up to 28 of the
250lb precision-guided munitions.
Although stationed at Naval Air Station
Whidbey Island, Washington, the 390th

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 43

 BASE REPORT // FRENCH HORN

EXCLUSIVE
PHOTOGRAPHY
OPPORTUNITY
It is true that both the USA and France
brings intriguingly
asse ts and capa cities to Djibo uti. The French offer four
different
and three Pum a helicopters of the
Mirages 2000-5, a Casa 235,
army lines up three Gaze lles and four Pumas. For
air force. The
s have two USA F C-130Js and two
their part, the American force
30s. They also line up half a doze n USMC MV-22s.
USMC KC-1
aircraft operated on site:
The author did not see the many ISR
, but also prob ably two Dash 8s fully loaded with
Beech 350s
a favo urite of the CJTF-HoA, now
sensors. Armed Reapers are
the Fren ch airpo rt of Chab elley about 10km from
used from
rt. Wha t was origi nally a back-up
Djibouti’s international airpo
beco me a Reap er nest . Surv eillan ce, intelligence and
field has
this area and from Camp
strike operations are controlled from
Lemonnier in Djibouti.

44 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

 FRENCH
HORN
Djibouti calls the tune for French
forces in the Horn of Africa, offering
a secure base in a volatile region.
Jean-Marc Tanguy was granted
exclusive access in January 2022

D
JIBOUTI AIR BASE 188 is
the central hub of French
strategy in the North African
region. France has remained
active there since the 1930s
because it offers an excellent
observational outlook over the whole
region, as well as being a useful link to
overseas territories such as the island of
La Réunion (in the south Indian Ocean),
New Caledonia and French Polynesia.
France has also an air base (BA104) in
the UAE, deploying seven Rafales.
Above: Escadron de Since 1992 and the fall of the then
chasse 1/4 Gascogne government in neighboring Somalia,
is tasked for nuclear
deterrence missions Djibouti has become even more
but has also many significant. The Americans arrived in 2001,
conventional missions post 9/11. The Pentagon had to deal
with the
full spectrum with terrorist groups operating in Yemen,
of munitions where the destroyer Cole had been
Morgane Vallé/
French Air Force
attacked a year earlier by an Al Qaeda
team. Somalia’s Al-Shabab militia was
another factor.
Since then, the Combined Joint Task
Force Horn of Africa (CJTF-HoA) has
grown in importance and now has 5,000
American soldiers bunkered in a district
they rarely leave. Despite this, France (with
only 1,450 military personnel) is central to
Djibouti's stability, as defense agreements
were negotiated with the Djibouti state on
its independence in 1977.
French air assets
At that time, French jets were diverse,
but there were subsequent changes:
the F-100s Super Sabres were replaced
by Mirage IIIICs, then Mirage F1Cs, then
Mirage 2000Cs and Mirage 2000Ds.

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 45

 BASE REPORT // FRENCH HORN
The Mirage 2000Ds left Djibouti to
reinforce ongoing operations in Iraq and
Niger in 2015. They never returned. The
five Mirage 2000Cs were replaced by four
Mirage 2000-5s, thereby meeting the
Djibouti state’s need to be able to police
the skies.
In terms of weaponry, it is ready to use. It
comprises 30mm guns and air-to-air MICA
missiles with active infrared guidance and
active radar and can be used in support
of the 650 soldiers of 5th Overseas Joint
Army Regiment (RIAOM) that France is
deploying there.
The aircraft can take off in a few minutes
– mechanics and pilots are already
experienced in Quick Reaction Alert (QRA)
in France, thanks to dealing with air piracy
cases or Russian jets probing French
airspace (having been intercepted by
Norwegian and RAF jets).
In addition, from time to time the French
Air and Space Force (Armée de l'Air et de
46 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
l'Espace) sends aircraft for long-distance Above: Escadron de also enables fighter pilots to get to
raids towards the island of La Réunion. chasse 3/11 Corse know support procedures inside out.
has four Mirage
2000-5s. Two more Meanwhile, the SOF (Special Operations
Diverse and complex came from France Forces) are accustomed to working with
mission themes to participate in the
Shikra exercise that
the air force.
With such numbers, the crews can carry took place at the start New support procedures (ECAS or
out complex missions, including aerial of this year Emergency Close Air Support) were
combat between French forces, as well as Morgane Vallé/ developed there in 2003, before the
French Air Force
long-range attack missions, air-to-ground deployment of 200 commandos to
fire support, and reconnaissance. southern Afghanistan. It came at a cost: a
Right: 11 Rafales are
The topography of the of the region is used overseas : four Mirage 2000D was lost with its two pilots
also a benefit and Djibouti offers multiple in Jordan, seven in in a near-ground collision, at night.
environments in which to diversify mission the UAE. These flew Djibouti has a very extensive air-to-
to La Réunion, before
themes, from desert landscapes and joining Djibouti Air ground firing range, Maryam Koron,
medium-altitude mountains to sea and Base and returning
coastline. All missions are conducted in to France with a long
stop in Egypt, another
English, despite French being spoken Rafale user
in Djibouti. Morgane Vallé/
It is this blend that makes Djibouti so French Air Force
valuable for French forces. On the ground,
several dozen French navy commandos Below: USMC operates
less than ten MV22s
(equivalent to the US Navy SEALs) are in the area
permanently deployed on site, which CJTF Horn of Africa
also used by American forces. The Mirage
2000D previously mentioned was lost
there, with a SOF team training in the
area. The French Air Force finds these
highly realistic workouts "very helpful" in
preparing for high intensity and to “win
the war before the war occurs”, the motto
of the new Chief of the Joint Staff, General
Thierry Burkhard.
Djibouti is the only calm country in the
region, and the French have nurtured
good habits there. Other tactics have been Maritime Patrol Aircraft (MPAs) were also Above: The French Air undoubtedly more oriented towards
developed since 2003, enabling success able to carry out missions from Djibouti Force regularly trains electronic warfare than counter-piracy and
at night for complex
each time the Air Force has opened up at the time, such as the French Navy ATL2. missions. Operation maritime surveillance.
– often working alone – new theaters of One had to land urgently in Yemen in April Hamilton against the
operations. This was the case on March 19, 2008 on a single engine, after the release Syrian regime (April
2018) was led under
Visible evidence
2011, in Libya, or in Mali in January 2013, of 32 French hostages aboard a luxury the night curtain. This Camp Lemonnier houses civilian and
or even in Iraq in September 2014 after a yacht, the Ponant. Mirage 2000-5 was military intelligence specialists and the
surge by Daesh. Since then, other MPAs have joined the used to protect high Africom theater command. The multiple
value assets
ATL2 (now less regular in the territory); the Jean-Marc Tanguy visible antennas attest to operations of
Wider regional missions Spanish P-3 remains, as did the German
Below: A line-up of
this type. The segregation of aircraft traffic
France also prioritizes this base because P-3 until 2021. At the other end of the aircraft at the base from UAV crews was decided after several
it allows operations to be carried out runway, Japan deployed two P3s to a aérienne 188 parking, UAV accidents on the runway of Djibouti’s
throughout eastern Africa. Army Puma different detachment at Air Base 188. And including a Rafale, an civil airport, restricting civil and military
ATL-2 and a Spanish
helicopters were sent to Mali in 2021, on the other side of the runway, a US Navy Air Force P3 Orion traffic. Therefore, it is very difficult to gain
while the NH90s were undergoing P-8 Poseidon carries out episodic missions, Jean-Marc Tanguy an accurate idea of Reaper activity by the
maintenance periods.
The special forces radiate throughout
the region, being used frequently against
pirates between 2005 and 2012, and
to accompany ships that were being
threatened by Somali pirates. Three
releases of hostages at sea were carried
out in 2007-2008 from Djibouti, with drops
of French Navy commandos in the open
sea. More than 40 French hostages have
been saved in three different operations.

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 47

 BASE REPORT // FRENCH HORN

Above: A French Air USAF in Djibouti. Neither the CJTF-HoA of this kind carried out since 1962, almost Rafales capable of air-to-ground and
Force C-135FR air-to- nor the French offered a comment. exclusively in Africa. Aircraft would have reconnaissance missions and a very
air refueling aircraft
lands at Djibouti after
On the other hand, American air activity come from France, because the Casa 235 long-range firing capability with the
a seven-hour flight is visible from the civilian airport, or its is only an immediate reaction capability, Meteor; not to mention, of course, hitting
from its home base in fences. The author witnessed Beeches and but has no self-protection system, only from long range, with the Scalp-EG and
Istres, France
Jean-Marc Tanguy
the Dash 8 taking off daily. The C130s are additional armor for the cockpit. the Exocet.
also quite active. MV22s are rarer. The air force Pumas, on the other hand,
In 2021, together with the C130s, they are old aircraft linked to the Combat Sending a clear message
were almost involved in a potential Search and Rescue mission and can This kind of capability has a wide
NEO operation in neighboring therefore, in a few hours, receive purpose and it sends a clear message
Ethiopia. The troubles linked to the additional boxes. This is also the case to competitors in the region, including
Tigray conflict have led the French for the seven helicopters of the army. the Chinese who have opened a naval
Below: Six maritime
patrol aircraft, ATL2 and the Americans to consider According to General Stéphane base and want to base three helicopter
upgraded to the repatriating their nationals in danger, Dupont, commander of the French squadrons there.
Standard 6 are in but in the end, no operations were forces in Djibouti, current resources The Air and Space Force also recently
service in the French
Navy. This aircraft carried out there. will all be replaced by 2030. Rafales sent Crotale NG and Aster 30 surface-to-
fitted with a MX20 Everything was ready to do so if will be sent instead of Mirage 2000- air missiles for the first time, a possible
turret can be seen required, though. The French have 5s, making it possible to significantly alternative if the Rafales are not deemed
taxiing at base
aérienne 188 very advanced expertise in this increase the capacities of French essential by the Djibouti state. The
Jean-Marc Tanguy field, with several dozen operations forces in Djibouti (FFDJ) with all force’s Pumas will be replaced by 2024

48 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

by two H225M Caracal, providing a
clear capacity gain. This aircraft is used
in France for SOF missions, combat
SAR, and DGSE (General Directorate
for External Security) operations – and
therefore offers wider scope.
SOF units already come very regularly
to Djibouti for training with Transal,
Hercules, and Twin Otter aircraft, as
well as helicopters. They often use the
helicopters present on site. However, the
army will also modernize its equipment
on site. The Pumas will be replaced by
NH90s by 2025. The Gazelles are set to
stay beyond 2030, and will be the last
French models to fly, equipping the
SOF within the 4th RHFS. The Cheetah
(H160M) will follow.
The use of intelligence capabilities on
a permanent basis is not envisaged at
Above: One of this stage. But the new Beech 350s, called
the two Japanese Vader in the air force, received special
P-3s that flies the
surrounding area
testing in Djibouti in summer 2021.
daily to track piracy Depending on the crisis, the French
movements Air and Space Force knows that it can
Jean-Marc Tanguy
count on Djibouti because the available
aprons are huge and the covered areas
can accommodate more aircraft. The
ammunition depot also has space.
Djibouti is therefore an essential link
in the string of African bases, which also
includes Dakar (Senegal), Abidjan (Ivory
Coast), Niamey (Niger), N'Djamena
(Chad), Libreville (Gabon) and the island
Below: French of La Réunion.
Air Force Mirage
2000-5s are tasked It is for this reason that the FFDJ is
with air policing traditionally commanded by a general.
the Djiboutian sky Stéphane Dupont has very strong
during the day
and night. operational experience and in Djibouti
Jean-Marc Tanguy has further developed co-operation with
the CJTF-HoA. Every week, his Mirage
2000-5s refuel on American KC-130Js.
Exercises are carried out regularly to
strengthen interoperability between
infantry and aircraft.
Is intelligence part
of the exchanges?
The two generals will not say, but the
French and Americans are the two most
expeditionary nations in the world today,
and clearly both men are ready to do
more. On previous visits, the author has
seen joint training of snipers and gunners.
Other themes are planned for 2022.
Transit A B-1B and JSF have already clearly
shown the Americans' attachment to
this ideally located piece of Africa. And
they have no intention of leaving it to the
Chinese or the Russians.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 49
 REPORT // F-5 TIGER II
ADVERSARIAL
FREEDOM
FIGHTER
Development of the F-5 began in 1954,
when Northrop Aircraft launched the
N-256 program. It initially received
a contract to produce the two-seat
N-256T model, which became the
T-38A Talon, in June 1956. Production
of three single-seat N-156F lightweight
fighter prototypes and a single static test
airframe was subsequently authorized
by the USAF in May 1958.
The first prototype flew at Edwards
AFB, California, on July 20, 1959. On April
23, 1962, the USAF selected the F-5A to
fulfill its requirement for an international
fighter that would be supplied to
friendly nations under the US Military
Assistance Program (MAP). The F-5A was
formally named the Freedom Fighter on
August 9, 1962.
The first production F-5A flew in
October 1963 and the two-seat F-5B
50 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
The Northrop Grumman F-5 Tiger II has supported naval aviation
training since 1975. Tom Kaminski explains how the platform has
remained a core asset for training US combat pilots
F-5s
followed in February 1964. Deliveries
began on April 30, 1964, when the
first jets were accepted by the 4441st
Combat Crew Training Squadron at
Williams AFB, Arizona. Capable of
carrying up to 5,500lb of ordnance and
fuel externally, the F-5A had a top speed
of Mach 1.4 at 36,000ft and a service
ceiling of 50,700ft.
The Freedom Fighter first saw combat
following the arrival
of the USAF’s 4503rd
Tactical Fighter Squadron
(Provisional) at Bien Hoa Air Base,
Republic of Vietnam, under Project
Skoshi Tiger, on October 23, 1965.
Assigned the designation F-5C, the 12
fighters were equipped with armor
plating and aerial refueling probes.
Redesignated as the 10th Fighter
(Commando) Squadron in March 1966,
the squadron’s Freedom Fighters were
eventually turned over to the RVNAF
in June 1967. The air arm eventually
received more than 170 F-5As, RF-5As
and F-5Bs.
I
ntroduced in 1975, Northrop
Grumman’s Tiger II has supported
naval aviation training and still does to
this day. This commenced when ten
single-seat F-5Es and three two-seat
F-5Fs first entered service with the
Navy Fighter Weapons School ‘Topgun’
at Naval Air Station (NAS) Miramar,
California, and fighter squadron VF-43 at
NAS Oceana, Virginia, serving as adversary
platforms to simulate enemy aircraft.
The jets were part of a large group that
was originally operated by or intended
for the Republic of Vietnam (South
Vietnamese) Air Force (RVNAF). The later to the US Navy. As a result, Tiger IIs were
acquisition of 22 F-16Ns and four TF-16N assigned to VF-45 at NAS Key West,
F-5N serial 761534 two-seat trainers by the US Navy and the Florida, and marine fighter training
operated by the
‘Saints’ of fighter lease of IAI F-21A Kfirs from Israel resulted squadron VMFT-401 at Marine Corps Air
squadron composite in the transfer of the navy’s original F-5s Station (MCAS) Yuma, Arizona, in 1989.
VFC-13 flying over to VF-126 at NAS Miramar in 1985 and Today, the Tiger II serves in the adversary
Nevada near NAS
Fallon during a strike fighter squadron VFA-127 at NAS role with three squadrons within the US
training mission on Fallon, Nevada in 1987. Naval and Marine Corps Reserve.
March 30, 2007. Many Tiger IIs were also operated by
The Tiger II is one of
44 acquired from four USAF aggressor squadrons from The Tiger II
Switzerland and 1975 to 1990. Replacement of the USAF On November 20, 1970, the USAF
previously carried jets with F-16Cs and a later reduction selected the Northrop’s updated F-5A-
the Swiss Air Force
serial number J-3009 in the service's aggressor fleet made 21 to fulfill a new requirement for an
Ted Carlson additional aircraft available for transfer international fighter aircraft (IFA). Assigned
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 51
 REPORT STYLE // FEATURE NAME
the designation F-5E on December 28,
1970, the fighter was powered by two
5,190lb-st General Electric J85-GE-21B
turbojets in place of the F-5A/B's J85-
GE-13 engines. The F-5E retained around
75% commonality with the F-5A, but
featured a longer and wider fuselage,
increased wing area, larger wing leading
edge roots extensions (LERX), variable
maneuvering flaps, a two-position nose
landing gear and increased fuel capacity.
Although it retained the F-5A’s twin
20mm M39A2 cannons with 280 rounds
each, it was equipped an integrated fire
Now displayed at NAS Fallon in Nevada, F-5E BuNo 160796
was assigned to fighter squadron VF-43 at NAS Oceana,
Virginia, in April 1983. The Tiger II was originally delivered
to the Republic of Vietnam Air Force Tom Kaminski
52 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
control system that coupled an Emerson
Electric AN/APQ-153 pulse-doppler radar
to a lead-computing gunsight. Later
aircraft were equipped with the improved
AN/APQ-159 radar that doubled the
range of the earlier variant, increased
off-boresight tracking angles and offered
increased reliability.
The initial F-5E was rolled out at
Northrop’s facility in Hawthorne, California,
on June 23, 1972, and it flew for the
first time at Edwards AFB, on August 11
the same year. Although the first four
prototypes were produced in Hawthorne,
the fifth and all subsequent production
were built at Northrop in Palmdale,
California. Production deliveries began
on April 4, 1973, when the first F-5E was
accepted by the 425th Tactical Fighter
Training Squadron at Williams AFB. By
Above: US Marine September 1973, the formal training unit
Corps F-5E serial had received 20 F-5Es. The F-5E delivered
73-0881 operated by the capability to carry 7,000lb of
the ‘Snipers’ of Marine
fighter training ordnance and fuel externally, had a service
squadron VMFT-401 ceiling of 51,800ft and a top speed of
conducts a training Mach 1.63 at 36,000ft.
mission over Arizona
near MCAS Yuma Development of a two-seat variant
Ted Carlson under the designation F-5F began in

April 1973. First flown at Edwards AFB on
September 25, 1974, the F-5F was 3.5ft
longer than the F-5E and its reduced
armament included just a single M39
cannon. Deliveries of the two-seater
began in April 1976.
Northrop produced 792 F-5Es, 140
F-5Fs and 12 RF-5E reconnaissance
models. In addition, the Aerospace
Industrial Development Corporation
(AIDC) produced 242 F-5Es and 66 F-5Fs
in Taiwan. Another 85 F-5Es and six F-5Fs
were produced by the Federal Aircraft
Factory in Switzerland and Korean Air
assembled 48 of the former and 20 of the
OPERATORS
Snipers
A component of the Marine Corps
Reserve's 4th Marine Aircraft Wing and
Marine aircraft group MAG-41, Marine
Fighter Training Squadron (VMFT)-401
‘Snipers’ was activated at MCAS Yuma,
on March 18, 1986. The 'Snipers' initially
operated 13 leased IAI F-21A Kfirs
that arrived in June 1987. VMFT-401
transitioned to the F-5E Tiger II in April
1989, initially receiving ex-USAF aircraft.
The first F-5Ns arrived in June 2004.
Currently, the unit operate ten F-5Ns and
one F-5F. In addition to local training,
VMFT-401 conducts detachments to
support operations at other bases.
Saints
Stationed at NAS Fallon, Nevada, since
relocating from NAS Miramar in April
1996, fighter squadron composite
squadron (VFC)-13 is assigned to the
Naval Reserve's Tactical Support Wing
(TSW). The arrival of the ‘Saints’ at
Fallon coincided with the squadron's
transition from the F/A-18A to the F-5E.
Replacement of the F-5E by the more
latter. Northrop delivered the final Tiger II
to Bahrain on January 16, 1987.
F-5F serial 761580 The US Navy's initial Tiger IIs were
from fighter squadron originally part of an order destined for
composite VFC-13
operating over the service with the RVNAF. A group of four
Atlantic Ocean F-5Es arrived at Bien Hoa Air Base in March
near NAS Key West, 1974, with plans calling for delivery of as
Florida, on December
8, 2011. Referred to many as 150 Tiger IIs to South Vietnam
as a ‘Franken-Tiger’, by March 1975. Only 49 had arrived in
the F-5F is actually country before the government collapsed
a combined airframe
that mated structure on April 30, 1975. Although the 27
from ex-Swiss Air aircraft at Bien Hoa were lost to the North
Force F-5E serial Vietnamese, 22 Tiger IIs were flown out
J-3055 and US Navy
F-5F BuNo 160966 to U-Tapao Royal Thai Air Force Base,
Ted Carlson Thailand. The nearly new F-5Es were
capable F-5N began in 2008 and the
squadron currently operates 13 F-5Ns
and a single F-5F.
Sundowners
NAS Key West has been home to VFC-
111 since the squadron was established
in November 2006. Nicknamed the
'Sundowners', the squadron was
activated in October 2005 as VFC-13
Detachment Key West. VFC-111’s
inventory includes 17 F-5Ns and an F-5F.
The squadrons provide adversary
support for Fleet Replacement
Squadrons (FRS), the Strike Fighter
Advanced Readiness Program (SFARP)
and Carrier Air Wing training during pre-
deployment workups and the Topgun
Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor Program
(SFTIP). Their duties include Dissimilar
Air Combat Training (DACT), as well as
supporting Air-to-Air Counter-Tactics
(AACT) training. The latter is intended to
prepare aviators to execute defensive
air-to-air tactics in a combat situation
while conducting their primary mission.
AACT proficiency enables aircrew
to effectively engage and defeat an
adversary in a contested near-peer, air-
to-air environment.
among 101 aircraft loaded aboard the
aircraft carrier USS Midway (CVA 41) and
21 of the jets were transported to Guam
and later returned to the US, where they
eventually saw service with the USAF
and US Navy. Ultimately, around 70 of the
F-5Es that were originally destined for,
or operated by, South Vietnam served in
the adversary role with the US Navy and
USAF squadrons.
F-5N/F Tiger II/ current role
The US Navy’s current fleet of 40 single-
seat F-5Ns and a trio of two-seat F-5Fs is
operated in the adversary-training role by
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 53
 REPORT // F-5 TIGER II
two squadrons from the Naval Reserve
and another assigned to the Marine Corps
Reserve. The Tiger II is an inexpensive
adversary platform that is used to prepare
operational squadrons for deployment
and to train Fleet Replacement Squadron
(FRS) students for air-to-air combat.
The fighters were acquired from the
Swiss government in a reverse Foreign
Military Sale (FMS) program that began
in 2000 and included 44 aircraft. The
initial deal involved 32 F-5Es that were
purchased at a cost of $18.6m. An option
for 12 additional aircraft was exercised
in 2004, following the navy’s decision to
activate another Naval Reserve adversary
squadron. The last F-5E arrived in Florida
in November 2007. The low-time aircraft
had accumulated an average of 2,000
hours since entering service with the
Swiss Air Force.
Switzerland acquired 98 F-5Es and
12 F-5Fs under the Peace Alps and
Peace Alps II programs. While Northrop
produced 14 F-5Es and six F-5Fs, the
remaining aircraft were produced by the
Federal Aircraft Factory (Eidgenössisches
Flugzeugwerk - EFW or F+W) in
Emmen, which is known
today as RUAG
Aerospace. The
final delivery took place in March 1985.
The Swiss aircraft differed slightly from
the original F-5Es and featured improved
handling quality (IHQ) systems. Physical
differences include a flatter nose, larger
LERX and automatic maneuvering flaps.
The jets also featured LN-33 inertial
navigation systems (INS), AN/ALQ-87
radar warning receivers, AN/ALE-40
countermeasures dispenser systems (CDS)
and Emerson Electric AN/APG-69 radars.
Under the Navy’s F-5 Acquisition/
Recapitalization Program, the aircraft were
upgraded by Northrop Grumman at its St
Augustine, Florida, facility before entering
service. Valued at around $24m, the
program eventually updated 41 F-5Es to
F-5N configuration and converted
three of the single-seat
Swiss aircraft into two-
seaters by mating
the refurbished
forward
and aft

A four-ship of Tiger IIs from marine fighter

training squadron VMFT-401 over Arizona on
November 7, 2007. The F-5Ns comprise serials
761546/LS-12, 761535/ LS-04, 761571/
LS-02and 761547/ LS-06. All four jets were
acquired from the Swiss Air Force, where they
carried the serial numbers J-3021, J-3010,
J-3046 and J-3022. Ted Carlson

54 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero


F-5N serial 761548 from fighter squadron
composite VFC-111 flying over the Atlantic
Ocean near NAS Key West, Florida, on December
8, 2011. The Tiger II is one of 44 acquired from
Switzerland and previously carried the Swiss Air
Force serial number J-3023 Ted Carlson
F-5N serial 761547 flown by the ‘Sundowners’ of
fighter squadron composite VFC-111 over the Atlantic
Ocean near NAS Key West, Florida, on April 12, 2011.
The Tiger II is one of 44 acquired from Switzerland and
previously carried the serial J-3022 Ted Carlson
PRIVATE
TIGERS/
TACTICAL AIR
SYSTEMS
Headquartered at Reno-Stead Airport in
Reno, Nevada, Tactical Air Support's aircraft
fleet includes 16 F-5E and five F-5F fighters
that were acquired following service with
the Royal Jordanian Air Force. Tactical Air
has operated F-5s since 2013 and its fleet
includes four two-seat CF-5Ds. The jets were
built by Canadair under license in Montreal,
Quebec, and previously operated by the
Royal Canadian Air Force. Upon arrival from
Jordan at Northrop Grumman’s St. Augustine
facility between February and October 2017,
the F-5E/Fs were reassembled, inspected and
upgraded. Additionally, the aircraft’s 20mm
cannons were removed and replaced by
ballast. Following ground tests and first flight,
F-5E N791TA (FMS serial 78-0791, ex-RJAF
650) completed mandatory Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA) testing on April 27,
2018. Like the Swiss Tiger IIs acquired by the
US Navy, the ‘low-time’ Jordanian aircraft had
reportedly acquired an average of around
2,000 flight hours each.
Referred to as F-5 Advanced Tigers (F-5AT),
Tactical Air’s Tiger IIs are being upgraded with
a Scorpion helmet-mounted display (HMD)
and Mason Controls hands-on throttle and
stick control grips (HOTAS), a Garmin G3000
Flying over Coronado in California, F-5E N646TA was operated by the Royal
Jordanian Air Force as serial 77-01774 before being acquired by Tactical Air
Systems (TacAir) and updated with new systems. It was one of 16 F-5Es and five
two-seat F-5Fs acquired from Jordan. TacAir refers to the modernized jets as F-5
Advanced Tigers or F-5ATs Tactical Air Support Inc
integrated color multi-function display
(MFD), a Duotech open architecture mission
computer and a Nemesis pulse-doppler
mechanically scanned array (MESA) radar and
an Argus 360º radar warning receiver system.
L3/Harris developed tailored operational
flight program software designed specifically
for the adversary mission, the Nemesis is
fused with the Garmin avionics suite and the
HMD and threat weapons engagement zone
software support the simulated employment
of high off-boresight weapons. First flight of
an upgraded F-5AT took place in April 2019.
The contractor-operated Tiger IIs provide
commercial air services that include Joint
Terminal Attack Controller (JTAC) training,
UAV chase, flight training, maintenance,
logistics and adversary support to the Naval
Strike and Air Warfare Center and the USAF
Weapons School.
The F-5AT completed its FAA airworthiness
certification program following Phase I
modification in late April 2018, flying from
Cecil Airport in Jacksonville, Florida. The
company is currently providing ‘Red Air’
support to the US Navy under a five-year
$106.8m contract awarded in November
2018. Although the efforts are centered
at NAS Fallon, the company also conducts
detachments to other naval air facilities
when required.
Tactical Air is also tasked with providing
adversary support for the Oregon Air
National Guard’s F-15C/D Formal Training
Unit at the Kingsley Field Air National
Guard Base under the terms of a 4.5-year,
$90.4m contract that was awarded in July
2020. Operations at Kingsley field first got
underway in late September 2020.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 55
 REPORT STYLE // FEATURE NAME

F-5E BuNo 160794 from fighter squadron composite VFC-13 over southern
California. Originally delivered to the Republic of Vietnam Air Force, the Tiger II
was assigned to NAS Miramar, California, in April 1987. It was written-off in a
mishap while serving with VFC-13 on April 18, 2003 Ted Carlson

F-5N serial 761557 operated by fighter squadron composite VFC- 111 ‘Sundowners’
lands at NAS Key West’s Boca Chica Field in Florida on June 23, 2020. One of 44
F-5Es acquired from Switzerland, the Tiger II previously carried the Swiss Air Force
serial number J-3032 US Navy/Danette Baso Silvers

F-5N serial 761585 at NAS

Key West, Florida, on March
21, 2019. Rather than
20mm cannons, the gun
ports in the nose house
antennas for the jet’s AN/
ALQ-237 jamming system
Four-ship of Tiger IIs from Antonio Gemma-More
Marine fighter training
squadron VMFT-401 over
Arizona on November
7, 2007. All four of
the ‘Snipers’ jets were
acquired from the Swiss
Air Force as F-5Es and
underwent upgrades
prior to entering US
service Ted Carlson

A pair of F-5Ns from fighter squadron composite VFC-111

and VFC-13 with an F/A-18A+ from VFC-12, an F/A-18C
from strike fighter squadron VFA-204 and an EA-18G from
electronic attack squadron VAQ-209, near NAS Key West,
Florida, on February 4, 2021. The five squadrons are all
assigned to the Navy Reserve’s Tactical Support Wing (TSW)
US Navy/CDR Peter Scheu

56 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

 FLEET
EXPANSION
The Fiscal 2020 National Defense
Authorization Act (NDAA) provided $39.7m
for the acquisition and repatriation of
16 additional F-5Es and six F-5Fs from
Switzerland. Acquisition of the Swiss jets
will permit the navy and marines to expand
the scope of their adversary operations.
Purchased in April 2020, the aircraft include
11 that are earmarked for the Marine Corps
and will support the activation of VMFT-402
at MCAS Beaufort, South Carolina in mid-
2023. The squadron will eventually have 13
Tiger IIs assigned. The upgraded F-5s will
be delivered at a rate of six aircraft annually
beginning in mid-2023.
Plans call for VFC-13 to transfer 12 of its
14 jets to VFA-204 at NAS JRB New Orleans,
Louisiana, to replace the squadron’s F/A-
18Cs in Fiscal Year 2023. In recognition of
the squadron’s transition to the adversary
role, the ‘River Rattlers’ will later be
redesignated as VFC-204. VFC-13 will, in
turn, receive 12 Block 32 F-16Cs that are
currently being operated by the Arizona
Air National Guard’s 162nd Fighter Wing.
The newly acquired F-16Cs will undergo a
block upgrade with fielding expected to
begin in mid-2023.
UPGRADES
Northrop Grumman previously carried
out Phased Depot Maintenance (PDM)
on the US Navy Tiger IIs since 1999
and delivered its final aircraft on July
31, 2020, when F-5F serial 810834 was
handed over to VFC-111 at NAS Key
West. Work is now being carried out
by Fleet Readiness Center Southeast
(FRCSE) at NAS Jacksonville, Florida,
which inducted its first Tiger II on
September of 2019. The FRCSE delivered
its first aircraft when F-5N serial 761583
was returned to VFC-13 in March 2021.
Testing of the first upgraded F-5N+
is being carried out at NAS Patuxent
River, Maryland. The evaluation of
fuselages of three US Navy F-5Fs with the
center sections of Swiss F-5Es.
The first upgraded F-5N (76-1551) was
delivered to VFC-13 at NAS Key West,
Florida, on March 26, 2004. Delivery of
the final F-5N took place on April 29,
2009, when serial 761550 was handed
over. The first Franken-Tiger was rolled
out in St. Augustine on April 23, 2008,
and serial 73-1586 was delivered to
VMFT-401 on December 9, the same year.
Upgrades provided the F-5N and F-5F
the upgraded Tiger II got underway
following the delivery of first fighter
modified under the F-5 Capability
Upgrade (Block Upgrade System)
program. The fighter is one of three
F-5Ns serving as prototypes for the
incorporation of modernized cockpit,
avionics and supporting architecture
that will deliver improved safety,
capabilities and reliability, while
resolving obsolescence issues. Block
Upgrade System modifications were
initially carried out on two F-5Fs by US
private company, Tactical Air Support
and Aerospace Quality Research and
Development at the latter’s facility
in Addison, Texas. Integration of the
Block Upgrade System on the third
aircraft will be carried out by Tactical
Air Support at its Cecil Airport facility
in Jacksonville, Florida. The cockpit
update will provide the F-5N+ with the
Garmin G3000 system that includes a
14.1in high-resolution flight display and
two 5.7in glass touchscreen controller
(GTC) displays. The cockpit upgrades
were originally developed by Tactical
Air Support, which incorporated them
on its own fleet of Tiger IIs.
Funding has already been provided
to update five Naval Reserve in-service
F-5Ns and two of the Marine Corps jets
with the block upgrade system. Plans
call for updating additional in-service
F-5Ns if funding is made available. The
project is managed by the Adversary
Integrated Product Team (IPT) within
the Naval Air Systems Command’s
(NAVAIR) Specialized and Proven
Aircraft Program Office PMA-226 at NAS
Patuxent River, Maryland.
In June 2021, the NAVAIR awarded a
contract worth $14.8 million to Tactical
Air to provide six block upgrade kits,
which will be installed in four of the
newly acquired Swiss F-5Es and two
F-5Fs beginning in 2022. Delivery of
the updated F-5Ns and F-5Fs will begin
with limited depot-level maintenance,
new multifunction displays, gyros and
tactical air navigation (TACAN) systems.
In addition to replacement of the liquid
oxygen (LOX) system with gaseous
oxygen, changes to the airframe
included the addition of an anti-skid
brake system, along with chaff/flare and
radar warning receiver systems.
The J85-GE-21B engines were
upgraded to -21C configuration and
an engine performance assurance
in mid-2023.
The Avionics Reconfiguration and
Tactical Enhancement/Modernization
for Inventory Standardization (ARTEMIS)
program will be a major element in
the conversion of the 16 F-5E and six
F-5F aircraft acquired from Switzerland.
ARTEMIS will modify the aircraft to the
same configuration as the in-service
F-5N/F aircraft and incorporate the
block upgrade system modifications.
A Milestone C procurement decision
relating to ARTEMIS is expected in
early Fiscal Year 2022 and will permit
the program to enter low-rate initial
production. The service expects to
award Tactical Air Support with a
five-year contract associated with
the F-5N+/F+ ARTEMIS program. In
addition to providing the aircraft with
full PDM, the program will upgrade
the J85-GE-21B engines to -21C
configuration and install the US16J
ejection seats and Digital Air Data
Computers.
Additionally, selected F-5Ns from the
current operational fleet may receive
structural upgrades that would extend
their service lives to 9,000 hours. Plans
call for an operational inventory of 56
aircraft divided between the adversary
squadrons. The F-5N and F-5F are
respectively limited by 6,000 and 9,000
flight hour service lives and, under
current plans, the navy and marines will
continue to operate the F-5s through
2035, although retirements could begin
around 2026 when their divesture is
expected to begin.
Although not as capable as the
fourth- and fifth-generation fighters,
the Tiger II remains a capable adversary
training platform for use in air-to-air
combat training scenarios and will
continue in the role with the US Navy
and Marine Corps, as well as with a
number of civilian contractors, for the
foreseeable future.
monitoring system (EPAMS) was
integrated. In addition, the 20mm
cannons were removed and replaced
by ballast and some of the jets
received AN/ALQ-237 electronic
countermeasures systems. Additionally,
the aircraft were made compatible with
the AN/ASQ-50 tactical combat training
system (TACTS) pods.
Later upgrades provided new LN-260
INS and Martin Baker US16J (Mk 16)
ejection seats.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 57
 AIRCRAFT REPORT // IRANIAN F-5S

A SILK ROAD

ADVENT
Babak Taghvaee

I
reports on the project
keeping the Iranian Air
Force F-5E/F Tiger II
fleet in service
N 2008, THE Iran Aircraft
Manufacturing Industrial Company
(IAMI/HESA) was contracted by
the Islamic Republic of Iran Air
Force (IRIAF) to modernize a fleet
of 63 Northrop F-5E/F Tiger II light
fighter jets. Ten years later, the company
completed the modernization of the first
Below: The Iranian Air
Force operates 16
F-5F Tiger II combat
trainers – three are
upgraded to Kowsar-I
standard. Three more
examples, including
an Iranian-built F-5F,
are being modernized
at IAMI’s installation
Danial Sharifi
Since June 2021, the project has
continued its slow pace, due to technical
issues and a lack of funds. However, the
IRIAF is scheduled to receive a fourth
modernized F-5F and the air force’s first
two upgraded F-5Es this year. Here, we
take a closer look at project Kowsar and
the current fate of the Iranian Air Force’s
aircraft, and, finally, in 2020, the initial fleet of F-5E/Fs.
batch of three F-5Fs upgraded under As the Iranian F-5E/Fs were the earliest
project Kowsar was redelivered back examples produced by Northrop
into the hands of the IRIAF. Grumman, they lacked crucial equipment

58 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

TURE
that would become standard on the later-
delivered versions of the Tiger II. The
most vital of these omissions was the
AN/ALR-46(V)-2 radar warning receivers
(RWR) and ALE-40 chaff/flare dispensers,
which were installed on Saudi Tiger IIs.
The Iranian F-5E/Fs also differed from Tiger
IIs of other countries due to the installation
of Martin Baker MB.IRQ7A ejection seats
and advanced tactical air navigation
(TACAN) system, instead of Northrop
Grumman’s offerings.
Before Iran’s Islamic Revolution in 1979,
the Imperial Iranian Air Force (IIAF) had
planned to relegate the F-5E/Fs from
combat roles, starting from 1985, after
delivery of the 140 F-16A/B Fighting
Falcons under the ‘Peace Zebra’ Foreign
Military Sales (FMS) Program. Despite
that, the IIAF had planned to upgrade
Right: 3-7400, the
first Iranian-
manufactured F-5F,
which was used as a
testbed and first
prototype for project
Kowsar Ali Naderi
IRANIAN TIGER IIS:
THE FIRST EXPORT
In 1973, Iran became the first export
customer of Northrop to receive F-5E
Tiger IIs under the Peace Rush Foreign
Military Sale Program. Deliveries were
completed by 1977 and the Islamic
Republic of Iran Air Force received a total
of 141 F-5E Tiger IIs and 28 two-seat F-5F
a number of its Tiger IIs during their Tiger IIs under the Peace Rush I, II, and
first scheduled fuselage overhaul at the III programs. They entered service with
Iranian Aircraft Industries company (IACI) five tactical fighter squadrons and one
in Tehran in 1979 or 1980. However, the tactical training squadron at 2nd Tactical
Fighter Base in Tabriz and 4th Tactical
Fighter Base in Dezful.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 59
 AIRCRAFT REPORT // IRANIAN F-5S
revolution ultimately resulted in the
cancellation of the program.
First upgrade attempt
In 2001, Project Silk Road II (SR II) was
launched, during which the China
National Aero-Technology Import
and Export Corporation (CATIC) was
contracted by the IRIAF’s Owj Industrial
Complex to modernize Iranian F-5E/F
fighters. A team of seven personnel from
China, consisting of experts in avionics,
radar, weapons, and self-protection
systems, co-operated with a team of ten
Iranian engineers from the IRIAF’s Self-
Sufficiency Jihad and Industrial Research
Department, to develop a modernization
program for Iranian F-5E/Fs.
A total of three F-5Es were modified and
modernized under the project between
2001 and 2007. They were equipped
with SY-80 Pulse-Doppler radar with a
maximum target detection range of 18.6
miles; two CRT multi-function displays;
head-up display; 930-4 RWR and two
941-4AC chaff/flare dispensers; GPS
navigation system; JD-3 TACAN; Type III
60 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
identification friend or foe; an air data
computer, and a mission computer. They
were also wired to use PL-5C IR guided
short-range, air-to-air missiles in addition
to the AIM-9J Sidewinder.
The modernization program would
enable the IRIAF to use its F-5E/Fs for
operations at night and also to utilize the
PL-5C missile. This would enhance their
air-to-air combat capabilities, in place
of the aging US-made AIM-9J. However,
due to the larger size of the new radar,
compared to the previous AN/APQ-153
Fire Control Radar, the nose section of the
aircraft was modified, and a longer and
larger radome was designed, produced
and installed. Also, to house the new
mission and navigation computers, one
of the two M39 20mm cannons of the
aircraft was removed.
The modernized aircraft under the SR II
project were 3-7301 (the first Iranian-built
F-5E), 3-7034 and 3-7083. In September
2006, 3-7034 and 3-7083 were sent to
the 2nd Tactical Fighter Base (TFB) to
participate in an air drill. During the
exercise, the aircraft carried out bombing,
Right: IAMI’s Kowsar rocketry and gunnery using live ordnance.
production line, where
four F-5Fs and three After passing all tests and completing the
F-5Es were under missions successfully, the aircraft, together
modernization in
summer 2018
with the prototype of the project (3-7301),
Ali Naderi were delivered to 41st Tactical Fighter
Squadron (TFS), 4th TFB, to test in the hot
and humid climate of Khuzestan province
in southwest Iran.
During the final stages of testing,
CATIC was ordered by the Chinese
government to abandon project SR II,
due to arms embargoes against Iran as a
result of United Nations Security Council
Resolution 1747, which was adopted on
March 24, 2007, in light of the Iranian
nuclear program.
A year after SR II came to an end, the
Iranian Air Force contracted the Iran
Aviation Industries Organization (IAIO) to
modernize its fleet of F-5E/Fs domestically.
Below: Three F-5F To speed up the project, the air force also
Kowsar-Is (serials delivered the first prototype (now marked
3-7400, 3-7164 and
3-7180) performing a
as 3-7304) from the SR II project to IAMI,
formation take-off so it could be used for the research and
during their official development phase of IAMI’s project. The
handover ceremony to
the IRIAF in 2020 other two F-5Es that were modernized
Alireza Shahin under SR II remained in the service of
41st TFS until they were both placed into
storage in 2009.
Project Kowsar
In January 2008, the IAIO was contracted
by the IRIAF to launch a project for the
modernization of 47 F-5Es and 16 F-5Fs
(one F-5E and two F-5Fs were later lost
in three separate accidents). In addition
to the delivery of 3-7304, as well as
components for modernization of more
F-5Es under project SR II, a team of 20
engineers from the IRIAF’s Owj complex
were assigned to IAMI’s facility in Shahin
Shahr, at the heart of Iran, to help
engineers there during the research and
development phase of the project.
The SR II project had many technical
shortcomings, due to the low quality
of the CATIC engineers’ work and the
poor initial design. For example, the
avionics bay of the SR II aircraft were not
and companies had to resolve all design
flaws and technical shortcomings of
pressurized and, at high altitudes, this
would result in radio failures, according
the SR II project. Also, all the Chinese
components – such as computers used
to Brigadier Nikbakhsh Habibi, one of the
test pilots at the IRIAF’s Owj complex’s
flight test center.
on the three aircraft – were to be replaced
with the ones designed in Iran and
produced domestically.
Under the new project, IAIO’s enterprises
IRIAF F-5
TIGER II’S
GO TO WAR
The absence of the self-protection
systems on the Iranian F-5E/Fs made
them extremely vulnerable to the
enemy’s air-to-air (AAM) and surface-to-
air (SAM) missiles during the Iran-Iraq war.
Around 90 of the IRIAF’s Tiger IIs were lost
to the Iraqi’s SA-6 medium-range SAMs
in the early months of the Iran-Iraq war,
which officially started on September
22, 1980. There were also several cases of
friendly fire, with F-5E/Fs shot down by
the IRIAF’s MIM-23B HAWK SAMs.
When the Iran-Iraq war first started,
the IRIAF had 132 F-5Es and 26 F-5Fs in
service. At the end of the conflict, just
67 airframes remained – among them,
at least four were out of service due to
being heavily damaged. However, they
were later repaired by the IRIAF’s Owj
Industrial Complex in Mehrabad.
The knowledge gained during heavy
repair and restoration of the battle-
damaged F-5Es helped the Owj complex
produce F-5E/Fs structural and fuselage
panels. As a result, a total of two F-5Es
were produced by the complex in the
early 1990s, using parts taken from 11
F-5E Tiger IIs that had been procured
from Vietnam in 1990.
Later, the Owj complex designed and
produced an F-5E Tiger II equipped with
two vertical stabilizers similar to that of
the F/A-18. The new aircraft was later
named Saeqeh-80. Project Saeqeh was
subsequently continued by IAMI (Iranian
Aircraft Manufacturing Industries) in
Shahin Shahr from 2007. A total of six
F-5Es and one F-5F with two vertical
stabilizers were produced under the
project. They are now in service of the
23rd Tactical Fighter Squadron, 2nd
Tactical Fighter Base.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 61
 AIRCRAFT REPORT // IRANIAN F-5S
Right: 3-7034 is one
of three F-5E Tiger IIs
modernized by Owj/
CATIC under project
SR II. Here it can be
seen during an
exercise at 2nd
Tactical Fighter Base
in September 2006
Esmaeil Davari

In 2009, the IAIO was also contracted to
upgrade avionic systems of PC-7 training
aircraft and AH-1J attack helicopters
operated by the IRIAF and Islamic Republic
of Iran Army Aviation (IRIAA), respectively.
To reduce time and cost, it was decided to
design and develop an avionic package
that could be integrated on both F-5 Tiger
II and PC-7 Turbo Trainers, as well as AH-1J
Cobra helicopters.
That year, a project was launched jointly
Below: Modernized by several IAIO companies, including IAMI,
F-5F serial 3-7164 for upgrading, localization, integration
still has its old M39
20mm cannon. It and unification of the avionic and weapon
shows that the systems of several aircraft types. Under
aircraft has not been this project, an avionics and weapons
equipped with
Bayyenat-II radar package was developed for the installation
Keyvan Tavakkoli of a variety of fighter jets of the IRIAF,
using components of the Project T-90 the F-5E/Fs with the new avionics package
(modernization of PC-7s) and Project and weapons systems, the company
Towfan-2 (modernization of AH-1Js). will receive $7.5m from IRIAF. Project
The avionics and weapons systems Kowsar involves 4,000 engineers and
package developed by IAIO was later technicians – 1,400 are directly
integrated into the modernization project from IAMI.
of F-5E/Fs. The F-5 modernization project IAMI’s supply chain under
was named ‘Kowsar’ in 2018. Under this project Kowsar consists of
project, all the IRIAF’s surviving Tiger IIs are 62 knowledge enterprise
scheduled to be equipped with the new companies and 72 industrial
avionics package and weapons systems. companies – almost
Also, under the same project, the IAMI two-thirds of which are
company is contracted to produce four subordinate to IAIO. Two
brand-new F-5F Tiger IIs as an attrition of the most important
replacement for the aircraft lost between of these companies
2007 and 2019. are IOI (Isfahan Optics
To produce a brand-new F-5F, IAMI will Industries) and IEI
receive $9m. For equipping each one of (Iranian Electronics

62 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

Industries). Also, Iran’s ten top industrial
universities assist these companies, as well
as IAMI, in the design, development and
production of new components of the
modernized F-5E/Fs.
As well as the above-mentioned
knowledge enterprises and industrial
companies, 44 privately owned
companies had a part to play in the
modernized F-5E/Fs, through the supply
of various components for the avionics
and weapons systems.
The domestically made F-5Fs have 88%
of their components produced in Iran,
including their General Electric J85-GE-
21A Turbojet afterburning engines. The
Turbine Engine Manufacturing
Industries company in Iran has
produced four J85-GE-21A
engines for use by two
brand-new F-5Fs produced
by IAMI. The aircraft are also equipped
with an Iranian variant of Zvezda K-36DM
ejection seats, named ‘Sarir’.
Modernized F-5Fs delivery
The first Tiger II modernized under project
Kowsar was an IAMI/Owj-built F-5F (serial
3-7400), which logged its first flight in
January 2018. The aircraft was eventually
painted in Asian Minor II camouflage
colors and was flown to Tehran in August
2018. Later, it was unveiled during an
official ceremony at IACI’s F-14 Overhaul
Center in Tehran, while the Iranian
President at the time, Hasan Rouhani, was
attending on August 21, 2018.
Following 3-7400, IAMI completed
the modernization of two more F-5Fs
– both Northrop-built examples. These
were 3-7164 and 3-7180, which flew for
the first time after their modernization
in December 2018 and January 2020,
respectively. They, together with 3-7400,
were officially handed over to the Iranian
Air Force during a ceremony at IAMI’s
facility in Shahin Shahr on June 25, 2020.
Even though 3-7180 was the US-made
F-5F, it was equipped with Sarir ejection
seats instead of the original Martin Baker
IRQ7A. The reason for this was the aircraft
had its ejection seats mistakenly ejected
by an aircraft technician during an engine
test in 4th TFB on October 21, 2000. Due
to that incident, the aircraft sustained
some damage that needed heavy repair,
which IRIAF could not carry out at that
time. So, the aircraft was cannibalized for
its parts but later delivered to IAMI to be
modernized under project Kowsar.
Project Kowsar’s prototype, F-5F serial
3-7400, was delivered to the 23rd TFS of
IRIAF at 2nd TFB on August 26, 2020. The
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 63
 AIRCRAFT REPORT // IRANIAN F-5S

KOWSAR UPGRADES
AND REPLACEMENTS
Under project Kowsar, the following
components are known to be
domestically designed, produced and
installed on the upgraded F-5E/Fs:
- Avionic mission computer
- Store management computer
- Weapons management computer
- Head-up display/integration
control panel
- Digital map generator
- Inertial navigation system/global
positioning system
- Three multifunction CRT displays per
cabin (aft and front)
- A digital engine data display per cabin
- Air data computer
- Radar altimeter
- Tactical air navigation
- Identification, friend or foe
- Digital flight data recorder Squadron, which is an operator of six F-5E Iranian-built Sarir seats have remained Above: Modernized
- Engine combined instrument F-5F serial 3-7164
Saeqeh and one F-5F Saeqeh was tasked to unresolved, along with other technical during its handover
- U/VHF radio
- Bayyenat II Fire Control Radar (Iranian test and evaluate the aircraft. However, on issues, mostly due to a lack of funds. The ceremony in 2020
clone of Chinese SY-80), only installed June 1, 2021, IRIAF lost two F-5 pilots due second IAMI-built F-5F, which is under Sabet Tavakkoli
on 3-7400) to the malfunction of the ejection seats. On modernization, is scheduled to fly in
- Radar warning receiver that day, Instructor pilot Colonel Kianoosh October this year, while the first two
- Chaff/flare dispenser
Basati and student pilot 1st Lieutenant modernized F-5Es (3-7304 and 3-7330)
Also under project Kowsar, some systems Hosein Namani were accidentally ejected under the project are scheduled to fly
and components of the F-5E/Fs have out of their F-5B Simorgh after the engine sometime this summer.
been replaced by new ones, including: started. The aircraft featured Sarir ejection The IRIAF currently operators 45 F-5Es
- Control surface actuators (115 V) seats, which were ejected in a hardened and 15 F-5Fs, including one domestically
- Fuel pumps
aircraft shelter in Dezful, resulting in the built example under project Kowsar. From
- Landing gear lock assemblies
- Main landing gear switch assembly death of both pilots. The Department of 2023, the IAMI will be able to modernize
- Hydraulic system pressure regulators Safety and Inspections of the IRIAF quickly three IRIAF F-5E/Fs a year. In the event Below: From the
- Hydraulic system control valves ordered a ban of flight operations of all of an increase in the IRIAF’s budget, the front, 3-7164, 3-7400
- Hydraulic actuators and 3-7180 – three
F-5Bs and F-5Fs equipped with the Sarir work can be escalated to accommodate a F-5Fs modernized
- Electronic actuators
- Fuel solenoid valves
ejection seats. This resulted in the return of maximum of six aircraft a year. However, under project Kowsar-I
the Kowsar prototype to IAMI that month. whether there will be any further – during the handover
- RAM air cabin valve ceremony to the IRIAF
- Refrigerator package Since then, the project has faced problems or delays along the way, only on June 25, 2020
significant delays. The problems with the time will tell. Keyvan Tavakkoli

64 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

 UNIT REPORT // FALCÕES AND JAGUARES

WE CONTINUE TO DEFEND THE FUTURE,

BY ENFORCING HIGH STANDARDS OF
PERFORMANCE, LEADING BY EXAMPLE, ALWAYS
STRIVING TO ACT AND BE SEEN AS A COMPETENT,
CREDIBLE, AND A RELIABLE PARTNER. IN PEACE,
AS WELL AS IN WAR
BASE AREA 05 COMMANDER

66 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

 PORTUGAL’S

FALCÕES&
JAGUARES As the Portuguese Air Force celebrates its 70th anniversary,
Esquadra 201 and 301, operating the F-16A/BM (MLU)
Fighting Falcon, continues to be the tip of the spear.
JOSEF CAMPION visits the two units in Monte Real

A
Esq201 and Esq301 LTHOUGH ESQUADRA
operate the F-16A/BM 201 ‘Falcões’ (Falcons) and
(MLU) Fighting Falcon
in offensive and Esquadra 301 ‘Jaguares’ have
defensive counter-air different backgrounds and
operations origins, today, they have the
All photos: Josef
Campion same mission: to execute
counter-air and attack operations for the
Portuguese Air Force (FAP).
To be mission successful, both
squadrons are focused on mission
effectiveness, have an agile mindset and
continuous improvement posture, and
work as part of a wider highly skilled
team at Base Area 5, Monte Real.
The 201 squadron was stood up in
1958 to fly the F-86 Sabre – the first
supersonic jet operated by the FAP –
which operated over former Portuguese
territories in Africa from 1961-64.
Almost two decades later, in 1980, the
unit transitioned to the LTV A-7P Corsair
II. Whilst the A-7 was designed as purely
an air-to-ground aircraft, the FAP had to
occasionally employ it in the air-to-air role,
due to a lack of dedicated fighter aircraft.
Alongside the air-to-ground capabilities,
its mission sets included anti-surface
(maritime) warfare.
In 1994, with deliveries from the Peace
Atlantis Foreign Military Sales program,
Esq201 transitioned to the F-16A Block15
OCU (operational capability upgrade)
Fighting Falcon, regaining the air-to-air
capabilities that had been missing since
the retirement of the F-86. Since then,
the F-16 has been the squadron’s (not
to mention Portugal’s) main frontline
weapon system in the air.
Today, the squadron’s mission
objectives are of a multi-role basis – air-
to-air missions (defensive and offensive
counter air) and air-to-ground missions
(air interdiction, close air support, and
anti-surface warfare). At the time of
writing, up to 15 pilots (including six
instructors) serve the squadron. Of those
pilots, two are students undergoing
initial qualification training (IQT), who
have either recently graduated from
introduction to fighter fundamentals
in the US, flying the USAF T-38 Talon, or
graduated before 2018, when the FAP
operated the Alpha Jet for its phase-four
training at Esquadra 103 ‘Caracóis’.
Esq201 Commanding Officer ‘Ripple’
told CAJ: “201 is currently the oldest
fighter squadron in the air force. From

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 67

 UNIT REPORT // FALCÕES AND JAGUARES

the onset, air-to-air and air-to-ground Above: Operated in (AB5), flying the FIAT G91 in combat.

ARMAMENT have been our mission set. We have always

operated the most advanced jets in the
theater in Allied Force
1999, Portugal’s
F-16s are also
During this period, the Portuguese Armed
Forces were highly involved in an overseas

& SENSORS air force at any given time [F-86, A-7,

Air to ground
Portugal has a variety of air-to-ground
ordnance divided into two groups:
general purpose (GP) bombs, usually
known as ‘dumb bombs’, which are
not guided and rely on the ability and
precision of the pilot to hit the target;
and precision guided munitions
(PGM), which are assisted and guided
in flight for greater target accuracy.
Both 201 and 301 Squadrons have MK
82, MK 84, and Strafe munitions as GP
weapons and GBU-12 (laser-guided),
GBU-31 (GPS-guided), and GBU-49
(dual-mode) as PGMs.
and F-16]. Our direct engagement in the
Ultramar War [1961-1974] was brief, but
almost all the fighter pilots that deployed
were ‘Falcões’, and 201 squadron was their
home squadron.”
Born in combat
Esq301 ‘Jaguares’ was founded in
November 1968, a decade after its sister
squadron 201. The ‘Jaguares’ started out as
Esq502, located in Nacala, Mozambique
operated for NATO air-
policing detachments.
When detached,
personnel from both
war operating on three different fronts
(Angola, Mozambique, and Guinea-
Bissau). In 1978, the FAP went through
201 and 301 deploy a reorganization, and the squadron was
as a joint force
renumbered as Esq301 but the ‘Jaguares’
moniker remained.
In 1993, the unit operated the Alpha
Jet as an air-to-ground weapons system,
specializing in close air support and air
Below: Two pilots interdiction. The fleet of 50 jets included
prepare for a training
mission in Esq301’s several recce pods and electronic warfare
life support gear room (EW) suites that could be fitted on the

Air to air
For the air-to-air mission, Portugal
carries the AIM-120 AMRAAM
(advanced medium-range air-to-air
missile) and the AIM-9 Sidewinder
on the wings of its F-16s. Live firing
training of the AIM-9 happens in
Portugal over the training areas west
of Monte Real, and any combat-ready
pilot within the two units can perform
live-fire of the AIM-9.

Litening pod sensor

Portugal’s F-16AM (MLU) is equipped with
the G4 Litening Pod and has been using
it for the last four to five years. Esq201
Commanding Officer Ripple said: “The
G4 is a great pod, and we have noticed
an increase in the capabilities against the
previous Litening version.”

68 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero


backseats of the jets. The suites got the
nickname ‘R2-D2’, due to their aspect and
audio characteristics having similarities
with the Star Wars character. The EW
capability, which was then a world of
mysteries, was extremely effective and
provided 301’s jets with an enormous
self-defense capability.
The last flight of the Alpha Jet was
performed by Esq301 in November
2005. On the 25th of that month, the
squadron was transferred to AB5, Monte
Real, when it assumed its role as the first
F-16 mid-life upgrade (MLU) squadron
in the FAP. The Jaguares became the
frontline all-weather, day and night,
air defense, and conventional attack
(precision) squadron.
Esq301 Commanding Officer ‘Splinter’
told CAJ: “Even though we have ‘301’ as the
squadron number, the name ‘Jaguares’ has
been around much longer. Truly unique
is that our squadron was born in combat.
Due to that, we have one of the richest
and biggest heritages in our air force,
and it’s our responsibility to preserve and
honor it every day, in everything we do.”
Esq301 has roughly the same number of
pilots as Esq201, but with four instructor
pilots (at the time of writing) and one
student going through IQT.
Both units have strong histories and
traditions. Since 2010, they have operated
the same weapons system but each
one has its squadron building, being
directly dependent on the 51 Operation
Group. There is no separation between
squadrons, regarding the flying activity
or maintenance support, meaning they
fly mixed formations, and new students
that have belonged to a specific squadron
QRA: HOME
AND AWAY
Quick reaction alert (QRA) for the
Portuguese is 365 days a year, with two-
armed aircraft constantly on standby
in dedicated hardened aircraft shelters
(HAS). Another aircraft is on standby
as a spare close to the HAS. Portugal
completes QRA at its home base in Monte
Real, as well as in the Baltic region and
Iceland, to support NATO’s Icelandic air-
policing program throughout the year.
During CAJ’s visit to Monte Real in
January, four F-16AMs (serials 15101,
Above: An Esq301 15106, 15107, and 15112) departed to
pilot prepares his
jet for an afternoon
Keflavik Air Base, Iceland, with a mix of
pilots from 201 and 301 Squadrons. They
training mission
refueled at RAF Lossiemouth, Scotland,
en route. The total retraction of the
detachment is scheduled for April 2022.
“Showing up to QRA, you will get a pilot
handoff brief from the previous QRA pilot,
and validate weather and any possible
activity for the day. Then members will
preflight [the] alert-notification systems,
flight gear and aircraft,” one pilot said.
QRA members are on shift for 24 hours,
with a readiness state of 15 minutes,
which means aircraft must be airborne
within that time, starting from when the
alert launch bell rings.
Tango (training) scrambles keep all
QRA pilots up to date on the correct
procedures to get the aircraft airborne
within 15 minutes. Once airborne,
pilots will run through various practice
intercepts with national controllers to
validate procedures as well as correct
Below: FAP F-16AM execution on all sides. This can be with
(MLU) prepares to aircraft that agree to be intercepted for
leave the hardened training or between the two squadrons,
aircraft shelter prior but either way, at any point during the
to a NATO air-policing training sortie, the jets can be re-tasked to
detachment to Iceland a real-life scramble mission.
on January 27
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 69
 UNIT REPORT // FALCÕES AND JAGUARES
since day one can fly with any instructor.
One day they can be doing a mission
with a 201 Squadron instructor pilot and
briefing at his/her squadron, the next day,
the same student can be doing the same
at 301 Squadron.

Falcons arrive
As mentioned, the first batch of 20
F-16s – 17 F-16A Block 15 OCU, and three
F-16B Block 15 OCU – were delivered
to Portugal in 1994. These aircraft
remained in service until 2011, with 16
(one was lost in a crash in 2002) F-16A
OCUs upgraded to F-16AM standard
under the MLU program. Of these, 11
were completed by November 2010,
and the 16th example was redelivered
by September 2012. The three F-16Bs
had an MLU from 2011-13.
The second batch of 25 ex-USAF F-16
Block 15 aircraft arrived in 1999, under
Above: Esq301 Peace Atlantis II. This batch included 21
Jaguares has F-16A Block 15s and four F-16B models.
a rich heritage None of the aircraft entered service with
as a ‘tiger’ unit,
winning multiple the FAP in the Block 15 variant.
awards and During this delivery, Portugal decided
hosting the NATO to upgrade its fleet via the F-16 MLU. The
Tiger Meet at Beja
Air Base during reason for this was that the original F-16
the COVID-19 Block 15 was already outdated, and the
pandemic in 2021 MLU was a true fourth-generation fighter
that enabled the FAP to be a credible air
force among its NATO allies.
Nineteen of the 21 jets delivered in the
second batch underwent the MLU, while
the remaining two were used as a source
Left: Commanding of spares. It took until 2003 to get the
officer of Esq301, first F-16 (MLU) airborne, and it
‘Splinter’, stands
in front of the finally entered service
‘Jaguares’ emblem in November

A rack of captive ASRAAMs

sit in one of the storage
hangars at Monte Real.
Behind the ASRAAMs are
captive AIM-9 missiles

70 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero


2005 with Esq301. Since the beginning of
the upgrade, from time-to-time, Portugal
has sent a few of its pilots to the national
pilot test school in the United States.
Those pilots are responsible for the MLU
program upgrades and bringing back
tactics to the squadrons.
Upgrades and missions
The F-16 has been in constant evolution
and development – it is a non-stop
process to help face new threats and
environments to keep the F-16 as lethal
as it can be. There is no major upgrade
forthcoming to the aircraft itself, but
Portugal is in the process
of acquiring newer weapons
and sensors. These
upgrades will bring the FAP closer to
Above: Exchange pilot
Nicholas ‘Burn’ De
4.5 and fifth-generation aircraft and will
Wulf steps into his
enable the air force to fly in a much more
F-16AM (MLU) during
a Tango scramble integrated way with fifth-generation
launch while serving operators. Most of the work will be done
the quick reaction in-house while collaborating with the
alert role at Monte
Real for 24 hours entity that sells to the FAP.
There are no fixed dates for future
upgrades. ‘Splinter’ commented: “What
is important is that the Portuguese Air
Force, with the 201 and 301 Squadrons,
is aware of the current capabilities of
Below: In a triple fuel the F-16 and, most importantly, the
tank configuration,
serial 15112 launches limitations. Knowing and recognizing
in full afterburner your weaknesses is a major step to
from Base Area 05, improve your overall performance and
Monte Real, with a
destination of Keflavik to be able to face newer and more
Air Base, Iceland advanced threats.”
EXCHANGE
PROGRAMS
At the time of writing, Portugal had
two ongoing exchange programs.
A Belgian exchange pilot was
flying with Esq301, while there was
also a USA exchange in Esq201.
Reciprocally, the Portuguese have
pilots flying F-16s in Belgium and
Tucson ANG, Arizona.
CAJ Spoke to Major Nicolas ‘Burn’
De Wulf, the pilot serving as an
instructor and evaluator for new
students, about his time as an
exchange pilot, which it is due to
conclude in April this year: “It is
an absolute privilege to have this
opportunity to collaborate and
share a common vision in fighter
tactics,” he said. “I am grateful
beyond measure to have been
able to spend three years sharing
knowledge and experiences while
learning unique efficiencies and
operational advantages.
“I am inspired by the performance
and dedication of the FAP towards
their mission and commitment
to excellence. They excel in their
profession and maximize execution
and lessons learned in every
stage of each flight, from mission
planning to flight briefs, flight
execution and, most importantly,
the flight debrief.
“I am honored to have been
welcomed into their air force and
will always cherish and respect the
invaluable time I’ve had here.”
When asked what it was like to
experience working with European
allies on such operations aboard the
F-16 during air combat maneuvers,
basic fighter maneuvers, and
dissimilar combat maneuvers,
‘Burn’ said: “The principles of
non-missionized fundamentals are
unique to the F-16 but universal
across all air forces that fly them.
The Portuguese understand these,
and more-advanced missionized
tactics, extremely well.
“Interacting with other European
nations, it becomes rapidly evident
the standard of performance
that the Portuguese bring to the
table. Let’s just say they don’t lose
too many fights and many allied
nations walk away not knowing
what hit them... but then we debrief
them and they understand but
still can’t believe they lost. It is no
coincidence that Portugal was
entrusted to host NATO’s largest
Fiscal Year 2021 flight exercise
(NTM21) and completed the
exercise as a resounding success
in the face of the height of the
global pandemic.”
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 71
 UNIT REPORT // FALCÕES AND JAGUARES
ALLIED FORCE 1999
On October 13, 1998, NATO issued the activation
order for Operation Determined Force to pressure
the Yugoslav authorities to comply with the
ceasefire in Kosovo. However, with the escalation of
events, Operation Allied Force began on March 24,
1999. This was the most intensive military operation
in Europe since the end of World War Two,
representing the first time that NATO successfully
employed (almost exclusively) air power to coerce
the adversary’s leader to change his behavior.
The Kosovo War – which was almost exclusively
aerial – prolonged the bombing of Yugoslavia for
78 days until, on June 10, 1999, president Slobodan
Miloševic agreed to sign a peace plan, and the
withdrawal of Yugoslav forces from Kosovo began.
The preparation for Allied Force began in 1997
with several technical visits and a two-week
detachment in December at the Aviano Base, in
Italy. Meanwhile, two F-16A aircraft participated
in Exercise Determined Falcon on June 15,
1998, where 85 aircraft from 13 NATO countries
performed a show of force along the Yugoslav
border. Between October 13 and November 8,
Squadron 201 started a second detachment with
three F-16As at Aviano Base, carrying out several
close air support training missions and other
operational combat air patrol (CAP) missions and
fighter escort in a total of 27 sorties.
On January 21, 1999, three F-16As from 201
Squadron landed in Aviano, supported by 60
military, remaining under operational control
72 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
of the Alliance to be employed in defensive counter
air missions, namely the CAP and escort of high-
value assets (E-3A AWACS and KC-135 or KC-10
aerial refueling).
The national detachment, designated ‘Pilgrim
Falcon’, lasted until 26 June, and was supported by
three C-130H. During the 157 days of deployment,
285 sorties were made, totaling 1,057.5 flight hours.
This participation showed the importance of
logistical support in combat – a factor normally
undervalued in peacetime. It should be noted
that the average flight time in a typical peacetime
mission is about an hour and a half, while the
complexity of Allied Force missions resulted in an
average flight time of four hours and 35 minutes –
the longest flight was seven hours and 15 minutes,
using four visits to the airborne tanker.
This operation provided experience to 18 pilots
from 201 Squadron, as well as personnel in mission
support, combat intelligence, maintenance,
armament and electronic warfare. Participation in
a very complex and intense coalition operation –
with the requirement of standardizing procedures,
interoperability, and interaction with the other
partners – enabled 201 Squadron and the
Portuguese Air Force to acquire unprecedented
operational experience that would shape the future
evolution of this capability.
Likewise, this operation showed the need to
modernize the F-16 weapon system, guaranteeing
future participation at the same level as Allies.
‘Burn’ taxies
back to the quick
reaction alert
hangars with his
wingman in pursuit,
after a Tango
scramble mission,
armed with live
AIM-9 missiles
Both units hold the same responsibilities,
which include offensive counter-air (OCA).
This consists of offensive operations to
destroy, disrupt or degrade adversary
air and missile capabilities. Ideally, most
OCA operations will prevent the launch of
aircraft and missiles by destroying them,
and their supporting infrastructure and
systems on the surface, or, failing that, as
close to their source as possible.
The units are also responsible for
defensive counter-air (DCA), which
consists of all active and passive air
defense operations to detect, identify,
intercept and destroy or negate adversary
air and missile forces attempting to attack
or penetrate friendly battlespace – or to
nullify or reduce the effectiveness of such
attacks, should they escape destruction.
Making up 40% of both units’ missions in
the Continuation Training program, these
counter-air missions do not include close
air support (CAS) or anti-surface warfare
(ASuW) missions.
Air interdiction sees operations
conducted to divert, disrupt, delay,
degrade or destroy an adversary’s military
potential, before it can be brought to
bear effectively and at such distance that
detailed integration of each air mission
with the fire and maneuver of friendly
forces is normally not required. Every
mission starts with a commander’s intent
analysis, followed by a thorough target
study, an extensive review of the rules
of engagement, intelligence update,
threat examination, and own capabilities
available. With all this information, the
flight lead is responsible for organizing a
flight brief with all air personnel present.
CAS is an air action against hostile
targets that are near friendly ground
forces, and requires detailed integration
of each air mission with the fire and
movement of those forces for fratricide
avoidance and targeting guidance
performed by a certified and qualified
forward air controller (FAC).
CAS missions may or may not have a
complex preparation before the flight,
as they can be requested with great
urgency to support ground troops. In
the latter case, the communication and
understanding between pilots and FACs Above: Two FAP is to qualify the UP to fly in visual and that, they do a variety of specific missions,
are crucial for mission success. F-16A/BM (MLU) instrument meteorological conditions. where they are required to know the
Falcons perform a
ASuW operations are part of the Air practice intercept The IQT is a course where the UP learns platform, tactics, avionics, and weapons
Power Contribution to Counter-Maritime on an FAP Esq101 about the sensors and armament available used. Once pilots are declared combat-
Operations (APCMO). They are conducted Epsilon TB-30 in the F-16, the tactics, and how to apply ready, they comply with a minimum air-to-
to destroy or neutralize adversary naval them according to Portugal’s tactics, air and air-to-ground mission cycle to be
surface forces. These missions can be techniques, and procedures manuals, in qualified each year.
performed with the same weapons that basic and planned missions.
are used for conventional air-to-ground The IMQT is where the UP is exposed Team work and competition
attacks or with specific armament that to complex scenarios that the F-16 could Though they may have different
Portugal currently does not have. be deployed to or tasked with, applying backgrounds and origins, the two
all the tactics learned in the IQT. All the squadrons provide the air force with many
The training course UPs that fly the F-16, depending on their advantages, such as the capability to
To achieve combat-ready status in the performance, are expected to complete all deploy one while the other stays in Monte
Portuguese F-16, a new pilot joins the three courses. The air force requirements Real, maintaining the essential chain of
F-16 community after either completing dictate the number of UPs per year that command with superiors. This gives more
high-performance jet conversion training end up at 201 and 301 squadrons. flexibility to the decision-makers and
or an introduction to fighter fundamentals Most students’ responsibilities remain makes managing human resources easier.
course or equivalent. This takes place the same during the air-to-ground and Another benefit of having two sister
via Portugal’s training unit, Esq101 air-to-air missions, with the aim of being squadrons is the healthy competition –
utilizing the TB-30 Epsilon at Beja Air Base. a combat-ready wingman (WG). They inherent to fighter pilots – that inevitably
Portuguese pilots can also attend courses should be able to conduct a safe flight, exists between them and constantly
in the US at Laughlin and Vance Air Force complying with their tasks inside their makes one strive to do more, and better,
Bases (AFBs) to complete multiple phases Below: One of the cockpit, while maintaining situational while keeping the excellent relationship
two F-16AM (MLU)
of fast-jet training. Fighting Falcons awareness on the mission, and constantly they both have. Ripple added: “We
Portugal also plans to start sending on standby 24/7 fulfilling their WG responsibilities with can be 100% mission-focused and
pilots to Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training taxies back to the their flight lead being always visual in excel [as] fighter pilots flying together
quick reaction
Program (ENJJPT) at Sheppard AFB, Texas. alert hangars at the adequate formation, and using their while maintaining and respecting each
This should include multiple students and Monte Real weapons and sensors when asked to. For squadron’s rules and traditions.”
trained instructor pilots, however, the start
date is yet to be determined.
In 2015, a protocol between the FAP and
the Brazilian Air Force was established for
the FAP to send a fighter instructor pilot
(IP) and an upgrade pilot (UP) to undergo
training in the A29 Super Tucano. The IP
would become an A29 instructor, while
the UP would complete the Brazilian
student qualification course. That was
performed only in 2015, with two pilots –
no more pilots have been sent since then.
Regardless of where the student
comes from, any new F-16 pilot needs to
complete three qualification courses: basic
course (BC), initial qualification training
(IQT), and initial mission qualification
training (IMQT). The objective of the BC

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 73

 DETACHMENT REPORT // RAPTORS OVER UAE

RAPTORS
OVER UAE Loitering drone strikes by Houthi and PMU rebels in
the United Arab Emirates have led to a new role for US
Air Force Raptors and other American assets in the
volatile region. Babak Taghvaee reports

74 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

 UAE’S
DEFENSIVE
CAPABILITY
The UAE Air Force currently has 56
Mirage 2000-9 multi-role fighters
in three main models, including 13
combat-trainers. It also has 77 F-16 Block
60 multi-role fighters, among which are
24 Model F combat trainers.
The F-16E/F, known as the Desert
Falcon, is one of the most advanced
examples of the fourth-generation
multi-role fighter developed by

I
Lockheed Martin, reaping a $3bn
Above: From January n the afternoon of Friday, February fact that the UAE Air Force has 110 investment from the UAE. These fighters
27, the UAE Air have been in the service of the country’s
18, 2022, a trio of US Air Force F-22A operational fighter jets as well as five
Force’s F-16E Block air force since 2003.
60 fighter jets have Raptor Air Superiority fighter jets airborne early warning and control The AN/APG-80 AESA is one of the
been involved in CAP landed at Al-Dhafra Air Base in the (AEW&C) aircraft. The involvement of most advanced radars developed for
patrols over UAE. United Arab Emirates (UAE). Serialed these assets in the war in Yemen as well F-16 use and is the eyes and brain
Because most of them of Emirati F-16 Block 60s. The radar
are busy with the war 04-4076, 05-4091 and 09-4189, they as the lack of tanker aircraft (just three
has made these fighters the most
with Yemen, the air were part of 27th Fighter Squadron, A330MRTTs) availability to refuel them
progressive member of the F-16
force only use them 1st Fighter Wing, and they joined nine has resulted in the UAE authorities
for these missions for family for 15 years; the technology
six to 12 hours per day other F-22As of the squadron already at turning to the fighter jets of France and can simultaneously detect and track
Babak Taghvaee Al-Dhafra. the US to protect itself from the danger multiple flight and ground targets, as
The nine had been previously of loitering drones. well as loitering drones at low altitudes.
The APG-80 radar provides the ability
transferred to the base on February 10
to detect and intercept a fighter with
Top Left: One of 12
F-22A Raptors of
and 12 to protect the UAE from the threat F-22A contribution a radar cross section of 1m² from a
the USAF’s 27th FS posed by loitering drones of the rebels of Of the 12 US F-22A fighter jets sent to Al- distance of 110km. It can also detect and
deployed to Al-Dhafra, the Houthi and PMU (Popular Mobilization Dhafra Air Base to protect UAE airspace, intercept targets from the size of a cruise
09-4172 is seen in Units, or Hashd al-Shaabi) groups. the first group of six arrived on February missile to ashort-range
Sidewinder small dronemissiles
with a radar
and six
Joint Base Langley- cross-section of 10cm² from a distance
Eustis before leaving Earlier, on January 27, at the request of 14. The second six were scheduled to be active radar-guided missiles and the AIM-
of 62km, and even a stealth fighter from
for Morón in Spain on the UAE government, US National Guard sent to Al-Dhafra on Monday, February 120D AMRAAMs
a distance medium-range missiles
of 20km.
February 10, 2022 F-16C fighter jets had started armed air 14, but a technical issue for the second (withFora use
maximum range
in air-to-air of 165km).
missions, the UAE
USAF
patrols over the country followed by formation of three aircraft caused them purchased
The F-22A’s297 AIM-9M Sidewinder
APG-77(V)1 radar can detect
USMC F/A-18C/D fighters on February 10. to abort their mission. The final three left short-range
aerial targets theIR guided
size ofmissiles
a fighterand 491
with a
AIM-120B AMRAAM medium-range
These patrols had begun after the drone Morón Air Base in Spain on the 18th after radar cross section of one square meter
active radar guided missiles in 2002 and
strikes by Houthi militias on January 17 repair work and flew to the UAE. from
2003.a distance of 201were
These missiles to 241km, andtocan
delivered
and 24, and were intensified following the The serial numbers of the deployed detect
the UAE low-radar
Air Forcecross-section aircraft
by 2007. In 2009, 224
drone strike on January 30. F-22A Raptor fighters indicate that all but roundssuch
targets of the
as more
cruiseadvanced AMRAAM
missiles and suicide
With the arrival of F-22A fighters in one belong to the fifth and subsequent model,from
drones the AIM-120C-7, and in 2018,
distance of 100km. This radar
Below: Six US Air 300 rounds of the advanced AIM-9X
the UAE and the start of their armed air production lots of this fighter and are also enables engagement with six flying
Force F-22A Raptors Sidewinder model, were purchased
with 08-4159, patrols from Monday, February 14, 2022, therefore equipped with the APG-77(V)1 targets
for usesimultaneously with thewere
in F-16s. These missiles use of six
08-4163, 08-4170, the mission of the US National Guard and AESA. Unlike its basic version, this radar rounds
deliveredof AMRAAMs.
by 2020.
09-4172, 09-4176 Marine Corps fighters in the region has is capable of ground mapping and A The UAE Airaircraft
refuelling Force has also been
is needed using
to support
and 09-4178 serial advanced French MICA missiles since
numbers arrive at become more focused on air patrols over interception and detection of ground
2003 in infrared guided (IR) and active
Al Dhafra Air Base, Saudi Arabia. These missions are intended objects, making it suitable to intercept
radar guided (ER) types on its upgraded
United Arab Emirates, to protect the country from drone strikes low-flying drones.
Feb. 12, 2022 Mirage 2000-9 aircraft. MICA missiles,
USAF/Tech Sgt similar to those in the UAE. Each F-22A fighter during the combat air like their American counterparts, the
Chelsea E FitzPatrick These moves come despite the patrol is capable of carrying two AIM-9X AIM-9X and AIM-120C-7, have a high
capability to counter low-radar, low-
infrared aerial targets.
Of the UAE Air Force’s Mirage 2000-9
fighter jets, 38 to 42 are currently
operational simultaneously, and of
the 77 F-16E/F fighter jets, about 65
to 68 are operational simultaneously.
However, the UAE Air Force cannot on its
own use these fighters to deploy armed
air patrols over its airspace and requires
assistance (see panel overleaf, ’Why UAE
needs allied support’).

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 75

 DETACHMENT REPORT // RAPTORS OVER UAE

either one or two US Air Force armed aircraft in refuelling missions to fighter jets Above: Since February
patrols (each consisting of two fighter jets)
over the UAE. The US Air Force currently
engaged in air patrol over the UAE between
January 27 and February 21, 2022. They
WHY UAE 10, 2022, USMC’s
VMFA-115 has been
involved in CAP
has 23 KC-135A Stratotanker refuelling
aircraft at Qatar's Al-Udeid Air Base and six
refuelled UAE Air Force F-16E/F and French
Air Force Rafale C aircraft over the UAE in NEEDS ALLIED missions over UAE
as a part of their
KC-10A Extender heavy refuellers at the
UAE’s Al-Dhafra.
the absence of Emirati and French refueling
aircraft. SUPPORT
The main reason for the inability of
operations over the
Persian Gulf. They
carry a pair of AIM-9X
Information from military aircraft tracking In addition to tankers, airborne early Sidewinders and a
the well-equipped UAE Air Force to
websites shows at least ten different KC- warning (AEW) assets also play an pair of AIM-120C-5s
conduct enough armed air patrols to as well as a LANTIRN
135R refuelling aircraft and four KC-10A important role in identifying hostile aircraft protect the capital and its sensitive targeting pod, which
military and economic facilities is the help their pilots to
lack of refueling and early-warning detect the aerial
aircraft. The force currently has only targets such as drones
three Airbus A330-243MRTT refueling from longer distances
aircraft in service with MRTT squadron USAF/Tech Sgt
at Al-Ain Air Base. Christopher Ruano
Of the three Emirati refuelling
aircraft, one is in use for support
missions around the world and the Left: Two F-16CM
Block 30s of USANG’s
other two for missions over Yemen. Of
120th FS including
these, only one is usually available to 86-0287 performed
refuel Emirati fighters during local air CAP over UAE and
patrols. According to military aircraft the Persian Gulf to
tracking websites, A330MRTT 1302 protect Abu-Dhabi and
flies around seven refuelling flights Al-Dhafra Air Base on
over the UAE, for 10 to 12 hours each, December 25, 2021.
especially in Abu Dhabi and Dubai. During their CAP
During these hours, the aircraft can missions over UAE, as
well as AIM-9X and
refuel two batches of two Emirati
AIM-120C-5 missiles,
fighters during an air patrol, at they carry two GBU-58
15,000ft. precision guided
The UAE has ordered two more bombs that can be
A330MRTTs from Airbus; if delivered used against Islamic
to the country’s air force, they could Revolutionary Guard
enable the UAEAF to provide more Corps Navy (IRGCN)
armed patrols in the event of a drone if needed
threat against the country. USAF/Tech Sgt
Christopher Ruano

76 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

 TYPE MODEL OPERATOR UNIT SERIAL NUMBERS BASE AREAS OF OPERATIONS
F-16CM Block 30 x 6 120th FS 86-0287, 86-0358, 86-0365, 87-0254, 87-0284
and 88-0401
Saudi Arabia
F-16CM Block 30 x 6 176th FS 87-0260, 87-0266, 87-0280, 87-0298, 87-0343
USANG UAE
and 87-0345
Prince Sultan AB
Multi-role Fighter
164879, 164895, 165173, 165175, 165177,
F/A-18C x 8 165197, 165201 and 165171*** Saudi Arabia
USMC VMFA-115 UAE
F/A-18D x 4 164679, 164723, 165683 and 165686
Persian Gulf
04-4076, 05-4091, 08-4157, 08-4159, 08-4163,
F-22A x 12 USAF 27th FS 08-4170, 09-4172, 09-4176, 09-4178, 09-4184, Al-Dhafra AB UAE
Air Superiority Fighter 09-4189, 10-4192
E-3B x 1 960th AACS 75-0556
AEW&C** USAF Al-Dhafra AB Iraq and Saudi Arabia
E-3B x 2 964th AACS 73-1675 and 78-0577

KC-135R x 1 USAFR 72nd ARS 62-3518

KC-135R x 3 USAFR 74th ARS 60-0314, 60-0359, 61-0272
KC-135R x 1 USAMC 91st ARS 63-8045
KC-135R x 2 USAF 314th ARS 57-1508, 63-8879
KC-135R x 2 USAF 351st ARS 58-0001, 58-0036 Al-Udeid AB Iraq, Saudi Arabia and UAE
Tanker KC-135R x 1 USAF 909th ARS 59-4192*
KC-135R x 4 USAF 6th ARW 57-1474, 61-0321, 62-3498, 63-8884
58-0016* , 60-0355, 62-3541, 62-3573, 63-
KC-135R x 6 USAF 92nd ARW 8025, 63-8874
KC-135R x 2 USANG 116th ARS 57-1502, 59-1511
KC-135R x 3 USANG 132nd ARS 58-0030, 58-0098, 59-1446
KC-10A x 3 USAF 60th AMW 83-0076, 83-0080, 84-0191 Al-Dhafra AB Iraq, UAE
KC-10A x 3 305th AMW 79-1711, 84-0188, 85-0027

* Deployment to Al-Udeid AB had been ended when this article was written. ** Airborne Early Warning and Command. *** F/A-18C BuNo 165171 is loaned from VMFA-224

Above: The table targets, including the so-called ‘suicide’ Saudi focus the air patrol missions of the National
shows list of the 36
drones of the Houthi and PMU. As well as the 12 F-22A Raptor fighter Guard and the US Marine Corps have
fighter jets, three
AEW&C aircraft and The US Air Force currently has three E-3B jets at Al-Dhafra, 12 F-16CM-30 fighters become more focused on Saudi Arabia.
31 tanker aircraft that Sentry aircraft stationed at Al-Dhafra. In the from the 120th and 176th Fighter The US Air Force also has another
were used during the
absence of any of the five UAE AEW aircraft Squadrons of the US Air National Guard, 18 F-16CM-50s in the Middle East;
patrol missions of
CENTCOM over Saudi (three Saab GlobalEyes and two Saab 340 and 12 F/A-18C/D Hornets of VMFA- these are from the 55th Fighter
Arabia, UAE and the Erieyes), one of the three E-3s monitors the 115 are on deployment to the Prince Squadron at Shaw AB, South Carolina
Persian Gulf between
UAE and neighbouring country airspace. Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia and on deployment at Shahid Mowaffaq
January 27 and
February 21, 2022. The information collected by the aircraft's participated in armed patrols over the al-Salti Air Base in Jordan. They are
radar antenna is easily transmitted via data UAE. After the deployment of F-22A currently being used
Below: Six KC-10A link 16 to fighter jets involved in air patrols fighters to Al-Dhafra and the start of to conduct armed patrol missions
Extender tankers of
USAF on deployment over the UAE. their armed air patrols over the UAE, solely over Iraq and Syria.
at Al-Dhafra provide
key support in CAP
missions over the UAE
and the Persian Gulf
USAF/Master Sgt
Dan Heaton

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 77

 UNIT REPORT // 586TH FLTS
T-38C serial 63-8187 of the 586th
FLTS. It is painted in its Heritage
scheme representing the 586th
Bombardment Squadron (BS)
from World War Two. The 586th BS
served from March 5, 1943 to
March 31, 1946. USAF

Michael Keaveney catches up with the

commanding officer of the ‘Roadrunners’
to find out more about their unique role

586TH FLTS:
THE
THEROADR
78
ROAD
May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
 J
UST IMAGINE FLYING chase with
a drone one day, then flying
as an enemy aircraft to test
radar systems the following
day... then later in the week
flying around pretending to
be a satellite to test its systems before
launching it into space. Well, there is
a squadron in the US Air Force (USAF)
that performs these missions regularly:
the 586th Flight Test Squadron (FLTS)
‘Roadrunners’, based at Holloman Air
Force Base (AFB), New Mexico.
The 586th FLTS is part of the 704th Test
Group (TG) and is commanded by Lt
Col Alex “Cuda” Wolfard. He comes from
an F-16 and flight test environment.
:
As Wolfard explained it: “The 586th’s
mission is to conduct and enable agile
weapons, avionics and survivability
testing for various platforms in multiple
domains. It is a pretty fancy tagline, and
I have kind of boiled it down to [the
basics] which is, we don’t make things,
we make them better.”
DRUNNERS
RUNNERS
As a test organization at Holloman AFB,
the 586th is unlike other, traditional test
units. It does not test its own projects,
but assists others in testing theirs. “We
are considered a participating test
organization (PTO), so we are not the
lead, we are the safety or chase function.
When it comes to how the squadron
receives payment for services, it all comes
out through the Air Force Research
Laboratory (AFRL) budget,” said Wolfard.
The White Sands Missile Range (WSMR)
is a tri-service range (USAF, Army and
Navy). The range is roughly 100 miles
long from north to south and almost 40
miles east to west, totaling some 3,200
square miles. “The real prize these days
is airspace, and we are lucky to have the
WSMR – one of the longest overland
sanitized air ranges in the US, which
makes it really unique and everyone
wants a piece of it,” said Wolfard.
The 586th’s mission can be one of two
different roles, as Lt Col Wolfard explained:
“There are some unique elements – one
Above: A T-38B is the flight test mission, but we also have
Serial 64-13269 a “bed-down” mission. So, if we have
of the 586th Flight
Test Squadron another test organization that wants to
‘Roadrunners’ taxies come out here and do [their] business
in after a test sortie in
in the WSMR, we are the organization
March 2008 Matt Ellis
PROJECT HYNDLA
Although the 586th is based at Holloman, their test projects
take them all over the US, from MCAS Yuma in Arizona for the
KRATOS XQ-58A and Edwards AFB in California for the TACOS
project, to Alaska for Project Hyndla.
Hyndla is an enhancement to the Link 16 data network – but
when asked by CAJ about this, the commander could not
expand. The 586th C-12 was up at Joint Base Elmendorf-
Richardson in Alaska for Northern Edge 21 during May 3-14 to
test the enhancements.
Lt Col Alex “Cuda” Wolfard said: “It is an enhancement that
is to be integrated on all USAF platforms. The customer is the
Life Cycle Management Center (LCMC) out of Hanscom AFB,
Massachusetts. They were able to modify our C-12, so we had
their Link 16 equipment and software operating in this huge
exercise, where you can saturate your system with Link 16
inputs from all the aircraft operating during the exercise.”
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 79
 UNIT REPORT // 586TH FLTS
CAPABILITIES OF THE T-3:
160-866 KCAS / Mach 1.3
Airspeed / Mach
at 30,000 feet
Maximum altitude 50,000 feet
Two General Electric
Engine
J85-GE-5
2,200lb dry thrust, 3,300
Thrust (with PMP)
with afterburners
Flight duration 1.0 – 1.5 hours
Nz Load Factor 7 Gs
Time Space Position
Information (TSPI) L/C/Ku/
Instrumentation Ka/S Band, Rear Cockpit
Modular Pallet (‘R2-D2’)
Mode 4/5, Ethernet
Stores MAU-12 Centerline Pylon
Carriage /
1,000lb capacity
Employment

THE TALON
The T-38Cs, of which there are four (62-3703, 63-8187, 63-8247,
and 64-13261), are primarily used for flying photo and safety
chase along with carrying experimentation packages both
internally in the rear cockpit and in pods on the center pylon
underneath the aircraft. The aircraft can mount the ALQ-167
Electronic Counter Measures (ECM) Pod and the ALE-40 chaff and
flare pod. The squadron can put Mode 5 IFF and much more on
the T-38. They can even take the back seat out and put in what is
affectionately known as ‘R2-D2’, although its real name is Rear
Cockpit Modular Pallet – a big orange box that has test packages
installed into it.

Left: 586th FLTS weapons separation is an important part

TEST DUTIES
The Roadrunners were involved in
the USAF’s Light Attack Experiment
when phase one was conducted back
in 2017 at Holloman AFB. The 586th
performed safety and photo chase
duties. Several aircraft were evaluated:
the Sierra Nevada/Embraer A-29,
Textron/Beechcraft AT-6B, Air Tractor
OA-802, and Textron Scorpion. Phase two
followed in 2018 with the USAF down
selecting just two of the prior candidates,
the A-29 and the AT-6B for evaluation.
During both phases of testing, the 586th
provided photo and safety chase service.
The original air force OA-X Light Attack
Aircraft program has now become the
Southern Command (SOCOM) Armed
Overwatch Program to replace the U-28.
The unit plays a big role not just in
testing equipment but also supporting
the needs of the AFRL. Now, with the
DoD’s ever-expanding research and
development budget and increasing
importance in space, there should be no
shortage of test projects for 586th FLTS.
that is going to host them. The 586th
has maintainers, weapon loaders, ammo
troops that can build up weapons, and
we will get the visiting unit out into the
airspace to do their magic.”
Along with Wolfard, there are three
civilian pilots in the squadron with prior
military flying experience. The squadron
flies two different types of aircraft, the
Beechcraft C-12 and Northrop T-38 Talon.
Explaining latest projects, Lt Col Wolfard
said: “One of the recent missions that we
flew was the KRATOS XQ-58A, and that
was a great one. March 26, 2021 [the sixth
flight of the XQ-58A flight] was conducted
by AFRL and Red Fox at Yuma Proving
Grounds, Arizona. Our role in that mission
was photo and safety chase.
“AFRL was doing expansion work for the
XQ-58A. The first release from its internal
weapons bay. So, there was a payload
that they were carrying – the ALTIUS-600
Small, Unmanned Aircraft Systems (SUAS).
As you work through envelope expansion,
Kubernetics Display of that, especially with an internal payload.
mounted over the rear
cockpit instrument You must think through everything. So,
panel of one of its we had to maneuver the T-38 into position
T-38s. Kubernetics alongside, so the photographer [in the
software allows them
to take a part out and rear] could take those pictures, which are
replace it with a new both a Public Affairs (PA) and a Flight Test
piece quickly without Data Function (FTDF).”
having to modify the
complete software Wolford shared another capability the
application each time 586th has that few others have: “We
Michael Keaveney own some modification authority for
those aircraft [C-12 and T-38]. A Type II
modification (mod) is a temporary test or
a research and development (R&D) type
modification to an aircraft.
“Some of that authority has been
delegated to us through the airworthiness
powers that be. That enables us to be
agile, so that when a customer comes and
says, ‘we want to put this on your aircraft’,
you’re not behind this pile of airworthiness
administration.”
The squadron also works on internal
projects in an effort to be ‘proactive’. One
such project involved a modification to
the instrumentation of their T-38s. Wolfard
explained: “We saw an opportunity to
think creatively about software. We put a
Kubernetes open-architecture software
Top: T-38C serial
system on our T-38 so that now, if there
63-8187 of the 586th
FLTS seen in transit
is a widget you need to put it on the jet,
en route to the White
Sands Missile Range we can also put the software on it.” This
USAF software allows the squadron to extract

80 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

some parts and replace it with a new
piece quickly, without having to modify
the complete software application each
time. “This is one area that we are looking
to grow, because we just had this idea
that once we apply this capability, it takes
about two to three years before customers
really start recognizing that we have it and
it might become an interest or a solution
for them,” said Wolfard.
Although the 586th flies the T-38C,
maintenance of their T-38s is carried out
by the depot at Holloman AFB, which
works on T-38As flown by the units at
Langley, Tyndall, and Beale AFB. The 586th
is a rider on that contract so consequently
its maintenance costs are relatively
inexpensive; a bonus it gets to pass on to
its customers.
Mission status
Asked how the squadron gets its missions,
Wolfard said: “When I took the seat as
the commander of the unit, I had only
ever been part of a unit that had a clean
document statement, that is, you are
in the defense of southern Korea, or an
area of responsibility (AOR). At the 586th,
we are a little more agile in that regard,
I go out and market this department
of defense (DoD) organization to the
government [the customer].”
The 586th has around 42 customers,
with the majority (some 65%) being USAF.
Wolfard said: “As an example, the navy
was just out here earlier this month [in
June 2021] doing E-2 Hawkeye work and
co-ordinating with navy assets on base.
They house them in one of our facilities,
provide them their radio frequency
allocations (RFA), set up their antennas
Bottom: 586th crew and whatever test equipment that they as Wolfard explained: “The Capstone
members attach a have, and get them out on the test range Program is the Test Management Program
pylon to the T-38.
Primarily, the pylon and do their test work. We also work with (TMP) at the Test Pilot School. The
carries any one of the army. If the Patriot [MIM-104 missile students get to the end of the year and
several different test system] has software revisions, the T-38 receive a project they must work their way
pods that can be
used on the aircraft has a good profile for a ‘threat’ with its through prior to graduation. We partnered
Michael Keaveney radar cross-section, and they use it to work with them and said, ‘if you want to put
through the nuisances of their system.” that project on our C-12 then feel free’. The
most recent project [with the Test Pilot
Satellite testing School], the students named ‘Have TACOS’
Not only does the 586th get involved – standing for Test and Check Out Satellite.
with testing of ground and air systems, “When you are developing a satellite to
but in some cases a space application can send into space, there are a series of test
pop up – as was the case with a project activities that you have to go through to
it worked on at Edwards AFB recently, ensure it is mature enough to get into
outer space. The students figured out how
MODIFIED C-12J
The 586th also operates a single C-12J serial 86-0080. What you
to create a satellite surrogate and put it
on the C-12 then, to ensure it’s interfacing
with the tracking station, we flew the C-12,
don’t see every day on a C-12 are two MA-4 pylons underneath masquerading as a satellite.”
the centerline station for mounting pods that carry test payloads.
The 586th’s C-12J is a heavily modified aircraft, making it a very
effective tool for test missions. C-12J
As Lt Col Alex “Cuda” Wolfard explained: “The C-12 is super cool Airspeed / Mach 110-250 KCAS
in that we have designed plates into the aircraft so that you can Maximum altitude 25,000 feet
just pull them off and put an aperture [camera], or an antenna, or Two Pratt & Whitney
whatever you want on to it. Then we can connect that aperture to PT6A-65B Turboprop
engines, each with a four
some rack that sits in the aircraft, so you can sit onboard and run
experiments to your heart’s content. Engine
blade, full-feathering,
reversible composite
“So, having the pods, we can send one to the customer who can propeller, generating
put what he likes in there.” 1,173 shaft
horsepower each
4-6 hours; 1,450 nautical
Flight duration
mile range
Nz Load Factor 3 Gs
TSPI, L/C/Ku/Ka/S Band,
Targeting Pods,
Instrumentation Link-16,ADS-B,
Ethernet, Modular
Customizable Racks
Stores Dual MA-4 Pylons,
In recent years, the 586th’s C-12J 86-0080 traded in its traditional USAF
markings and HT tail code for this civilian styled paint scheme. In this shot it Carriage / 2 Store Configuration
is carrying a Sniper Advanced Targeting Pod. Flying the Sniper Pod on the C-12 Employment 500lb capacity each
for tests saves a lot of expense compared with flying it on a fighter or bomber 1 Store
Michael Keaveney 750lb capacity
Configuration
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 81
 F-35 IN US SERVICE

LIGHTNING Dave Allport details the

CHAIN
units and bases operating
the F-35 (and its variants)
across three pillars
of the United States
Armed Forces

A US Air Force F-35A Lightning II from the

461st Flight Test Squadron at Edwards Air
Force Base, California, flies over the Mojave
Desert during a test sortie on August 15, 2014
Lockheed Martin/Chad Bellamy

82 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

T
HE ORIGINS OF the iconic F-35
Lightning II can be traced to
the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF)
program, which itself sprang
from two earlier fighter
development projects – the
Joint Advanced Strike Technology (JAST)
and Common Affordable Lightweight
Fighter (CALF) programs, which later
merged under the JAST name. This
then evolved into the JSF program,
which was ultimately narrowed down
to two competing designs – the Boeing
X-32 and Lockheed Martin X-35. On
November 16, 1996, the two
manufacturers were awarded
contracts to produce two
prototypes able to demonstrate
conventional take-off and landing
(CTOL), carrier take-off and
landing (CV) and short take-
off and vertical landing
(STOVL) operations.
Ultimately, the X-35
won the competition,
resulting in Lockheed Martin being
awarded a system development and
demonstration contract on October
26, 2001. The production version of
the X-35 evolved into the F-35 Lightning
II and, on April 6, 2009, Robert Gates,
the US Secretary of Defense at the time,
announced the US would buy 2,443 JSFs.
After the first F-35A was rolled out at
Fort Worth, Texas, on February 19, 2006, it
made its maiden flight on December 15
that year. The first F-35B took to the air for
the first time on June 11, 2008, followed
by the first F-35C on June 6, 2010.
All three variants have been acquired
by the US, comprising the CTOL F-35A
for the US Air Force (USAF), STOVL F-35B
for the US Marine Corps (USMC) and CV
carrier variant F-35C for the US Navy. The
USAF plans to acquire 1,763 F-35As; the
USMC 353 F-35Bs and 67 F-35Cs, and the
US Navy 273 F-35Cs. Despite numerous
development problems, production is
well under way, although, the type is
subject to ongoing development work.
The latest planned upgrade, Block IV,
launched in 2018. This is a planned suite
of largely classified software, hardware
and technology upgrades intended
to radically improve the F-35’s combat
effectiveness. However, development
challenges mean the latest estimates
suggest the full Block IV capability is
unlikely to be delivered until at least
2029, although, initial incremental
elements of Block IV will be rolled out in
the next few months.

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 83

 F-35 IN US SERVICE
Here, we take a closer look at the US bases
and units that operate the F-35.
USAF
F-35A
Burlington ANGB, Vermont
The Vermont Air National Guard’s (ANG)
158th Fighter Wing (FW)/134th Fighter
Squadron (FS) ‘Green Mountain Boys’
began re-equipping with the F-35A when
the first two aircraft (serials 17-5265 ‘VT’
and 17-5266 ‘VT’) arrived at Burlington
Air National Guard Base (ANGB) on
September 19, 2019. The unit, which is
84 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
tasked with the suppression of enemy air Above: US Air 2012, and eventually operated up to seven
defenses role, previously flew the F-16C/D Force F-35A serial F-35A/B/C aircraft for development and
Block 30 – the last of which left Burlington number 13-5073 trails work. However, once the initial
‘OT’, assigned
on April 6, 2019. The last of 20 F-35As
for the Green Mountain Boys arrived in
October 2020 – it was the first ANG unit to
to the 31st TES
at Edwards AFB,
releasing AIM-120
test and operational evaluation phase
of development had been completed in
late 2019, all six remaining F-35s with the
AMRAAM and AIM-
put the F-35A into service. As a prelude to 9X missiles at QF- unit at the time were transferred to the
the UK-based 48th FW taking delivery of 16 full-scale aerial 422nd TES located at Nellis AFB, Nevada.
the type, two 134th FS F-35As deployed to targets during a Since then, the 31st TES has only used
live-fire test over an
RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk, on April 27, 2021, air force range in loaned aircraft, when required, from
for acoustic testing. the Gulf of Mexico co-located units.
on June 12, 2018 Air Force Materiel Command’s 412th Test
USAF/Master Sgt
Edwards AFB, California Michael Jackson Wing/461st Flight Test Squadron (FLTS)
Air Combat Command’s 53rd Wing/31st ‘Deadly Jesters’ located at Edwards AFB
Test and Evaluation Squadron (TES) at flies USAF F-35A, USMC F-35B and US
Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) took delivery Navy F-35C variants. It had been an F-15
of its first two F-35As around the end of training unit at Luke AFB, Arizona, until
being inactivated on August 5, 1994.
It was reactivated at Edwards AFB on
October 27, 2006, primarily for flight
testing of the F-35A.
Left: The 34th FS Three early production UK F-35Bs (serials
Assistant Director ZM135, ZM136 and ZM138) from the Royal
of Operations Maj Air Force’s 17 TES are also embedded as
Brad Matherne,
flies combat-coded part of the 461st FLTS. The RAF re-formed
F-35A Lightning II 17 Squadron at Edwards on April 12, 2013,
serial number 13- as a joint RAF/Royal Navy Operational
5072 ‘HL’ past the
control tower at Hill Evaluation Unit for the UK F-35B.
AFB on September The Royal Netherlands Air Force’s
17, 2015, while (RNLAF) 323 Squadron, also known as
conducting mission
qualification the Tactical Training and Evaluation
training Squadron, is also based at Edwards,
USAF Alex R Lloyd operating RNLAF F-35As.
 The former Air Force Operational Test Right: USAF F-35A
and Evaluation Center Detachment 1 was serial 18- 5343 ‘VT’
from the Vermont
based at Edwards AFB, too. The unit had ANG’s 158th
operating locations at Fort Worth, Texas, FW/134th FS ‘Green
and Arlington, Virginia, and led Block 2 Mountain Boys’
takes off from Nellis
and Block 3 initial operational testing AFB, Nevada, on
and evaluation for the F-35. It involved July 28, 2021, for
teams from the USAF, US Navy, USMC, UK a Red Flag 21-3
training mission
Air Warfare Centre and the RNLAF, which US Air National
tested and evaluated F-35 operations, Guard/Tech Sgt
training and logistics. Ryan Campbell

Right: USAF F-35A

Eglin AFB, Florida
Air Education and Training Command’s
33rd FW/58th FS ‘Mighty Gorillas’ is
tasked with training USAF operators
and maintainers on the F-35A. It had
previously operated the F-15 Eagle on
air superiority missions until September
2009 then, on October 1, 2009, it became
the US Department of Defense’s first F-35
training squadron. The unit received its
first two F-35s in July 2011.
The 33rd FW’s second F-35A unit, the
60th FS ‘Fighting Crows,’ was reactivated
at Eglin on August 20, 2021. Its first two
aircraft were delivered on October 21,
2021, from Hill AFB, Utah, where they had
previously served with the 421st FS. The
60th FS had previously flown the F-15
Eagle from Eglin but was inactivated on
January 1, 2009.
Eielson AFB, Alaska
The USAF/Pacific Air Forces’ first F-35A unit
was activated on October 10, 2019, when
the 356th FS ‘Green Demons’ was formally
reactivated at Eielson as part of the
354th FW. It had previously been an A-10
Thunderbolt II unit based at Myrtle Beach
serial 18-5352 ‘AK’
assigned to the
356th FS takes off
to participate in
an agile combat
employment
scenario at
Andersen AFB,
Guam, during
exercise Cope North
21 in February 2021
USAF/Snr Airman AFB in South Carolina, until deactivated on
Duncan C Bevan June 10, 1992.
The first F-35A for the unit, 18-5345
‘AK’/‘354 OG’, made its maiden flight at
Fort Worth, Texas, on March 10, 2020. The
first two F-35As were delivered to the
Green Demons a month later, on April 21,
2020. To help establish the new squadron,
four F-35As from the 388th FW at Hill AFB
were flown to Eielson on April 27, 2020, for
a two-month loan.
Most recently, the unit deployed to
Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Iwakuni,
Japan, on December 3, 2021, to participate
in Exercise Iron Dagger, integrating
operations with VMFA-242 F-35Bs.
The second 354th FW F-35A unit at
Eielson is the 355th FS ‘Fighting Falcons’,
which reactivated on December 18, 2020.
The unit previously flew the F-16C/D from
Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort
Worth, Texas, until inactivated on October
25, 2019. Its first two F-35As arrived at
Eielson on April 29, 2021.
When deliveries are completed, the FW
will have a complement of 54 F-35As.
Hill AFB, Utah
The 34th FS ‘Rude Rams’ was reactivated
on July 17, 2015, at Hill AFB as the first
combat squadron with Air Combat
Command’s 388th FW and also the first in
the USAF with the F-35A. It previously flew
the F-16 at Hill AFB but was disbanded on
July 16, 2010.
The unit took delivery of its first F-35A
on September 2, 2015, and, on August 2,
2016, the USAF announced that the unit
had become the first to achieve initial
operating capability with the F-35A.

Four USAF F-35A Lightning IIs from the 58th FS, 33rd
FW at Eglin AFB, Florida, perform an aerial refueling
mission with a KC-135 Stratotanker from the
336th Air Refueling Squadron at March Air Reserve
Base, California, on May 14, 2013, off the coast of
Northwest Florida USAF/Sgt Donald R Allen

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 85

 F-35 IN US SERVICE
The Squadron deployed to RAF
Lakenheath in April 2017. Then, on
November 13, 2019, 12 F-35As from the
unit (along with pilots from Air Force
Reserve Command’s 419th FW/466th
FS) deployed as the 34th Expeditionary
Fighter Squadron to Al Dhafra in the
United Arab Emirates. This was the first
short-notice F-35 Immediate Response
Force deployment and involved 7,311
flying hours across 1,439 sorties,
conducting close air support, offensive
and defensive counter-air and maritime
escort missions. The squadron also
operated simultaneously from two bases
in the region for three months, before
returning home on May 7, 2020.
A second 388th FW unit, the 4th FS
‘Fightin’ Fuujins,’ which previously flew
the F-16, began re-equipping with F-35As
in August 2017. The Squadron is primarily
tasked with air superiority, strike and close
air support missions. It undertook the
USAF’s first F-35A combat deployment,
to Al Dhafra, UAE, where it was based for
six months before returning on October
28, 2019. This involved crews from both
the active-duty 4th FS and Reserve 419th
FW. The aircraft flew close air support and
regional deterrence missions during the
86 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
Left: F-35 Pax training wing, as well as being involved in
River Integrated F-16 training.
Test Force pilot US
Navy Lt William The first of the wing’s units to operate
Bowen from Air the F-35A was the 61st FS ‘Top Dogs’,
Test and Evaluation which was reactivated on October 27,
Squadron 23
(VX-23) conducts 2013, then took delivery of its first aircraft
an Advanced Aerial on March 10, 2014. It previous flew the
Refueling Control F-16C/D at Luke but was inactivated on
Law test, flying
VX-23 development August 27, 2010.
F-35C CF-05 The 62nd FS ‘Spikes’ previously trained
‘SD-75’ on June F-16 pilots at Luke but transitioned to the
26, 2018, behind
deployment, as well as participating in F/A-18F 165801 F-35A in 2015. It trains Italian, Norwegian
multinational exercises. On May 10, 2021, ‘SD-225’, also and USAF pilots.
12 of the 4th FS aircraft deployed to Base from VX-23 The 63rd FS reactivated on August 1,
F-35 ITF/Dane
Aérienne 118 Mont-de-Marsan, France, Weidman 2016, as part of a joint effort to train Turkish
to participate in Atlantic Trident 2021 and and US F-35A pilots. Following the later
other exercises. embargo on F-35A deliveries to Turkey,
The third and final 388th FW unit to it now only provides advanced fighter
receive the F-35A was the 421st FS ‘Black training on the type for US pilots. It was
Widows’, which re-equipped with the previously an F-16 squadron at Luke but
type from December 2018, replacing its was inactivated on May 22, 2009.
previous F-16C/Ds. The unit undertook The 308th FS ‘Emerald Knights’ was
a deployment to Aviano Air Base, Italy, reactivated at Luke on November 30,
as part of a European theater security 2018, as a joint Danish, Netherlands and
package, with six F-35As arriving on May US training unit. It previously trained F-16
23, 2019, followed by six more on May 25. instructor pilots at Luke until deactivating
The fourth F-35A unit at Hill is Air Force on June 25, 2015.
Reserve Command’s 419th FW/466th Air Force Reserve Command’s 944th
FS ‘Diamondbacks.’ The unit, which FW/69th FS ‘Werewolves’ is also based at
was previously an F-16 squadron at Hill, Below: USAF Luke, and is an associate unit that supports
transitioned to the F-35A in 2017. F-35A Lightning training alongside the 56th FW. It also flies
Hill’s squadrons received their final II 11-5035 ‘LF’, the F-16 and began F-35A operations in
assigned to the
F-35A on December 17, 2019, when 63rd FS, takes off 2016. Its Detachment 2 ‘Ninjas’ provides
17-5276 ‘HL’ was delivered to the 388th on November 18, F-35A training for foreign military sales
FW/421st FS. This brought the total at 2020, at Luke AFB. customers, including Israel, Japan and
Ten F-35s from Luke
the base to 78. AFB participated in South Korea.
a joint exercise with
Luke AFB, Arizona two B-2 Spirits from
Whiteman AFB
Nellis AFB, Nevada
Air Education and Training Command’s in Missouri. Two Air Combat Command units fly the
56th FW, at Luke AFB, is the largest fighter USAF/Staff Sgt F-35A from Nellis AFB, one being the 53rd
wing in the world and a major F-35A Franklin R Ramos Wing’s 422nd TES ‘Green Bats.’ The unit
undertakes operational testing of all Air
Combat Command fighter aircraft and has
used the F-35A for this since 2012.
The other F-35A unit at the base is the
57th Wing’s 6th Weapons Squadron, part
of the USAF Weapons School. The unit had
been inactive since February 20, 1947, but
was reactivated on June 20, 2017. Its role
is to develop the F-35 weapons instructor
course curriculum and it is projected to
become the Weapons School’s largest
squadron by 2023, with 24 F-35As
assigned along with 30 instructors.

RAF Lakenheath, Suffolk, UK

On September 15, 2020, it was announced Above: A pair of 6th
that the 495th FS was to become the Weapons Squadron
F-35As (serials
first European-based USAF F-35A unit as
15-5119 ‘WA’ and
part of the 48th FW at RAF Lakenheath. 13-5082 ‘WA’) from
It had previously been an F-111F unit Nellis AFB fly over
the Nevada Test
at Lakenheath but was inactivated on
and Training Range
December 13, 1991. On February 16, 2021, on July 10, 2017
it was announced that the new nickname USAF/Staff Sgt
Daryn Murphy
‘Valkyries’ had been selected for the
unit, which was formally reactivated on
October 1, 2021. The first F-35A (serial 19-5493 ‘LN’) for the 48th
The first two F-35As for the squadron FW’s 493rd FS ‘Grim Reapers’ at RAF Lakenheath,
made their maiden flights at Fort Worth, Suffolk, during a pre-delivery test flight from Fort
Worth, Texas, on March 14, 2022 Henry Ham
Texas, on October 29, 2021. The first four
Valkyries aircraft (serials 19-5473 ‘LN,’ 19- which of the two types will replace the the base had been selected to house three
5474 ‘LN,’ 19-5475 ‘LN’ and 19-5476 ‘LN’) F-15C mission. The Air Force will complete F-35A squadrons, each equipped with
arrived at Lakenheath on December 15, the required Environmental Impact Analysis 24 aircraft. First deliveries to Tyndall are
2021. A further three (19-5484 ‘LN,’ 19-5485 Process before making a final decision. scheduled for September 2023.
‘LN’ and 19-5486 ‘LN’) were delivered on Three ANG sites have already been
February 10, 2022.
A second 48th Fighter Wing unit, the
493rd ‘Grim Reapers’ which currently
identified as F-35A locations – Burlington
ANGB, Vermont; Dannelly Field, Alabama
(187th FW/100th FS ‘Red Tails’ from 2023);
US NAVY
flies the F-15C/D Eagle, will also begin and Truax Field, Wisconsin (115th FW/176th F-35B
conversion to the F-35A shortly. The first FS ‘Badger Air Militia’ also from 2023).
aircraft for the unit (serial 19-5493 ‘LN’/‘493 One Air Force Reserve location –Naval Air Naval Air Station Patuxent
FS’) was seen test flying from the factory in Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth, Texas River, Maryland
Fort Worth, Texas, in early March 2022. – will also receive the type. Although the F-35B is primarily operated
Meanwhile, the 325th FW at Tyndall AFB, by the USMC, two US Navy trials units,
Future USAF bases Florida, announced on April 29, 2021, that both based at Naval Air Station (NAS)
On August 14, 2020, the secretary of the air
force announced that Jacksonville ANGB, Right: Two US
Florida, will begin receiving F-35As from Navy/Strike Fighter
Squadron 125
2024 to replace aging F-15C/D Eagles. The (VFA-125) ‘Rough
same announcement also stated that the Raiders’ F-35C
remaining ANG-operational F-15C/D bases Lightning IIs from
Naval Air Station
at Barnes Airport, Massachusetts; Fresno Lemoore, California,
Yosemite Airport, California, and Naval Air fly in formation over
Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans, the Central Valley
with an F/A-18E
Louisiana, will replace their Eagles with Super Hornet from
either F-35As or F-15EX Eagle IIs. Naval Air VFA-97 ‘Warhawks’,
Station Lemoore, California, is also being as part of the F/A-
18E Sundown with
considered for F-35As. the Warhawks on
The USAF will conduct on-the-ground February 24, 2021.
site surveys at each of these locations to The Warhawks are
now transitioning to
assess operational requirements, potential the F-35C
impacts to existing missions, infrastructure US Navy/Lt Cdr
and manpower, and costs before deciding Lydia Bock

www.Key.Aero // May 2022 87

 F-35 IN US SERVICE
Patuxent River, also fly the type on
development work. These are the Joint
Strike Fighter Integrated Test Force and
Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 23 (VX-
23) ‘Salty Dogs.’
F-35C
Edwards AFB, California
Air Test and Evaluation Squadron 9 (VX-9)
Detachment Edwards AFB uses the F-35C
for development and trails work.
Eglin AFB, Florida
Strike Fighter Squadron 101 (VFA-101)
‘Grim Reapers’ was reactivated as an
F-35C fleet replacement squadron (FRS)
on May 1, 2012, jointly with the USAF’s
33rd FW. It was deactivated on May 23,
2019, and consolidated its assets into the
remaining FRS, VFA-127.
NAS Fallon, Nevada
Located at Naval Air Station Fallon, the
Naval Aviation Warfighting Development
Center is another unit that flies the F-35C
for trials work.
NAS Lemoore, California
Strike Fighter Squadron 125 (VFA-125)
‘Rough Raiders’ was the first unit to
receive the F-35C at NAS Lemoore. It took
delivery of its first four F-35Cs in January
2018. The unit is the F-35C FRS, tasked
with training pilots on the type.
A second Lemoore unit, Strike Fighter
Squadron 147 (VFA-147) ‘Argonauts,’
began F-35C conversion in 2018. The
unit lost one of its aircraft off the
USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) in a much-
publicized incident on January 24, 2022,
when it impacted the flight deck and
subsequently fell into the South China
Sea. The sunken aircraft has since been
recovered from the seabed.
Strike Fighter Squadron 97 (VFA-97)
‘Warhawks’ is the latest unit to transition
to the F-35C. The conversion plans were
88 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
Left: USMC Maj Marine Corps Air Station
Kyle McHugh, a
pilot assigned to
Beaufort, South Carolina
Marine Fighter Training on the F-35B variant is
Attack Squadron undertaken by the USMC’s FRS, Marine
121 (VMFA-121), Fighter Attack Training Squadron 501
attached to
Marine Medium (VMFAT-501) ‘Warlords’ at MCAS Beaufort.
Tilt-Rotor Squadron The unit is under the administrative
265 Reinforced, control of Marine Aircraft Group 31 and
31st Marine
Expeditionary Unit the 2nd Marine Air Wing.
(MEU), departs the In its previous incarnation as VMFA-
flight deck of USS 451, the squadron was deactivated on
America (LHA 6), in
the East China Sea, February 31, 1997. Then, on April 1, 2010,
on June 24, 2021. it was re-designated and reactivated
The F-35B was as VMFAT-501, the F-35 FRS. It was
launched in support
announced in September 2019, and of the 31st MEU’s initially stationed at Eglin AFB, under the
the unit took delivery of its first aircraft unit-level training operational control of the USAF’s 33rd FW,
at Lemoore a couple of years later, in USMC/Staff Sgt which, at the time, was responsible for
John Tetrault
October 2021. VFA-97 previously flew the controlling all USAF F-35A, USMC F-35B
F/A-18E Super Hornet. and US Navy F-35C training.
In July 2014, the unit moved to its
Naval Air Station Patuxent permanent home at Beaufort. On
River, Maryland September 28, 2018, the unit lost one of its
In addition to the earlier mentioned aircraft near Beaufort – the first crash of a
F-35B, both the Joint Strike Fighter USMC F-35B, which led to the grounding
Integrated Test Force and Air Test and of the entire F-35 fleet.
Evaluation Squadron 23 (VX-23) ‘Salty A second F-35 FRS, Marine Fighter Attack
Dogs’ at NAS Patuxent River also use the Training Squadron 502 (VMFAT-502)
Below: Following
F-35C for development and trials work. an eight-month ‘Flying Nightmares’, was activated
VX-23 carried out the first F-35C sea trials deployment to at MCAS Beaufort on June 26, 2020.
on the Italian Navy aircraft carrier ITS the US 3rd and After completing work up at Beaufort,
7th Fleet areas of
Cavour (550), which included the first ‘ski operations as part VMFAT-502 is to relocate to MCAS Miramar,
jump’ on March 14, 2021. of the Carl Vinson California, by the end of Fiscal Year 2022,
Carrier Strike Group as the West Coast FRS.
and Carrier Air Wing
USMC 2, F-35Cs assigned
to Strike Fighter
Squadron 147 (VFA-
Early deliveries of UK F-35Bs were also
made to Beaufort, where initial training
of UK pilots was undertaken from 2013 in
147) ‘Argonauts’
F-35B return home to conjunction with VMFAT-501. On June 6,
NAS Lemoore on 2018, the first of the UK aircraft at Beaufort
Edwards AFB, California February 12, 2022
US Navy/Mass
were flown to their permanent home in
Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Communication the UK at RAF Marham, Norfolk, to where
Squadron 1 (VMX-1) Detachment (JSF) Specialist 1st Class all deliveries are now flown direct from the
uses the F-35B at Edwards AFB. Emiline L M. Senn factory in Fort Worth, Texas.

MCAS Yuma, Arizona
Two USMC F-35B units are based at MCAS
Yuma. The first to re-equip with the type
was Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211
(VMFA-211) ‘Wake Island Avengers’, which
previously flew the AV-8B Harrier II as
VMA-211. The unit received its first two
F-35Bs on May 9, 2016, just three days
after it flew its last AV-8B sortie.
VMA-211 was officially re-designated
VMFA-211 on June 30, 2016, becoming the
second USMC fleet squadron to operate
the F-35B as its primary aircraft. It comes
under the command of Marine Aircraft
Group 13 and the 3rd Marine Air Wing.
The unit deployed in September
2018 aboard the Wasp-class Landing
Helicopter Dock USS Essex (LHD 2), and,
on September 27, 2018, a VMFA-211
F-35B carried out an air strike on a Taliban
position in Afghanistan, using a precision-
guided bomb. This was the first US combat
use of the F-35.
On September 4, 2020, the unit
deployed ten F-35Bs to RAF Marham
in Norfolk, UK, to train with the RAF’s
617 Squadron F-35Bs. Ten aircraft then
returned to the UK, arriving at RAF
Lakenheath, Suffolk, on April 26-27, 2021,
prior to deployment on the Royal Navy
aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth (R 08)
on its maiden deployment.
They embarked on the carrier on May
2-3, 2021, for the 28-week cruise, during
which they participated in numerous
exercises around the world. They finally
left the carrier on November 28, 2021,
when it was in the Mediterranean Sea.
Initially, the aircraft flew to Naval Station
Rota, Spain, before arriving home at Yuma
on December 8, 2021.
(VMFA-242) ‘Bats’, which was formally
re-designated as such on October 16,
2020. As VMFA(AW)-242, it had previously
been equipped with the F/A-18D Hornet
at Iwakuni. It falls under the command
of Marine Aircraft Group 12 and the 1st
Marine Air Wing.
Two aircraft from the Bats operated from
the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force
helicopter carrier JS Izumo (DDH 183) on
October 3, 2021, to test modifications to
enable it to operate F-35s. This marked
the first fixed-wing aircraft landing on a
Japanese carrier since World War Two.
F-35C
MCAS Miramar, California
Although the F-35C is primarily flown by
the US Navy, the USMC has also begun to
operate the type. Marine Fighter Attack
Above: Marine The second Yuma F-35B unit is Marine Squadron 314 (VMFA-314) ‘Black Knights’,
Fighter Attack Fighter Attack Squadron 122 (VMFA-122) at MCAS Miramar, which previously
Squadron 314
‘Werewolves’, which previously flew the operated the F/A-18A++, began F-35C
(VMFA-314) F-35C
serial 169703 ‘VW- F/A-18C Hornet. On November 14, 2017, conversion training with US Navy FRS
310’ and Carrier the unit transitioned to the F-35B and VFA-125 at NAS Lemoore, California, on
Airborne Early
moved from MCAS Beaufort to Yuma. The June 21, 2019. The unit then returned to its
Warning Squadron
117 (VAW-117) unit comes under the command of Marine home at Miramar in January 2020.
E-2D Hawkeye Aircraft Group 13 and 3rd Marine Air Wing. The first F-35C for the Squadron arrived
169074 ‘NG-600’
at Miramar from Lemoore on January 21,
fly together for the
first time over San MCAS Iwakuni, Japan 2020, while a second jet followed ten days
Diego, California, on The first USMC unit to be permanently later. The Squadron received safe-for-
January 14, 2021,
based in Japan, Marine Fighter Attack flight operational certification on March
to practice airborne
interoperability Squadron 121 (VMFA-121) ‘Green Knights’ 20, 2020, then declared initial operational
USMC/3rd Marine arrived at MCAS Iwakuni when it relocated capability on December 2, 2020.
Air Wing
from Yuma in 2017. It comes under the The unit comes under the control of
command of Marine Aircraft Group 12 and Marine Aircraft Group 11 and the 3rd
the 1st Marine Air Wing. Marine Aircraft Wing. It is the first USMC
Previously designated VMFA(AW)-121 unit to transition to the F-35C variant. The
– operating the F/A-18D Hornet – it was Black Knights completed pre-deployment
officially re-designated VMFA-121 on training with Carrier Air Wing 9 (CVW-9)
November 20, 2012, and accepted delivery and the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72)
of its initial F-35Bs. This made it the first in the Pacific Ocean, returning from the
operational F-35B squadron in the Marine carrier on December 3, 2021.
Corps Operating Forces, and the first On January 3, 2022, the Abraham Lincoln
operational F-35 squadron in any service. departed San Diego, California, with
Arriving at Iwakuni on January 18, 2017, VMFA-314 embarked as part of CVW-
it became the first permanent forward 9. This marked the first USMC carrier
deployed USMC F-35B squadron. deployment with the F-35C variant, and
The second F-35B unit at Iwakuni is highlighted the continuing role of the
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 242 F-35 in US service.
Right: Marine
Fighter Attack
Training Squadron
501 (VMFAT-501)
flagship F-35B
serial 169293
‘VM-501’ at
MCAS Beaufort on
February 14, 2022
MCAS Beaufort/
Lance Cpl Julia
Cochrane
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 89
 EXERCISE REPORT // EX HIGH BLAZE 2021

EX HIGH B

W
HEN EXERCISE HIGH
Blaze 2021 presented
itself, Maj Prins of the
Royal Netherlands
Air Force (RNLAF)
decided to sign up
as detachment commander (detco).
Firstly, because he was closely involved
in the exercise’s preparation, and
wanted to experience the process of
implementation up close and personal.
Secondly, because he saw it as a good
learning experience, and, thirdly, he
considered it an honor to do so.
A role usually only given to a high-
ranking squadron officer or squadron
commander, the detco position was
rewarded to Maj Prins by the staff of the
Dutch joint Defence Helicopter Command
(DHC). “The staff for this exercise mostly
consisted of enthusiastic junior officers
and a number of experienced employees,
which made it easy to manage,” the major

90 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero


BLAZE
said. “During the three months prior to
High Blaze, we put together a staff based
on the different functionalities on which
such an exercise revolves, such as general
management, logistics and maintenance.
Due to the planned participation of the
three different helicopter squadrons,
the staff was originally larger. This was to
ensure that every member could perform
the work optimally during the exercise.”
As soon as the training staff was put
together, the orders followed. Several
frameworks had been determined in
advance, for example, the location of the
exercise, sleeping accommodation for
the crews involved, certain flying areas,
certain countries that must be crossed en
route or where refueling must take place.
The frameworks mainly concerned the
preconditions, which had been known
for some time in advance and which were
necessary to be able to carry out such an
exercise successfully.
Maj Prins works for the Future Ops
segment of the DHC, which determines
and regulates preconditions. It’s constantly
looking ahead, and considers what the
DHC wants to train the following year,
and which aspects should be covered.
Wish lists are collected from the various
sub-units, but also come directly from
the RNLAF headquarters. The planned
activities are then added to the DHC
calendar – it is important that the various
activities are well spread out over the year.
However, certain exercises cannot take
place in the Netherlands, such as flying in
the mountains. These so-called out-of-area
exercises are also prepared by Maj Prins at
Future Ops, with a project staff consisting
of envoys from the DHC. The training staff
To maintain mountain
qualifications within the
Royal Netherlands Air Force’s
helicopter force, Exercise
High Blaze 2021 was executed
last September. Frank Visser
and Ludo Mennes spoke to the
commander of the exercise
then determine which crew member will Above: One of the
fly, and at what time, as well as what type Apaches banks
sharply towards the
of mission will be flown. JTAC members on a
hilltop for a so-called
High Blaze 2021 show of force after a
simulated exercise of
Every year, the DHC strives to offer destroying multiple
mountain flight training to all air crews in targets and terrorists
the three flying squadrons. Such flights are hiding in a village
technically difficult and pilots’ proficiency
in mountain flying will deteriorate if
they are not trained regularly. Maj Prins
stated: “Flying a helicopter is like riding a
bicycle. If you don’t practice it for a while,
you won’t forget it quickly. In contrast,
mountain flying is like riding a motorcycle
Left: A Dutch JTAC
on a racetrack. If you don’t train this team observes the
regularly, you lose your skills.” valley below during
Because there are limitations within DHC the exercise with
Apache helicopters
– for example, regarding how much can and USAFE F-16s,
be trained at the same time and in budget to identify
– concessions must be made. That is why possible targets
All photos: Northern
it was previously decided to have the Skies Aviation, unless
transport helicopter crews (CH-47s stated otherwise
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 91
 EXERCISE REPORT // EX HIGH BLAZE 2021
MAJOR PRINS
Maj Prins started his career in the Royal
Netherlands Air Force (RNLAF) in 2000.
After completing the officer training in
Breda, he continued his pilot training
in the United States. He was initially
assigned to 300 Squadron in 2007, to
continue his career as a pilot on the
Eurocopter AS532U2 Cougar. In the
four years with 300 Squadron, he was
deployed to Afghanistan a number of
times. Due to a new round of cutbacks
within the RNLAF, whereby 300 Squadron
would be disbanded, Major Prins
switched to the AH-64D ‘Apache’ in 2011.
Despite the political decision to keep
the Cougar helicopters of 300 Squadron
operational, Maj Prins had already
transferred to 301 Squadron and fulfilled
his dream to fly the Apache. Three years
later, he took part in the deployment to
Mali, Africa, where, together with the
Chinooks of 298 Squadron, 301 Squadron
took part in the Multidimensional
Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali.
Nowadays, Maj Prins works for Future
Ops, a staff unit of the DHC at Gilze-Rijen
Air Base, where he is responsible for
organizing and co-ordinating exercises
for the next calendar year. The aim is
to guarantee the deployability and
readiness of the DHC.
Maj Prins has flown about 2,500 flying
hours in the Cougar and Apache, and, as
an active pilot, he is still counting.
92 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero
and AS532s) fly mountainous terrain Right: A RNLAF
every two years. This contrasts with the
Apaches, which perform mountain flying
Apache catches
the last sunlight of
the day. After the
training annually. long flying days,
ground crew were
Due to the cancellation of multiple
busy preparing
exercises throughout the pandemic, it the helicopters for
emerged that the transport helicopters next-day missions,
making sure the first
had to practice mountain flying in 2021.
helicopters could
That is why it was initially decided to link depart at 0900hrs
the three different helicopter types to
High Blaze 21. This meant the CH-47D
Chinooks of 298 Squadron and the
AS532U2 Cougars of 300 Squadron joined
the AH-64D Apaches of 301 Squadron.
However, 298 Squadron was only able
to participate briefly with one CH-47D.
Prior to High Blaze, two Chinooks were
deployed long term to assist firefighting in
Albania. Furthermore, 298 Squadron is in
the midst of transitioning to new CH-47F
MYII CAAS, and the remaining D models
have only a few flying hours left. Because
the CH-47F MYII CAAS did not yet have a
Military Type Certificate, they could not Below: While the
Apache is being
participate in the High Blaze exercise. refueled for the next
The Cougars of 300 Squadron were mission, the air crews
scheduled to participate for two out of change. To maximize
the flying time during
the three training weeks and then return exercise High Blaze,
a little earlier to participate in exercise the Apaches made
four missions per day
‘NightHawk’ in Denmark. However, due
and were hot-refueled
to deteriorating conditions in close to the runway for
Afghanistan at the time, Cougar fast departures

helicopters were held back for possible
evacuations in Kabul. In the end, the
Cougars did not deploy to Afghanistan
but, due to being held back, they were
unable to participate fully in High Blaze
as initially planned. However, the lessons
learned by 300 Squadron from the
evacuation planning process for Kabul
will be included in the 2022 exercises,
including High Blaze.
Italian operations
The location for the mountain flying
exercise was Aviano Air Base in Northern
Italy, close to the Dolomite Mountains.
On base, a container village was created
to house all teams responsible for the
operations and maintenance. For Ops,
the squadron building of the 510th FS
‘Buzzards’ was used, as the F-16s were
away on deployment.
Two Cougars were able to experience
part of the exercise, while five Apaches
of 301 Squadron were able to participate
for the full period. Maj Prins stated: “The
uncertainty as to which units would or
would not participate in High Blaze was
an organizational challenge. But, with a
qualified training staff, we were able to
handle this well.”
The objective for the exercise was
primarily to qualify new air crews and
maintain qualifications for those already
qualified. Maj Prins said: “The qualification
of air crews in mountain flying starts in the
Netherlands. Here, they receive training
and instruction in mountain flying.
Below: An RNLAF Upon arrival in Aviano Air Base, they go
AH-64D Apache through our own written syllabus, [which]
of 301 Squadron
during the golden describes a number of missions that you
hour on the tarmac have to fly to be qualified.”
at Aviano Air Base,
after a long day
During the last High Blaze, a number
of flying in the of air crews successfully obtained their
Dolomite Mountains qualification. An example of a specific
mission from the syllabus is the safe
landing of a helicopter in the mountains,
executed during day and night and under
difficult weather conditions. Another
mission involves flying with the so-called
‘bag’, which makes it possible to train air
crews to fly purely on the instruments. By
placing cloths in the rear cockpit, against
the canopy, it completely blocks the pilot’s
view to the outside. With this, the pilot
must fully rely on and use the forward
looking infrared (FLIR) sensor, which
is mounted in the nose of the Apache.
This is very difficult to fly, especially in a
mountainous area.
Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC)
of the Dutch Army also took part in this
High Blaze, and were involved in several
missions. Maj Prins explained: “If a JTAC
team wants to take out targets with
our Apaches, we position ourselves as
tactically as possible. In the mountains,
many aspects play a role, such as flying
under or behind the mountain tops,
in order to reduce the visibility of the
helicopter. Using the wind direction to
minimize noise. Because it is precisely
in the mountains that sound can be
amplified, and we want to prevent that
as much as possible. And with the sun
on your back, visibility can be reduced.
We prefer to position the Apache behind
the JTAC, to be able to look over their
shoulders and take out the target.”
International co-operation
Another aspect of the exercise was
the exchange of knowledge with
international partners training together.
For example, the F-16s of the United
States Air Force in Europe’s (USAFE’s)
31st Fighter Wing (FW), and (specifically)
those of the 555th Fighter Squadron
‘Triple Nickle’, took part in the exercise.
“We made it possible to establish a link
between the USAFE F-16s and the RNLAF
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 93
 EXERCISE REPORT // EX HIGH BLAZE 2021

Above: A loadmaster

301 SQN
of a CH-47D during
its pre-flight checks
at Aviano Air Base,
just before the
The delivery of 30 AH-64D Apaches to next mission in the
the RNLAF began in 1998. Two years Dolomites, which
earlier, 301 squadron converted to the are clearly visible in
Apache and operated 12 AH-64As on the background
loan from the US Army. Sergeant Cristian
Schrik, Dutch MoD
In a period of four years, the 30
AH-64Ds were delivered to the RNLAF, Right: An RNLAF AH-
eight of which were stationed first at 64D Apache makes
Fort Hood Army Airfield (AAF) and an approach to a
later at Robert Gray AAF, Texas. The mountain ridge high
eight Apaches have since been used in the Dolomites
for the education and training of
pilots on this type and belong to 302 Below: The crew
Squadron. Beside the Apaches, 302 of AH-64D Apache
Q-13 prepares
Squadron operates five CH-47F MYII
for a night flight
CAAS Chinooks and is responsible for in the Dolomites.
the initial military qualification training The window of the
of the Dutch air crews. backseater is covered
Furthermore, it organizes the with cloths – the
integrated air-assault training with the so-called ‘bag’ – so
11th Air Mobility Brigade five times the pilot can be
a year. Over the past two decades, trained purely on
the AH-64Ds have been deployed to instrument flying
Djibouti, Iraq, Afghanistan and Mali.
Unfortunately, 301 Squadron lost two
Apaches (2004 in Afghanistan and 2015
in Mali). Tragically, the crew of the 2015
crash lost their lives during a practice
flight at the nearby range. At present,
301 Squadron, which is stationed at
the Netherland’s Gilze-Rijen Air Base,
operates 20 AH-64Ds.
The 28 AH-64Ds will be converted to
AH-64E in the coming years. Several
airframes are already in the USA for
conversion. It is expected that the first
AH-64E will return to the Netherlands
later this year.

94 May 2022 // www.Key.Aero

Apaches, whereby images of the Apaches
could be exchanged in real time,”
Maj Prins said. Knowledge of certain
subsystems of the Apaches were also
exchanged with the 31st FW. In addition,
training was done in the mountains with
American and Italian JTAC teams.
The High Blaze exercise also resulted
in an interesting meeting at Aviano Air
Base, due to the situation in Afghanistan
at the time. The Dutch ambassador to
Italy, Willem van Ee, who, until recently,
was Deputy Secretary-General of the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, indicated that
they had experienced how important it
is to be able to act more quickly in crisis
situations. Maj Prins, together with his
staff, had developed a plan for rapid
deployment during High Blaze, as the DHC
was involved in a possible deployment of
the RNLAF Cougars for the evacuation of
personnel from Afghanistan.
Maj Prins decided to organize
a meeting at Aviano Air Base for
the ambassador and high-ranking
officers. The major wanted to show
the ambassador how his team was
deployable 24 hours after arriving at the
base. Not only deployable regarding
flying, but also regarding maintenance
and all systems being connected. This
appealed to the ambassador, partly
because these kinds of crisis situations
can present themselves very quickly.
The meeting also included the
commander of the DHC, Brig Gen
(Commodore) Robert Adang, the Italian
commander of the Aviano Air Base and
the deputy commander of the 31st FW.
The DHC recognized the importance
of rapid deployment and will therefore
focus more on this in upcoming exercises.
Maj Prins added: “In addition to rapid
FLYING A HELICOPTER IS LIKE RIDING A BICYCLE. IF YOU
DON'T PRACTICE IT FOR A WHILE, YOU WON'T FORGET
IT QUICKLY. IN CONTRAST, MOUNTAIN FLYING IS LIKE RIDING A
MOTORCYCLE ON A RACETRACK. IF YOU DON’T TRAIN
THIS REGULARLY, YOU LOSE YOUR SKILLS.”
deployment, robust deployment is also
necessary. Robust means arriving with the
right resources and [being] deployable
in the very short term, in such a way that
sustainability is also guaranteed.”
Golden combination
Maj Prins was able to look back on the
exercise with satisfaction. However, he
hopes all three helicopter types will
participate throughout the entire period in
the 2022 edition: “Our planning was based
on a detachment at Aviano consisting of
150-160 personnel. A result of only the
Apaches participating in High Blaze 21
throughout, we reduced the detachment
to about 80-90 personnel,” he explained.
At 301 Squadron, three quarters of
the crew members completed the
exercise, and a number of staff pilots also
took part. At 298 Squadron, four crew
members took part, and at 300 Squadron
a pilot completed his captain’s training.
One mountain instructor was also able to
complete his training with two students.
Maj Prins said: “I would prefer to extend
the exercise by a week, so we can train
even more. I also know that this is not
possible, because we simply do not have
the resources for it.”
Major Prins also told Combat Aircraft
Journal: “I have already contacted
the Americans and Italians about the
exercise for next year. Because this
year’s setup, with all the facilities that
we could use, was ideal for achieving
our objectives. The Aviano location is
a golden combination for us. Firstly,
because we in the Netherlands work
together with international partners and
can train there on our broad deployability
in mountainous locations. The support
on site is of a very high level [and] the
mountain area is a short [flight] from the
base, and it is challenging to train there.”
In addition to Aviano, there are
also alternative locations in Europe
for the DHC to train mountain flying.
South Germany, for example, offers
the opportunity to train, although the
number of practice areas are more limited
and have more restrictions than in Italy.
France also offers these possibilities. But
neither alternative location can compare
to Aviano air base.
Maj Prins concluded: “I am extremely
proud of my training staff. A group of
enthusiastic young officers for whom
no mountain was too high. It makes me
even more aware that, within the DHC,
Below: An AS532 I work with a very mixed group, all of
Cougar circles by whom have their own specialty, with the
the confined area
in the Dolomites, common goal of sending
before making its the helicopters into the
landing approach mountains. It all went
Sergeant Cristian
Schrik, Dutch MoD very well.”
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 95
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090/22

Multiple US military aircraft have
appeared recently wearing a highly
reflective coating. David Axe reports
I
N NOVEMBER 2021, a USAF F-22 became
the first in a spate of jets spotted
wearing an unusual mirror-like coating.
Photographer Santos Caceres snapped
pics of the jet with the reflective finish on
its wings and fuselage departing Nellis Air
Force Base in Nevada. It was participating in an
Air Force Weapons School Integration event, an
aerial wargame involving several aircraft types.
Planespotter Rich Traiano shot a video of the
same jet around the same time.
A couple months later, in mid-January 2022,
The War Zone website reported that another
photographer had caught a USAF F-117 wearing
a similar reflective coating flying over the Saline
Military Operating Area in California. The USAF
retired the F-117 as a front-line type back in
2008, but has continued operating some of the
first-generation stealth attack jets for training and
testing purposes.
Above: A USAF F-22 raptor wearing the rare mirror-like
scheme departs Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada on
March 14 for a Red Flag 22-2 mission Matt Mansell
A few days after the F-117 sighting, aviation
photographer Elijah Delgadillo captured an
F-35C belonging to experimental squadron VX-9
sporting a mirror coating while flying along the
Sidewinder low-level route in California’s Sequoia
National Park. “My pops and I were sitting on the
mountain completely shocked as we knew we had
seen something new and rare,” Delgadillo told The
War Zone editor Tyler Rogoway.
The F-22, F-117 and F-35 aren’t the only US
types to be seen flying with the reflective coating.
In June 2020, Scaled Composites’ experimental
Model 401 jet appeared over California’s Mojave
Desert wearing a mirror finish.
It has been suggested that the coatings could be
the result of a decades-long effort to reduce the
infrared signature of aircraft with high degrees of
radar stealth. They might also possess anti-laser
properties, making them possible defenses against
directed-energy weapons.
There are obvious tactical applications for
such a highly-reflective coating, especially on
a low-observable aircraft. Stealth types are
covered in radar-absorbing materials that capture
radiated energy instead of reflecting it back to
the sensor. But that process accumulates heat,
which can increase an airplane’s infrared signature.
A reflective coating could bounce back light,
mitigating the heat cost of radar-absorption. It’s
an approach the USAF has been studying since at
least 1993, when the service applied a mirror-like
material to an F-117 for four trial flights under a
program with the codename ‘Senior Spud’.
Those flights reportedly underscored the
downside of the reflective coating. To wit, that is
highly visible in daylight, meaning the IR benefit of
‘SENIOR
SPUD’ 2.0
using a mirror-treatment would come at a cost in
the visual spectrum. Ultimately, the USAF did not
transition the technology to the operational F-117
fleet and it was nearly 30 years before the next
generation of stealth types got their own reflective
treatments. But these more recent trials are, like
the 1993 tests, limited in scale and it is not clear
whether the Air Force or Navy have plans to apply
the coatings to front-line airframes.
Still, there is a clear rationale for an eventual,
wider roll-out of reflective coatings. More and
more air forces – notably the Russian and Chinese
air arms – are equipping their fighters with passive
infrared sensors. These could allow a fighter to
detect enemy planes, even stealth platforms,
without turning on their own radars and giving
away their locations. As infrared becomes a
more common method for air forces to detect
stealth aircraft, avoiding detection on the infrared
spectrum becomes essential for their operators.
The Pentagon is deploying its own airborne IR
sensors for types including the F-15 and F/A-18E/F.
There are other benefits besides IR-stealth. All
the world’s leading militaries are developing
directed-energy weapons. Mirror-like surfaces
are a proven defense against such laser weapons
because they bounce back most of the directed
energy rather than absorbing it until it reaches a
destructive intensity.
It’s worth pointing out that no air forces currently
deploy laser weapons for air-to-air use, although
airborne IR sensors are commonplace, thus
detection via infrared is the most immediate
problem. It would make sense for the Pentagon to
devote significant resources to testing methods of
thwarting those sensors.
www.Key.Aero // May 2022 97
 JUNE ISSUE
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