AIRCRAFT PHOTO FILE LOCK ON Wisma PUBLICATIONSThe General Dynamics F-16 FIGHTING FALCON VERLINDEN (44% PUBLICATIONSACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Compiling this monograph of the F-16 was an undertaking that could never have been accomplished without the aid of many persons and offices. They were willing to help us in gathering photographic material and technical background information. Therefor we are extremely grateful to the following persons and hope we can trust them to be just as cooperative in our future projects. Gen. De Deurwaarder, Chief of Staff BAF, Lt.Col. De Heyn, Staff BAF; Maj. J.P. Sparenberg, VSI IRP Staff BAF; Col. Wirtz, BaseCo Kleine Brogel AB; Maj. Willy Blendeman, CO 31Sq. 10FBW; all pilots of 31Sq. 10F BW Tigers’ and especially Adj.Ch. John Lemmens, Lt.l! Philip Verhaegen, Lt.t Danny Parijs and Lt.II Bob Bomans: Cpt. J.B.G. Maat, intelligence and Security Bureau and Sgt. Bert van Gijn, Run-up, both at Volkel AB; all officers, NCO's and specialists, especially Adj.Ch. Ketelbuters and 'Loco', of the ground support units on Kleine Brogel AB; Joe Z. Thornton, Public Affairs of General Dynamics and tast but not least our ever-coope- rating friends Paul Van Herck and Jean-Pierre Van Regenmortel. ABBREVIATIONS Kic Force bave eS. det Furi Starter ‘Advanced Median Rarige Air to Air Misste Las ‘designator fangte OF Attack Karo Treaty Organization ‘Continious Computed Impact Point RAPPORT — Rapid Alert Programmed Power management Of Raar Targets Continous Congate Retense Point Re Reemnte Contra Ui Emtronmeniat Carat System Rwe erto-Opticl Forward Loaking dnfoa Ret SMS = Stores Mariagement Syster Fignter Boner Wing rer Trpte Bjector Rack ul Cote Sen Tey = Rete ite mh Mod Up Disses Vortrac = Conbiaien af VOR and TACon ABOUT THE VP-TEAM The three members of the VP team, as we call it, got together a few years ago. When Frangois Verlinden contemplated on making a second book, he joined up with Willy Peeters and Hans Wilms in order to get a better product. Who does not know Frangois Verlinden as being a world famous modeler. Willy Peeters is an artist with the pencil and Hans Wilms knows his bits and pieces of aviation technology and history. Both are dedicated modelers. So, what started out as a thursday evening get-together culminated in a full-grown enter- prise. You are now looking at one of the results. Verlinden Productions has an ever-extending range of modeling manuals, aircraft monographs, armor modeling publications and a wide variety of modeling accessories. And if it is our dicision to make, we will go on for many more years to come. All photography by the VP team unless otherwise stated. The photos in this book were taken with Pentax ME/MX, Mamiya ZM and Canon FTB cameras with 26-80mm, 35-115mm, 55mm and 200mm lenses using Fujichrome’ 50 and Kodachrome 25KM135 and 64KM135 color slide films. Copyright: 1984 by Verlinden Publications Project Manager: Francois Verlinden a Verlinden & Stok pyba division Text & Research: Hans Wilms Berlaarsestraat 36 Lay-out: Willy Peeters & Hans Wilms 2500 Lier/ Belgium Illustrations and scale drawings: Willy Peeters All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in Printed in Belgium by Lithos, Wommelgem. a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by ‘any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without written permission of Verlinden Publications. ISBN 90 70932 03 2FOREWORD The selection of the F-16 by the Belgian government as the successor of the aging F-104 has marked a drastical change in the quality of the Belgian Air Force's fighter aircraft .. With this acquisition @ technology of the 70s was introduced in the BAF inventor techno- logy is marked by an extensive use of micro~ processors which not only control certain element: such as the engine and flight control system, but are atso used for solving navigational and fire control problems. A statement in the tine of a pilot does not have a stick and throttle to fly his airplane but controls the various com- puters abourd it' should not be considered as an exageration. In fact, the F-16 is designed for a maximum maneuverabitity, and as such it is a very unstable airframe -the so-called Relaxed-Stattc-Stabitity concept -which would be very difficult to handle without some technical assistance by the Flight Controt System Computer. The chatienge to obtain an exceitent thrust-to- weight ratio has obliged the engine manufacturer to use new and light materials in the design of an engine with optimum performance. A thrust which amounts to eight times its weight is the result. of this design in which micro-processors are not forgotten. The combination of the high maneuverability and the high thrust developed by the engine provides the F=16 with the possibi- lity to engage any modem fighter airplane in an aerial combat with a better chance 10 be the victor. The avionics package of the F-16 can be considered as one of the most complete state-of- art systems. The navigation sysiem offers a six-time better precision than that of the F-104. But the fire control system using a high speed binary computer and a newly developed radar provides the necessary flexibility allowing air-to- air and air-to-ground weapons delivery with a precision the F-104 pitot would never have dreamed of. For those who have the opportunity to have @ closer look at the airplane, the number of available hardpoints, with a total of nine, is very impressive as well as the variety of weapons or external fuel tanks. At its maximum take-off gross weight, the F-I6 has a better payload than most WWII bombers but in its clean air-to- air configuration its reduced size makes it very small and a hard to detect target for the opponent. Since its first delivery in january 1979 to the BAF, after an extensive testing program at the Air Force Test Center, in which 1 took part, the F-16 has become a familiar airplane in the European skies. Although more than five years have passed since the event, it will take many more before any airplane ‘will be able to beat this extraordinary flying machine. LtCol. J. De Heyn Belgian Air Staff DEDICATION We wish to dedicate this book to Ingrid, Bart and Katteen, spouse and children of our dear friend and fellow~ modeler Cpt.Com. Roland Janssens, an enthousiastic and dedicated BAF pilot, who passed away at too young an age. We shall miss his critical advise that helped us in many ways, but most of all his cheerful presence. May his spouse and children look upon this book as a reminiscence of their husband and father and a token of our gratitude for having had the pleasure to know him. Front cover: A Belgian F-16 en route to Corsica.INTRODUCTION We are very proud to be able to present you this second book in the ‘Lock-on' series.» The first book on the Lockheed F-104 is quite succes~ ful. Reactions from our readers indicate that we are on the right track. Many reviews in trade magazines are noi any less positive. Some reviewers wondered whether we would be able to accomplish the same, let alone do better, on the F-16. Well, they are in for a surprise. Choosing the F-16 as subject for our second ‘Lock-on' was quite logical. First of all it is hot stuff on the market, secondly it was an easy aircraft to cover since we have several of them next doors. The first book caused many people and offices to be very cooperative on our F-16 venture for which we owe them a great deal. You witl find that this book is quite an improve- ment over the first. We felt it to be desirable to give more and bigger, thus clearer pictures. To satisfy the hunger of the technically interested we have included more technical information. Where we felt it useful, explainatory drawings are included. The scale drawings are 100% correct as they are based on GD supplied lofting plans while the panelling has been double-checkec on an actual F-i8. The scale plans of the ACES II seat will prove very popular amongst modelers, no doubt. Amongst the dozen or so kits of the F-16 only one features the ACESII. That is where ‘atch-building comes in which will be facilitated by the scale plans. 4 Which brings us to the heart of the book: tne pictures. We feel nobody has yet been able io cover the Fighting Falcon in. full colour the way it has been done here. We have been able to virtually undress the aircraft without revealing restricted or classified information. The aviation freak and super-modeller will go out of their wits. Electronics, radar, engine, it is all there in full cotor! You will notice that we have cut back on the Gallery part. The reason is very simple. Most F-16s look alike in colouring and the magni tude of detail pictures is our main concern. There for you will only find a few nice shots of F-16s in special dress. Of course we have not forgotten our friends the plastic modelers. The F-I6 pilot, flight-line equipment and start-up procedures have been covered to enable them to compose a tife-like diorama. Although it is unusual to make such a statement ur own work, we dare say we are very pleased We are confident you will be pleased as well. Ye your comments are most welcome, be they positive or negative. We will try to do a little better next time. on with this book,GENERAL AIRFRAME DETAILS ‘The F-I6 is probably one of the most contro- versial aeronautical developments of the post-war era. While the USAF was happy with the complex and expensive F-15 Eagle, a group of smart people at the Pentagon and various aircraft manufac~ turers decided it was about time to create some- thing simple and cheap. After a few rounds of tough arguing with various opponents this resulted in the F-16, a remarkable aircraft which is some~ times nicknamed ‘the deal of the century’. Many people stil! say it is either too light or too heavy, too complex or too simple, too expensive or too cheap. Whatever, pilots find the aircraft a delight. It is fast, powerful, agile, smart and hard to beat. And that is what a fighter is all about. Moreover, the possibilities for improve- ments are almost limitless and when future F-16s will get the hardware for the AMRAAM they will be just as good as the F-15, just more than @ touch cheaper. Actualiy, the limits are imposed The air data probe in close-up. The natural metal part is heat resistant material in view of the anti-icing heater. This probe replaces the yaw string as seen on top of the nose of many fighters. The rounded tip features four holes at an equal angle in relation to the centerline of the aircraft. Any yaw thus results in a differing static pressure in the holes which is relayed to the flight computer. by the pilot, not the machine and thai is what is so revolutionary about the aircraft. in what way ever people may judge the F-16, they cannot possibly deny the fact that it an innovation in aircraft design. It is the first airplane to fully rely on fly-by-wire without @ conventional back-up system. Wherever needed new technologies have ‘been incorporated, but whenever possible the designers used well-proven systems. The use of large quantities of strategic material, like titanium, itas been avoided to elimi- nate the possibility of shortage in times of crisis. The days of ali-titanium aircraft, like the Lockheed Blackbird, are history. However the composite materials have entered in full scale. The modular design, which facilitates fast turn-around times, is quite new as well. Although this design calls for a complicated logistic back-up, it seems to be worthwhile to be considered for ail future military aircraft. And tet us not forget the fact that the Falcon can deliver any kind of weapon in any kind of weather on a target the size of @ matchbox without the pilot being unaware of any form of threat. If that isn't a pilot aircraft, what is? Besides that, it simply is a nice looking bird. This picture offers an excellent impression of the very smart design of the F-16. Ease of mainte- nance was a prime design goal and resulted in all important equipment being within reach without having to use a step. The modular lay-out of the major system components enables fast turn- around times. Replacing malfunctioning equipment is a matter of minutes as seen here. However, it calls for a large back-up stock.| | | | Close-up of the lower TACAN antenna cover made from FRP. TACtical Air Navigation is similar to the civil VOR (Very High Frequency Omnidirectional ) navigation, the only real difference systems work on other frequencies. Many civil and military airfields operate a combination of both systems called VORTAC. ‘The strut in the fixed geometry intake is heated through the anti-ice control system. The intake is oversized to accomodate a more powerful engine in the future. The length of the upper lip is carefully calculated. Tests with shorter lips indicated that engine stalls would be very likely. There really is a lot to designing aircraft. This overall view of the cockpit area of an F-16A Block 15 clearly shows some of the external differences of this type compared to the Block 5A and 10. The canopy is of a new pattern. Note the slightly more bulged outline. A second diffe- rence is the large hinged panel with vent just beneath the canopy. ‘A close-up of the area under the intake just ahead of the nose gear well. The oval plate blanks off the mount of the threat warning receiver antenna which is not used on Belgian F-16s as these will have the Rapport lil system in due course. This system has different antennas as seen on the picture to the left. One of the two Rapport Ill threat warning system antennas mounted on the intake. The blue/green navigation light is mounted on the cover. Note the stiffening plate in front of the antenna. This is a feature of all Block 15 and updated Block5A and 10 aircraft. The antenna cover is made from FRP as are all antenna covers since the material has no negative effect on the antenna performance.The Block 15 external power hook-up. On earlier production blocks this hatch was smaller and positioned slightly lower and more aft. The panels in this area are different from those on earlier aircraft. Also featured on this picture is the EPU safing pin which is not removed until the engine is running at idle power. Directly above it is the EPU fired indicator window. Note the various mounting points for the EO-FLIR pod. The LAST pod is mounted on the opposite side of the intake. BLOCK 10 External power and : S communications receptables Plane captain’s headsets with micFo: ‘A wealth of detail to satisfy even the most demanding freak. The opened hatch in the under- side of the strake on the right side of the pi reveals the fire control computer, TACAN, ‘antenna selector and the amplifier detector and processor of the ALR-69 threat warning system with their respective circuit breakers. In the middie in the upper strake/body blend are the electronic parts of the fuel control system like inerting relay, timing modules, air refuel amplifier and fuel level sensing unit. Through the bottom hatch you can see one of the main cable packs of the aircraft and on the cover itself again a circuit breaker unit. ‘The top right bay houses the EPU hydrazine monopropeliant_ tank. This cilinder is armoured and not very likely to get damaged in a crash. ‘The tank is devided into two sections by a piston. The forward section is connected to a nitrogen tank. When the nitrogen expands into the fuel tank it moves the piston thus pressing the hydra~ zine into the EPU. The intake of latter is just visible on the extreme left of the picture in the underside of the strake. The tower formation light is positioned just aft of the nose gear well slightly to starboard of the aircraft centerline. This picture again illustrates the sometimes poor fit of the skin. When looking at the hinge and fasteners one might suspect that the F-16 is subject to quite some fuel-consuming parasite drag. This does not seem to have bothered the designers too much though.The equipment bays forward of the starboard main gear house the receiver controller, receiver and RF switch of the ALR-69 system, the secure wice groupA, the IA/TSEC kit, the roll, yaw and pitch gyros and the liquid oxygen converter which has been removed here. All systems related circuit breakers are again mounted on the cover. ‘This being a Belgian F-16, which will have the Rapport ll shortly, the ALR-69 equipment has been deleted which is illustrated by the almost empty large bay. The ground interphone and external power receptable are also shown in detail. The several types of fasteners can be easily compared here. The interphone and EP cover has the quick-release type, where the large cover has the structural fasteners. It also has a small cover with quick-release fasteners in the middle. ‘The right picture again shows the two right-most bays of the top picture, this time in detail. ‘The lower bay takes the oxygen tank. It also houses the gyros which can be made out clearly. From left to right you see the pitch and yaw gyro and, on the lateral bulkhead, the roll gyro. Immediately under the strake some fuel and hydraulic piping can be made out as well as electrical wiring on which a word or two may be in place here. The F-16 features the revolu- tionary multiplexed databuses. This means that several avionics can transmit their data to the CS through the same wiring on a time-share basis. A computer program determines who comes first and for how long. This system avoids lots of heavy and complexed wiring thus inereasing the payload and easing cross-servicing.The many black dots at the circumferance of the panels are crosshead structural fasteners. This may indicate the number of panels that are removable. Note that as a rule the leading edge flap is in a 2° up position on the ground. The starboard under wing/body area where the flaperon mates up with the wing. Detail of the ‘various types of hinges is very clear. The underside of the starboard forbody strak The most forward panel covers the ammo loading fixture. Aft of this is the EPU exhaust. Aft of that is the EPU servicing panel with the hydra zine leak detector paper behind the small window. ‘The two outboard panels are for hydraulic system A servicing. Detail behind these panels is shown below. EPU (emergency Power Unit! ‘The armoured hydrazine tank is located in the top of the strake. The ‘Electric Jet’ is equipped with an EPU (Emergency Power Unit) which is automatically activated upon failure of the main generator, hydraulic pumps and/or the engine. ‘The unit comprises a turbine that uses 13th stage bleed air or hydrazine monopropetlant or both which drives a 5kVA generator and a 23 GPM hydraulic pump. The monopropeliant is sufficient for 10 minutes of continious operation which — should be enough for any pilot to land the aircraft safely. The monopropellant fuel is H70 (70% hydrazine N2H4 and 30% water) usually simply called hydrazine. When hydrazine is released ‘into the decomposition chamber it comes into contact with a catalizer on irridium base. I then decom- poses into a hot gas of 1,200°F consisting of steam, nitrogen, hydrogen and ammonia. This expanding gas drives the impeller.During cross servicing the aircraft is jacked up and stripped of all panels. Here n°3304 is removed to reveal the starboard side of the air- frame mounted gearbox. Clearly visible is the system A hydraulic pump with two natural metal pipes running forward into the main gear well where they hook up to the respective oil filters. Directly behind the pump is the 40kva main gene rator mounted on a constant speed drive. The gearbox is connected to the engine gearbox through the power take off shaft. The engine gearbox only carries equipment essential to the normal engine operation being the main fuel pump, engine alternator and engine oil pump. The right picture also offers a good view on the aft inboard side of the port main gear. The ventral fin is made of composite material. As both fins are symetric they are interchangeable which saves cost. The fuel filler cap on the centerline external tank is merely a formality only used in inspection. Normal refuelling of the internal ond external tanks is effected through a single point refuelling receptable Bottom ‘The nozzle in full open position. Note that the lower ‘feathers’ have sagged down due to loss of bleed air pressure on the nozzle actuators.The underside of the left airbrake. Note that the panelling is much different from that on the kits. ™ A toad of detail for those interested in aviation technology and the detail freaks amongst the plastic modelers. On the left you can make out the port horizontal tailplane pivot with access cover removed. Immediately ahead of that is one of the two tail fuel dumps. The entire engine compartment is of a double wall construction with heat resistant liner in between. The natural metal sheet is additional heat protection around the AB section of the engine. The T-shaped forging is one of the two engine mounts. Just two shafts of approx. 1.5" relay the 25,000lbs of thrust. to the airframe. 2 A very clear overall detail shot of the right airbrake. In normal flight, depending on traffic pattern speed, each half opens up to 60°. However, in gear down configuration extension is limited to 43° thus preventing over-rotation, which means the lower halfs would hit the runway. For those who want to take a crack at super- detailing the airbrakes on their model, the whole system is explained in the sketch below. Note that the brakes open when the actuator retracts. AIRBRAKEThe ECM-housing on a Belgian Block 15. The container is quite similar to the parabrake housing on Norwegian F-16s except for the cool air scoop. This housing is to accomodate the Rapport Ill threat warning system developed in Belgium. ‘The Israeli. Air Force also uses Rapport ll in their F-16s but it is stowed elsewhere. An excell Immediately forward of the titanium heat resistant liner are the two engine mounts. in the rail on the top centerline, but this does not take any force: It accomodates from left to right the JFS, the hydraulic JPS starter motor, system system A hydraulic pump. On the sidewalls are various hydraulic accu made out below the intake. B hydraulic pump, main generator and mulators and fuel piping. The opened tail fairing on a Block 10. Fairings on all but Belgian and Norwegian Block 15s are similar. The white rudder actuator is clearly visible. In the compartment below is the flow control servovalve. This picture also offers a good view on the navigation light and the lower rear RWR antenna. Note the small diagonal strip on the end of latter. nt overall view of the engine compartment. Note that the entire aft fuselage bottom is removable The engine aiso hangs The airframe mounted gearbox can beARRESTOR HOOK ASSEMBLY The sketch and pictures on this page offer about all detail on the arrestor hook assembly you can think of. The reinforcement plates astride the hook bay protect the fuselage in case the cable hits same upon engagement at a high AOA attitude. The top right picture shows the lower UHF antenna which was moved back between the ventral fins on block 15 aircraft. Note the centerline external tank attachment on the lower right picture. 4Tope The forward tail fairing houses two flight control accumulators and the speedbrake control valve. Overall view of the vertical tail. Note the anti collision strobe light on top and the static dis- chargers on the rudder. Rights The entire left side of the ECM housing. This side of the Norwegian parabrake housing is exactly the same, apart from one detail. As Rapport lil will eventually replace Itek-69 threat warning system on Belgian F-16s there are no RWRs on the housing. On Norwegian F-16s there is ‘one on each side close to the rear opening. Note the colouring of the exhaust nozzle. Bottom right The increased horizontal tail in detail. Our scale plans compare both the old and new tai ‘The underside of the exhaust nozzle features @ vent hole. Note that the 'NO STEP! signs are stickers.Panels on the top aft fuselage give a the aft fuel tank. The 'fit' of the skin is not too hot. Large gaps are ever-present. Note the formation light on the strake. Top rights Most prominent detail on this picture is the chaff dispenser. Right JS and brake hydraulic accumulators are reveated when panel 4301 is removed. The overall view of the top fuselage center section ‘and right wing again illustrates the large gaps between the panels. Note the spill from the aft tank. rep: The opened in-flight refueling slipway door reveals the receptable. The latter also provides a direct voice communication connection to the tanker aircraft. Left Detail of the panelling on the left wingtop. There is no difference between left and right wings here. the skin is one single large panel. ‘The black streaks are caused by graphite oil.The hydraulic system B check and service panels open with the service equipment hooked up. The gages in the check panel give information on system temperature and related pressure. Checking these is part of the pilot's pre-flight watkaround. Some of the dorsal detail just aft of the cockpit. The fairing of the aft cockpit transparency is clearly visible. The rectangular hatch just aft of it offers access to the forward fuel tank which is of the bladder type due to the proximity of the gun and ammunition. The light has a double function. The forward part is a formation tight, the rear section is a flood light which illuminates the refueling stipway door. The antenna is the upper TACAN receiver. ‘The port strake where it blends into the wing. On top of the strake is the upper gunbay vent. The gas purge door in the bottom of the strake is closed on this picture. The streak originating from the hole ahead of the ECS exhaust is vented air from the regenerative heat exchanger. The Painted ‘ARMAMENT’ panel usually’ denotes the kind and number of weapons carried. Note the exterior reinforcements on the belly tank. These proved to be necessary for high-g maneuvers, ”All servicing panels of the ECS have been removed. The system comprises two heat exchangers. The exhaust of the main exchanger is shown in detail below. The large spherical container is the water seperator. Left of it is the regenerative heat exchanger which vents outside the aircraft. The ECS provides for cockpit heating/cooling and pressurization, radar and avionics bay cooling and pilot's G-suit. pressure. As source of heat 7th and 13th compressor stage bleed air is used. Cooling air is taken from the small inlets on top of the engine air inlet. =z The gas purge door mentioned on the previous page is shown opened as it normally is on the ground. bos Dorsal servicing panels aft of the gunbay are removed showing hyxiraulic equipment. On the right is the main hycraulic oil tank. In the top compartment is the leading edge ftap control and drive unit. The compartment below houses the Le. flap transmission and hydraulic piping ‘as well as the hydraulic gun drive unit.gun port on production aircraft is somewhat different from the one featured on most kits. The opening is somewhat bigger and the shape and size of the purge slits and holes as well. Detail on the ammo drum looking forward. The flexible cable drives the linkless ammo feed system which is detached on this picture. MBIA 20MM CANNON The M61 Vulcan six-barreled aircraft cannon has been the standard US fighter gun for the past 25 years. This is not only because the thing is extremely effective, development of new aircraft guns in the western world has been neglected for many years, This is mainly due to the general opinion of the late 50's and early 60's that aircraft guns were no tonger needed as AAMs were considered to be the final answer in air-to-air combat. However, it turned out that the AAM was not as reliable as it seemed at first and the opponents could outmaneu them. The advantage of the gun is that the enemy does not know that there are bullets flying around until they hit him. So the Yulean came to birth and it is still going strong. Anyone who is on the receiving end of the 100 round: cannon is in trouble Initially the installation in the some problems with nasty results. Some F-16s crashed and firing of ie gun was forbidden until the causes had been sorted out. It turned The empty gunbay. The rear of the gun hooks up to the hole in the rear wall. The lower purge door is in the lower right comer. The large pipe is part of the 16 caused out that the vibrations upset the accelerometer The only way to get: good insight of the MGIA which resulted in undesired yaw commands. Vulcan assembly is by taking a picture of the By insulating the accelerometer from ail vibrations gun in its display stand. the problem belonged to the past. 19Detail on this picture includes the video recorder fon the top right and the IFF transmitter mounted on the hateh cover. Piping is of the ECS. There is a difference here between the early and lates production blocks. The pipe opening to the top right of the JFF transmitter which mates up to the stub on the cover is an extra intake for instrument cooling. This is not featured on earlier production aircraft ‘A ground cooling receptable is provided for elec: tronic equipment ground testing purposes. ‘The sensitive electronic components easily overheat during long operation without the engine, thus internal cooling, working. ‘The small intake mentioned above is visible directly under the gun port. The zipper like stripes on the nose cone have been called many names, but they simply are static electricity conductors. Whitout tem thunderbolts would go right through the FRP nose and hit the radar antenna with all nasty results. Note the cover on the intake. Foreign object damage to the engine is a constant concer. The hungry engine is a real pick-pocket. We have seen puddles being sucked empty within half a minute.AN/APG-66 RADAR ano RELATED Avionics The APG-66 radar unit equipping the F-16 is quite a remarkable piece of electronic engine ring. Not that the system is so breathtaking, we find medium-PRF (pulse-repetition frequency) pulse-Doppler radars in the F-i5 and Saab Viggen amongst others, but it is the size of the unit. Tne people at Westinghouse succeeded in developing @ puise-Doppler radar of adequate power that fits in the relatively smatl nose of the F-I6. In look-down mode it can track @ target head-on at 30nm which is quite sufficient Trying to explain what pulse-Doppler means would carry us oo far so we suggest you check your encyelopaedia. We can however’ enlighten You a little on some of the capabilities. To eliminate the puzzling ground clutter so typicat for earlier radars the image presented to the pilot is synthetic. This means that in look- down mode the computer software (program) extracts the speed of a target relative to non moving echoes on the ground from the massive radar return and translates it into @ clear image on the electro-optical (EO) display while stationary echoes are filtered out. In ground mapping mode the set presents a real beam image. This can be used for navigation updates, locating and detecting targets and direct or offset delivery of various weapons. In CCIP (continiously-computed impact point) ~ attacks the radar offers information on the slant range The radar assembly of the F-I6 does not take up much space. The antenna was custom made to fit in the limited space fibreglass nose. Special care has to be taken not to damage the inboard parts of the AOA sensors on the nose when it is being opened. The antenna has to be placed in the ‘stored’ position (rotated port and up) to sway the radome fully open. Note the stat electricity conductor leads visible just below the antenna. The circuitbreakers related to the avionics are positioned right under the pilot's feet. aCOCKPIT DETAILS In order to make a better overall picture of the front office the ejection seat has been removed. At the same time you get to see what is under and behind the seat. The ejector rocket motor is attached to the airframe. The gold colored barrel leaves the aircraft with the seat. 23Yop: Block 15 instrament panel in full color. The left auxiliary panel in detail. The contraption cages the canopy up/down ‘and actuates the canopy seal. 24 yellow switch The front office of the F-16 was designed around the most important factor in aerial combat: the man that operates the machine. Pilot's expe~ rience and judgement was taken into account when the lay-out was set up and improvements are carried out as operational experience increases. It seems to be very logical to design a cockpit in such @ way that the workload on the pilot is as low as possible so he can devote his time to fighting opponents instead of having to monitor all sorts of gages to keep track of his speed, heading, fuel management and so on. Non-combatants thought differently. It was not before the F-15 emerged that pilots had to constantly look down into the cockpit and release stick or throttle to operate a system vital for combat or he needed a backseater to do it for him. The head-up, hands-on design of the F-15 and F-16 finaity allows him to keep his thoughts with the target. A mere glance ai the HUD tells him everything he needs to know. AU switehes for radar and weapons manage ment are on the joystick and throttle. The F-16 cockpit has a particular advantage over the F-15. By reclining the seat and raising the knee and leg line, the pilot not onty has a better g-tolerance, he also is much more’ com- fortable. Most people like to lean back instead of sitting upright all day and a fighter jock is just as human as you and me. The main disadvan- lage of the raised knee/leg line is the necessarily small instrument panel which makes it hard to house all necessary instruments and Electro-Optical displays. On the other hand the developments in electronic design may do away with this problem.Instrument panel with the HUD and video camera. Next to the HUD is the AOA indexer. The slits in the cover are for canopy defoging air. Note the canopy lock cut-out and the right aux. panel. Some detail of the rudder assembly is visible here as well as the main warning lights on the right auxiliary panel. 26 The large, frameless canopy gives the best all around view ever seen on a fighter, better still than on the F-15. The polycarbonate material can withstand a birdstrike at 350kt while the optical quality is outstanding and distortion of view within minimal Umits. The side-stick controler is a force sensing unit with very limited movement. As a matter of fact the first units did not move at all, very much to the dislike of pilots who missed the ‘con tact’ with the aircraft. Even now that the stick does move, it still takes a lot of getting used to. Nose-up commands take 38lbs input for max mum effect, nose-down pitch requires 18lbs input while maximum roll commands take 17lbs input both ways. The side stick in the flight simulator is more touchy so young pilots, accustomed to this, are very careful when first flying the real thing. Although the F-16 is called’ cheap, it is yet too expensive to crash. ‘The right side of the HUD and video camera with its electric connection. Astride the HUD is the air refuel status/NWS indexer.The Radar/Electro-Oplical display with the horizontal attitude and altitude indicator imme- diately above. The latter has changed places with the AOA indexer and instrument mode selector compared to the block 10 aircraft. The rear of the seat rails with ejector rocket blast tube. Note the canopy pressure seal. Behind the seat rails are some electrical connec- lions normally covered with canvas. The canopy actuator is a simple electric motor with gearbox. It not only opens and closes the canopy but, through a set of links, also locks it mechanically The canopy is not attached to a fixed hinge but moves up and down in between a set of rollers. Note the cockpit air outlet under the transparency. ‘This picture illustrates the hook-up of the canopy to the actuator. The shaft rotates in the canopy frame to lock it through a set of linkF-16B rear instrument and auxiliary panels. Because of the absence of a the HUD combiner glass and control panel, the Radar /Electro-Optical display could be moved up. 16B is not any less combat able than the F-16A apart fram a somewhat smaller fuel capaciThe side console lay-out of the aft cockpit is a lot simpler than that of the front consoles. There are however many blank panels for future versions such as an all-weather strike aircraft with a WSO in the back seal.The area behind the back seat of the F-I6B has not much to show for. rep rights The seat rocket motor is actuated by sequencers on the seat rails that are connected to the canopy by steel cables one of which can be made out here. ‘The right side of the aft instrument panel cover. Note handhold on top. Bottom toft ‘The canopy of the F-16B is opened by an electric motor placed between the front seat and rear instrument panel.Although this is a detail shot of a single seater canopy, the locking claws and handle bar are @ same as on the B canopy. Inside detail of the huge F-168 canopy. Note Canopy locking link detail on the center frame the shape and thickness of the frame. looking at it from the rear. An F-16B of the 421'Black Warriors’ 388 TFW based at Hill AFB, armed up with inert practice bombs. Note the shape of the canopy near the center frame.EJECTION SEAT Top tefts right # ‘The various items om the sides of the seat are described in the scale drawings on the next pages. Here you should note that the emergency oxygen line runs through the back seat padding. The picture also illustrates how the slack in the para~ chute risers is routed behind the padding. They ‘are fixded with a thin ripcord . Bottom tefts ‘The bottom of the seat carries the seat stabili- zation package. On the right edge is the trajectory divergence rocket wich directs the seat slighly to the left of the aircraft's flight path. In a two-seater this would be the aft seat. The front seat has the divergence rocket on the other side. The survival kit holds a dinghy amongst other things. In the lower right corner you see the distress radio transmitter. Further the kit contains nutritious food and water, matches, first aid material, etc. 32In the backlean of the the seat are the drogue, the environmental sensing unit and the recovery chute mortar. The recovery parachute is one big pack behind the headrest. Strapping the pilot in the seat is very simple compared to older aircraft. The parachute risers are hooked up to the harness, the seat belts wrap around the waist and that's il! Leg restraint garters are no longer needed. The two YF-16s had Escapae seats where the eight FSD F-I6As were equiped with Stencit SIIIS seats. The production F-16s have the McDon: nell Douglas ACES I! as ejection seat. Meanwhile the F-I5A and B have been retrofitted with a slightly different version of the ACES Il while the C and D models leave the production line with this seat. This would mean that it is very popular and indeed it i. In earlier days pilots telling about their bail- out often said:'.... and the next thing I knew I was hanging under the dome.’ There are in fact very few pilots that can give full account of their ejection, the majority having experienced @ short black-out. This was caused by the instan- taneous acceleration of the seats that were 33Top left rights Detail of the connection of the ejection sequencers commanded by steel cables hooked up to the canopy as described. Also visible is the canvas covering the area behind the seat. shot out of the aircraft by an explosive charge. The ACES II is powered by a rocket motor which gives it a much smoother acceleration thus preventing a black-out. Pilots that had to bail out of an F-16 can tell you exactly what happened from one split. second to the other and what is more, their backbone is not shorter by a few hundreds of an inch as used to be with old type seats. For the rest there is not much more new about the ACES I, apart jrom the fact that somebody was finally smart enough to mount the flight recorder on it to facilitate recovery and that it simply makes the ride more comfort able for the pilot. 1/48 th scale a1/ 12th scaleHUD teas up Display All basic information vital to safe operation can be displayed on the HUD in several modes. This becomes obvious when comparing the sym- bology on the HUD combiner glass and the readout on the basic flight instruments. Meanwhile alt functions of various systems can be selected through the buttons and’ switches on the throttie grip and control stick. Stick Throttle 1 Quadrant 36FLIGHT SIMULATOR Modern fighters are too complicated and too expensive to just let an inexperienced young pilot go loose on them. You may be the best of an advanced flying class, it does not mean you can operate the F=16. Flying it is not too tough, the plane is very forgiving and easy to handie. Just landing it on the narrow track gear calis for some practice, especially under crosswind circumstances. The ‘Electric’ Jet’ is however stuffed with very faney systems that require intensive training. Before an advanced flying school graduate gets to fly the real machine he has to go through some 30 hours on the flight simulator. Although the amount of money such a unit costs would buy you three F-16s It is stilt worthwhile simply becaisse you cannot actually crash it. As is obvious from the pictures on this page the flight sim is fully static. Other sims can move on ail axis, this one however does give the trainee the same feel as the real thing. Any controt input that would result in a g-load on the real aircraft gives the same effect in the ator. The seat cushion is inflated and the pilot's g-suit is pressurized. Meanwhite the com- puter projects moving images on a large screen in front and astride the pilot which gives him the impression of actual flight. You cannot think of any situation that cannot be simulated. Apart from training the pitot on the various complicated aircraft systems, he can also practice navigation, —touch-and-goes, ILS, air-to-air and air-to-ground combat, etc., and this of course at day or night, in excellent ather or under adverse conditions. Even thunder storms with actual lightning can be simulated. And nol to be forgotien are the very extensive emergency procedures that constantly need the pilot's devotion. Even experienced F-16 Jocks spend many hours practicing them in the flight sim. All these computer programs are controled by one or more flight sim operators behind a large control desk seen on the picture. The scopes enable them to check ail systems and instruments in the simulator and impose emergency conditions at will. The computer stores all information ‘on the flight conditions and the pilot's reactions and it can be retrieved through a printer at any time so the trainee can check where he went wrong. It is understood that the F-16, being such a demanding aircraft system-wise (anybody could fly it), puts a tot of strain on the pilot's’ intelti- gence. Freshmen spend their days in the flight sim and their nights behind a desk working their ways through all the manuals. That is, if they want to get up in the air one day. And just do not think that he is all through with that when he has finished the initial training. The ‘dash I' is constantly updated while tactical flying is subject to change as well, so it is back to ‘school’ every month ar so. Should you have a chance to visit a base one day, you would be amazed lo see how many captairis and majors still spend time in the flight sim. It is a@ very comforting sight though. At least they will not crash into your home while learning new. pro: sured nt. cedures. AS a taxpayer you can rest a: that the expensive flight sim is money welt-s 37LANDING GEAR The nose gear is located aft of the intake to prevent FOD. It is extended and retracted hydrau- lically and the wheel rotates 90° to fit into the well. Nose wheel steering is limited to 32° each way and can be assisted by main wheel braking. The drag brace is attached to a pivot inside the well. There obviously is not much space in there. For that reason there are not many systems installed. Actually you are looking at the underside of the intake channel. 38 The scissor torque link has to be disconnected for nose wheel steering to prevent damage to the steering servo. Strut assembly Drag brace assemblyThis picture clearly shows the routing of the hydraulic power lines on the shock strut and drag brace. The strut is kept at length by filting it with nitrogen through the valve on top of the assembly. Note the wear on the tyre. The main landing gear is retracted hydraulically but extends by free-fall assisted by pneumatic pressure from two accumulators that are charged when the gear retracts. A manual gear-down emergency system is provided. Through a T-handle and flexible the pilot can mechanically untock the gear. It locks itself when fully extended. When the gear ts fully extended it activates a switch which cuts off power to the radar trans- mitter to prevent hazardous conditions caused by the microwaves. For inspection the technicians can override this system. ‘The main gear wells not only house the gear and related hytraulics but also accomodate the hydraulic oil low and high pressure filters. The blue box is the aircraft battery. The right shock slrut carries the taxi light. ‘The natural metal tubing visible on the top right picture originates at the hydraulic system A pump and leads to the oil filters. One is visible just above the shock strut attachment to the bulkhead white another one is next to the right tube. From here the oil is routed to the systems or back into the tank. 33Main gear assembly Rudder pedal/ Gear brake assembly There is enough detail on these two pictures to satisfy any modeller. Hydraulic lines, oil filters, battery and various sequencers are clearly visible. The landing gear uplock in the center of the picture engages the uplock roller on the shock strut. The lock itself is linked to the gear door which actuates it. The gear-down lock can be seen in the center of the drag brace. Note that many airframe components are made of sheet stock instead of being expensive forgings or ‘machined parts.One of the hydraulic accumulators was leaking which resulted in a mess in the aft section of the well. The port main gear well features a liquid halon tank which vents into the fuel tanks. Halon is an inert gas which means it is not inflammable. It is better to have this in your fuel tanks than air that contains oxygen. Right of the halon reservoir is the hand pump to manually charge the pneumatic accumulators for the JFS. On the shock strut is the landing light. The wheel is mechanically twisted to fit into the well. The assembly is shown here. It should be noted that many f-16 components are inter- changable left and right. This goes for many gear components as well. aThe main gear doors are simple sheet stock assem- blies. Only the hinges are forgings. Note that this picture should be rotated 45° counter clock wise to get the right impression of the position of the door. The alluminum alloy wheels manufactured by Goodyear feature thermal pressure relief valves. For those interested in figures: the main tires are Gowirich 25.5 x8-14 while the nose tyre is a Goodrich 18 x 5.5-8. 42 The multiple disc brake has two independently operating channels and features an anti-skid system with touchdown skid control, anti-skid failure detection, proportional skid control and locked wheel skid control. The picture below shows the two seperate brake channel hyeiraulic lines.F-100 PW200 ENGINE The Pratt& Whitney 100-PW-200 powerplant of the F-16 is an innovation in itself. It is a two-shaft high-augmentation 0.7 bypass turbofan of the 25,000Ibs thrust class with an effective output in full AB of some 23,840lbs. With it's tremendous power it was the first engine to enable an aircraft to accelerate while climbing vertically. It entered production in the ‘dash 100' version to equip the F-15. Two of these engines powered the Streak Eagle which smashed about every time/ climb record and set new standards that will be hard to beat in the near future. The engine ts built around the core of the JTF-16 demonstrator orcered by the USAF in 1965. The modular design makes it very easy to maintain. Functionally and physically associated parts can be removed and replaced as one unit. The F100 has an excelient mean time between failure (MTBF) and an ever increasing time between overhaul (TBO) record. By the beginning of 1981 it had lagged over 1,200,060 hours with an extreme The engine on it's service cart. For shipment the AB can and nozzle assembly are taken off ‘and the three parts are packed seperately in sealed containers to reduce the risk of oxydation. It is rigged on a test stand and hooked up to monitoring equipment. Note that the FOD screen carries intake pressure sensors. ly low rate of accidents caused by engine failure. Next to. the high thrust another advantage of the F100 is the almost smokeless operation. Anyone who has ever seen a Phantom blazing trough the sky must have noticed the enormous smoke trails. USAF pilots in Vietnam soon learned that the enemy did not really need a tracking radar, they jusi had to trace ihe trails of smoke back to ‘their source. Still not satisfied with the result, P&W has meanwhile designed new combustors to further reduce the smoke output. Before the engine was released for full-scale production it was put through a series of gruelling static and flight tests. These revealed some sever: temperature and engine stall problems, the latter frequently being caused by AB backfiring. Pratt& Whitney “engineers have meanwhile ironed out these ‘problems by some clever thinking. The onty problem still encountered is the possibility of oil tank rupture at sustained high negative g's. Solving this is a matier of time. At present P&W people are working on the PW1120, a further development of the F401 (the sister of the F100 intended for the F-i4). Changing an engine on the F-16 takes about half an hour compared to half a day for an engine change on the F-4 Phantom. Some 23,000ibs of thrust are released at full AB. The blazing flame causes a true hurricane and the noise is far beyond human limits. Taking 4 picture like this is quite an experience. 43The afterburner itself consists of five concentric sprayrings in the engine core flow and another two downstream in bypass airflow. Ignition is high-energy electrical giving a staged light up. Seen here are the so-called flame holders. ‘Actuator detail of the convergent nozzle. The divergent no: floats freely in conjunction with the convergent noz In dry (non-AB) operation the nozzle area would be ‘too large for effective use so it has to be reduced by closing the nozzle. Only in full AB the nozzle is wide open. Idle engine operation on the ground thus means a fully ‘closed’ nozzle. The inner liner of the AB can is made of refractory material covered with ceramics. The small holes introduce cooler air from the bypass duct into the can. This not only cools the AB but the noise. The cooler boundary layer the friction of the hot AB gas and the atmosphere. It is this friction that produces the screaming noise of an engine in full AB. 44 Here you are tooking at the actual hart of the engine. What you see on most pictures of complete F 100s like on the previous page, is the bypass duct with accessories mounted on it. On top of the assembly is a mounting jig. The 3 rings directly below actuate the variable stator trailing edges. Further you can see the 7th stage dleed air outlet, the uel lines connected to the spary nozzles and the 13th stage bleed air outlet under the fuel lines. The lowest part is the annular combustor. The turbine underneath is not visible on this picture.EXTERNAL STORES (Gonorat Dynamics) The F-16 must be the envy of many veteran pilots. They feel sure they could have done a@ much better job would ‘they have had the Fighting Faicon's capabilities at their disposal. Not only can the F-16 deliver the various weapons with a high degree of accuracy while the pilot can feel relatively safe under the protection of the threat warning system, but it can also carry an impressive payload of 20,450lbs. Compa- ring this with the B-17 capabilities (which many think to be a must) is true nonsense. There are some 40 years of aviation technology between the two types. So let us compare it with the F-4& Phantom. True, the Phantom has a payload of some 30,0001bs, but it needs two engines to get it off the ground and a backseater to deliver it, And we should not forget to mention that the F-16 is much more agile. That brings us to air-to-air combat. One can truly say that there is nothing that can outmaneuver ihe Faleon. Anyone who gets trapped in a dogfight with an F-16'and forgets to disen- gage in time is going to get hosed. F-15 jocks will tell you that the F-16 can never get them and they’ are absolutely right, but what they mean is that they have more power to disengage and run off. Then it ts the F-16 pilot's concern to watch his six as the F-15 may have turned around and sneak in from behind. When he has spotted it he will however be able to outmaneuver it again and get on his tail. Any other aircraft is going to get it, period. Now, keeping in mind that the Soviets know all about the F-15's perfor- A USAF F-16 block 10 from Shaw AFB in normal air-to-ground configuration. It carries two 370 gation fuel tanks, two inert AIM-9L Sidewinders ‘and six inert Mk82 500ibs bombs. The centerline pylon would carry an AN/ALQ-131 ECM-pod in wartime. mance from the Middle East wars, just imagine how they must feel about the F-16. I'd hate to be in a Sukhoi when there are F-16s in the neigh borhood. ‘The 370 gallon fuel tank in close-up. Note the differences with most tanks in model kits. The three external tanks double the range of the F-16 while it is still able to carry a fair payload. 220 P. Van Regenmortel) 4546 Most F-16s carry the peacetime SUU-20 practice bomb dispenser/rocket launcher. Four rockets are carried in the tubes while a total of six practice bombs can be stowed in the bay in tne bottom. Note the angle of the leading and trailing edge of the pylon. This is to not obstruct deflection of the flaps. Above: ‘The intercepter configuration features Sidewinders on stations 1, 2, 8 and 9. The underwing launchers are exactly the same as the wingtip launchers. The pylon on station 7 is not standard, but is used here to carry a travel pod. Lefts Underside detail of the station 3/7 weapons pylon. The weapons or ejector rack are hung ‘on pyrotechnically actuated claws. The threaded studs on the stadying braces keep them from rolling on the points.The front section of the Sidewinder launching rail can be swung inboard to slide the missile on the mails. The connection on the missile which feeds liquid nitrogen to the seeker head hooks up to a receptable behind the spring loaded brace. The spring on top and bottom hook behind the forward fins of the missile. For those that don't already know: the Sidewinder feeds an audio signal to the pilot when it has detected infra-red signature from the target. The lower the signal frequency, the closer the target is. All that is left to do is push the button. Some detail of the attachment of the belly tank. The external tanks indeed have electrical connections as well. How else can the fuel quan- lity be measured. The plugs are of the quick disconnect type. It is quite sloppy to have a tank dangling on the electric lines after it has been punched off. There is a specific difference between fuel tank and weapons pylons. For one the electrical connections for weapons can be quite complicated and some stores even need @ cooling source, as is the case with some ECM pods. The stress demands want a word in this matter as well. ms : Three Mk82 Snackeyes and a LAU rocket launcher await the ship that will carry them to their final destination. Snackeyes are normal bombs with a special tail assembly that retards their falling time and makes accurate bombing possible. LAU rocket launchers contain 19 unguided rockets that have a devestating effect on anything from a jeep to armor. aDetail shot of the deployed retarding ‘on a Snackeye training bomb. The four sections are held in the closed position by a steel band that is torn off by a ripcord attached to the pylon or ejector. An inert version of the so-called Smart Bomb. This is either a 1,000lbs or 2,000Ibs bomb with laser guidance. The forward fins are movable in order to steer it. They are commanded by the laser sensor on the nose. The target must however be illuminated by the parent aireraft or a second plane that carries a designator. It is said that the Israeli Air Force used these bombs to destroy the Osirak nuclear reactor near Baghdad in Iraq. Simulated chemical warfare conditions on Hahn AB in West Germany. A weapon crew is practicing the arming up of an F-16 while being dressed in a hot, uncomfortable protective suit. Note the steel band around the fins of the Snackeyes and the steel cables thal arm the fuses when the bomb is released. 48Good detail shots in color of the Sidewinders fare rare. This is_an AIM-9N. Note the shape of the forward fins. The red flag covers the proximity fuse. The section with the yellow bands is the wartoad. Front and rear detail of the rocket tubes in an SUU-20. Note the contact pins that fire the solid fuel. bay 4 Very few people are aware of this detail on @ Sidewinder. The threads burn up when the missile is launched thus releasing the locks on the yaw control rollers. Two brand-new ER's (Triple Ejector Racks) where waiting to be installed when we spotted them to take this excellent detail shot. Detail in the ‘bomb bay’ of an SUU-20 dispenser. The six practice bombs leave a puff of smol where they hit. Note the two sequencers in front of the bombs -One is for the rockets, the other for the bombs. 49This picture itt of the F-16. The ine! ction. The aircraft is hooked up to an external power unit and ground cooling equipment and the entire platform is removed and replaced by one that is in good working order. External power and ground cooling is needed to be able to test the operation. The whole procedure takes about ten minutes. just flipping a switch or pushing a button and MISSION PREPARATIONS of course it is much more easy to localize a malfunction. The weapon load has to be programmed Preparing the F-16 for a mission is not just into the SMS (Store Management System). This a matter of minutes. is either done by the pilot or by the weapons Modern aircraft rely on a lot of vital systems master. The SMS is not only important for the ‘and these better be in good working order or pilot to know what exactly he has at his disposal someone is going to be in trouble. Although at a certain moment (all info can be displayed they are thoroughly checked at specific intervals on the HUD) but also feeds the information they have to be double-checked before every into the FLCS which processes it to determine mission. This is the job of the plane captain the flight envelope in @ particular configuration. who is assisted by specialists. Specific loads impose certain performance limits Today's fighters all have BIT (uilt-In-Test) on the aircraft and the computer software. is equipment which considerably facilitates the programmed to take this into account when job of the specialist. The system enables easy relaying commands to the control surfaces. testing of a few dozen of aircraft systems by No matter how hard he tries, there is no way the pilot can exceed these limits. The computer ‘This is the external power unit used by the simply will not allow it and there is no way he can override it. (his is quite a step forward. Instead of constantly having to monitor his speed, AOA, g-load, etc. in order to keep the aircraft from stalling, the pilot can now fully devole his attention to combat. The ground cooling unit. 50‘A weapon crew loa rockets. Above / Betow (Belgian air Force) The ammo drum in the fuselage is loaded and emptied by a special independently powered unit through the access in the starboard forbody strake. The linkless feed removes the spent cartridges from the drum in the aircraft and jores them in the space that becomes available when the new shells are fed into the aircraft. It is thus an endless circuit. Note the flexible drive cable to the aircraft and the pressure line from the power unit. All fuel tanks of the F-16 (internal and external) can be replenished through a single refueling Point located in the port wing/body blend. A belly tank is being installed on the centerline pylon. The lifting fork of the loc:ting tractor had to be adapted to deal with the limited ground clearance. The power unit of the ammo toading assembly. It delivers pneumatic pressure to the motor on the ammo cart. Most of the power units we have seen are driven by the renowned Volics- wagen ‘borer! engine that we all know from the famous "Bug ‘mes \ 5st(Belgian A Not one briefing room looks alike but they all have some commonalities like a large cerial map, a TV set plus video recorder to go over the parts of a mission recorded on tape, a chart with radio call signs and many, many NOTAM's (NOTe to Air Men) with a lot of ‘do's and do not's', airport information and so on. The equipment room often holds a colorful variety Some air forces still allow artwork. 52 FIG PILOT Compared to the F-104 pilot the F-16 jock has it quite easy as the one on this picture can tell you. Ch.Adj. John Lemmens has 3,000 hours on the Strarfighter. No longer does’ he have @ heavy parachute on his back but an easy to wear harness to which the parachute risers hook up. No more wulnerable spurs on his boot they remain clean. ‘he bag is to haul the helmet, kneepad and video casette around. Of course the badges on the coverall are not worn in battle. They would tell too much of a story. BRIEFING The pilot's briefing is probably the most time-consuming part of a mission. Pilots may well spend an hour or so in the briefing room before they leave for the dispersal area. In peacetime navigation excercise missions are often combined with a few runs over the weapons range to drop some bombs or shoot up a target. Intercepter jocks will be looking for someone to jump on. The nature of the mission determines the briefing time. The pilot starts by plotting the route on an aerial map and wherever necessary visual check points are noted. At a one-minute interval they note the travelled distance on the track and the daia for the nav-computer are written down on the kneepad so they can be punched in once the power is on. Fuiure improvements in theF-16 program include a tape casette on which ail data are recorded by the ops and can be inserted into the nav-computer. This will cut programing time from some 20 minutes to just @ few, plus that it reduces briefing time consider ably. When the pilot has double-checked his data he is all set to pick up his gear in the equipment room and head for his ride. AIRCRAFT INSPECTION Any good pilot will tell you that you better count your wings before you Step into ihe bucket. After ‘all, humans make mistakes. But that is not the only reason. When you assume all of it to be there in good order, you fail into routine. All good drivers will say routine kills, the bad ‘once’ no longer can, they are dead. That is why you will ‘see a pilot signing a technical status report, checking control surfaces on normal functioning, checking hydraulics and tires and making sure that the weapon toad is securely suspended on the racks, because he hates to loose something over a village. STARTING UP When strapped into the seat the pilot will start the engine almost immediately, because nothing works without the engine running in idte. The man needs ‘power-on’ to program the com puter, SMS, etc. Many aviation enthousiasts wil! be familiar with the sight of a fighter taxiing along with open canopies. The F-16 jock closes the hood @s soon as he got in. The alr conditioning works better with the shell closed and furthermore the engine might suck all loose equipment out of the cockpit andl swatlow it. 53The JFS inlet and outlet covers open automatically when the pilot hits the button. When the main engine accelerates through 50% RPM the JES is shut down automatically and the covers are closed. A mechanic normally by holding his hand in the airflow. He will withdraw it as soon as the combustor is fired up. 54 AS soon as the pilot is strapped into the seat, he closes the canopy. Modern jetfighters have airconditioned cockpits so it is better to close the hood whether it be warm or cold. This is however not mandatory. The F-I6 can very well taxi with the canopy opened, but then it is adviseable to stow all loose ‘equipment so the engine will not digest it. ‘The EPU fired indicator is very touchy. One rough touchdown and the thing goes off. As nobody can be sure whether the EPU has fired Guhich would mean possible hydrazine leakage) or not, a specialist has to check the EPU bay first. Here ne is seen being dressed up in protec tive clothing and an oxygen unit assisted by two colleagues.GALLERY ‘An updated Belgian F-16A Block 10 banks to display the weathered under surfaces. Note that the outlet nozzle is fully ‘closed which indicates the engine operates at military power. seThe Egyptian Air Force received it's first F-16 in march 1982. The initial order stands for 34 F-I6As and 6 F-I6lis. A future order for another 100 is expected. fc Dutch F-16A of 311 sq. based at Volkel. This base sq- and 306 reece sq-, all operating F-I ue 16 banking over desert country displaying the effective camouflage. Note that the green color is nter than that on other Israeli Air Force aircraft. (Generat bynamics) Israel much tis 56Norwegian early block F-16 in the intercepter role. Note the RWR antenna on the brake chute housing. (General Dynamics) The F-16s of the RNeAF replace the outdated F-104 which has for long been the mainstay of many NATO. air forces. (®. Von Here's) Smoke trails from the main gear tires of this Belgian F-16 as they accelerate instantaneously from 0 to approx. 125 knots. You can see why aircraft tires don't hold very long. 57A Belgian F-16 photographed on Bitburg AB. (P. Yan Horeky (Generai Dynamics) An excellent in-flight shot of an F-16 from 10 FBW BAF from Kleine Brogel AB. e danssens) 58A flight of F-16s of 10th TFW bank over an atoll in the Pacific on their transfer flight from the US to Kunsan Air Base, South Korea. (General Dynamics) For the first time in history units from the Air National Guard are receiving brand new aircraft instead of having to take over the obsolete stuff of the USAF. 59It is our policy to onty deal with the recom- mendable kits in various’ scales in this section, Reviewing all other kits would take up too much KIT REVIEWS space and they are not really worth mentioning. Especially where the F-16 kits are concerned there are imany that are way off. This is due to the fact that every manufacturer rushed to be the first to release a model of the F-16, even before anybody knew what the production type would look like and often with a complete lack of information. This resulted in a lot of hebrids, kits that are part prototype, part produc~ tion type. So unless you want to make a proto type, you better forget all about them. Listing all available decals is out of the question. The list would be outdated by the lime this book is published, so you better keep yourself informed through your tocal hobbyshop. As you can see we have illustrated this section th éolorful pictures of finished modeis. They will give you some idea of what the models could look tike. Do you want to learn more about aireraft modeling, try ‘The Verlinden Way’ volume II ‘On plastic wings'. It tells you all and much more you want’ to know about this fascinating hobby. 1/72 nd scale ESCI The ESCI kits are by far the best available on this scale. You have to see the exterior detail to believe it. The engraved panels are extremely crisp and... almost correct. You only need to add an extra few on top of the ear fuselage. The landing gear is a modelers dream, almost too fine to handie. The kit has block 54 and 10 horizontal tail planes and allows you to make the Norwegian version with parabrake housing as the aft tail fairing is a seperate piece. AS the perfect kit is not yet made, this one has a few shortcomings as well. Because it is available in the single-seat and two-seat version, the manufacturer has chosen to make the fuselage section at the canopy area as a seperate piece which of course cuts moulding costs. This item does however not always fit Model by Herman Mertens unless Modeling by Frangois VERLINDE otherwise stated. Model by Herman Mertens too well. It is adviseable to add a piece of thin plastic sheet under the entire section or it will sit too low. The canopy cannot be assembled in the open position but this is just as well, because you would need to detail the poor cockpit The major drawback is the fit of the wing to the fuselage. Because the manufacturer obviously removes the sprues from the mould too fast, the wings show quite some undercut where they mate with the body blend. Careful filling and sanding is in order here. The choice of external stores is’ remarkable for a 72nd scale kit. External fuel tanks of the correct shape, 1,000ibs iron bombs, smart bombs and Sidewinders are on offer. The perfect Cartograph decals enable you to make a Duteh F-16 of 312Sq. Volkel AB; a Belgian F-16 of 1, All weather intercepterwing at Beauvechain, a USAF F-16 of 428TFS 474 7FW at Nellis; an Israeli F-16(sorry, no unit info is allowed); a Norwegian Falcon of 322Sq. and finally a Danish F-16 of 727 Eskadrille. The two-seater can be made into an F-I6B of either the RNeAF 323Sq from Leeuwarden; BAF 10FBW from Kleine Brogel; Kongelige Danske Flyvevabnet 727Sq.;. USAF 428TPS 474 TFW or Kongelige Norske’ Luftforsvaret 331Sq. OCU ITALERI This kit is good enough for those that do not demand too much. The panel lines are en graved, although too deep and with many mistakes. 1/48 th scale HASEGAWA This superb model beats just about all others. Modelers have been waiting for this basic quality for years. When you open the box you cannot but hold your breath for a moment and then go out of your wits. The quantity of super-detailed plastic that the kit offers is more than worth Hasegawa also got the message that engraved panel lines are what we need. They are very well done, especially when you consider the fact that it is their first crack at it. There $ only one slight error which is easy to correct. The kit however combines two-in-one. You can either build the A or B version as the box holds parts for both. A nice detail is that you can choose between either a fully opened” or closed nozzle. The canopy area is the same as with the ESCI kit, seperate pieces for the single and two-seater and one-piece transparencies. The landing gear is nicely detailed although the assembly is somewhat complicated. The exiernal stores are limited to wrong fuel tanks, Sparrows, which tne F-16 cannot and two Sidewinders. The Cartograph decals, which are incomplete, allow you to make a Dutch or US version. The cockpit instrument panel and side consoles are outstanding and finally we have an ACES Il seat and pretty well-done too. The landing gear struts might be a little on the heavy’ side but it does not really show and the wells are just great. They leave however the opportunity for super-detailing. The pilot figure finally looks like a@ human being and no longer like Frankenstein as was frequently the case with Japanese modelmakers. There are some areas that need your attention when assembling. The intake can‘ do with somefiller or better epoxy putty. Another problem is the fit of the wings to the body. It may be necessary to sand the underside of the wing/body blend. ‘The horizontal tall plane is of the 1 area type, thus the model is a block 15. canopy transparency comes in two pieces, so you can Ieave the cockpit open. The tinted glass is first rate and of the right bulged shape. The moulding seam can easily be removed with very fine sanding paper and car polish. We would have liked to see two more items in this kit being a centerline tank and a seperate parabrake housing. The external stores are iimited to two external tanks and some missiles. But who needs them included in a kit when Hasegawa had the brilliant idea of issuing various kits with all possible armament you can think of We should also praise the company for their decals. There were times when Hasegawa decals were a genuine nightmare, but the ones in this kit are. outstanding. No negative comments what so ever. The kit is available in two versions. 1/32nd scale HASEGAWA 62 One of the 35 TFS 8TFW ‘Wolf Pack’ from Kunsan AFB, Korea and ane of the 'Thunderbirds’ USAF demo team. The blue of the decals of latter is however a little on the dark side. You might be better off airbrushing it. The flagship amongst all available F-16 kits is undoubtably the 32nd scale kit by Hasegawa.lt offers you a big, well-detaited model that looks impressive as it is. Tt is however a model of an FSD(Full Seale Development) aircraft and therefor lacks many details of the production F-16s plus the panelling is not all together correct. Let us see what is wrong and what you can do about it. Worst things first: the ejection seat. Being an FSD aircraft It has the Stencel SIIS so you will have to make your own ACES IL using our scale plans, Although this may not seem (0 be easy, you should take a crack at it, It will turn out not to be that tough. The panel lines should be filled with cyanoacrylate and rescribed refering to the scale drawings. Navigation lights should be added on the intake and wingtips. Then you have to make an extra RWR antenna for the aft fairing of the vertical fin. The antennas on the spine should be deleted and it is better to cut off the static dischargers and replace them. For those who want to super detail the cockpit, a great deal can be done here. Although the kit parts are nicely detailed, they could do with a finishing touch. The canopy s badly in need of the interior frame and the raising mechanism. The external stores on offer are quite numerous but most of it is protoype stuff. You can make production type underwing tanks of the ones provided in the kit, but the belly tank is useless, unless you are into making an FSD aircraft of course. The Sparrows are best put in the spare parts box, the F-16 hardware is not laid-out for firing them. 1/12th scale ESCI Cockpit Here they are at last! Which dedicated modeler has not dreamed for years of a large-scale cockpit of a famous fighter. Many must have spent hours discussing the possibilities they would offer. If you are one of those you can now start your collection with this beautiful piece. An F-104S cockpit is forthcoming and let us hope that they prove to be so succesful that many more witl follow. When you start checking out the detait after opening the box you will be amazed. The detail on instuments and side consoles is extremely realistic and many of the switches are seperate items which facilitates painting. There being no such thing as the perfect kit, there are a few remarks to be made on this one as well. For one the top part of the seat is not all together correct and the throttle could do with some additional detail. The rest is just superb and tends itself for extensive super-detailing using such gimicks as film type instrument dial faces, optical fibre for light effects, colored lights and so on. For the cracks amongst the super-detailers it may be an idea to go for sidewalls. The lay-out of the cockpit is that of a block 10 aircraft, but by using the plans on the foldout in this’ book you can change it around into a The kits come in two versions, one with decats for FSD aircraft and one with decals for a 'Wolfpack' F-16 from Kunsan AFB, Korea. You should however have second thoughts about using them, they still are the old bad ones. You'd better try Scalemaster for a change. REVELL For those who do not want to spend much money on a large scale kit, Revell is your best buy. The scale checks out fairly well, although you should not try to interchange parts between the Revell and Hasegawa kits. 1 for instance tied to use the aft non-tinted transparency of Revell on the Hasegawa model. Forget it, they do not match. Of course this kit does not feature as much detali as the Hasegawa kit, but what do you want. The cockpit transpareney is a one-piece moulding which is a shame, however, you get beautiful rubber-like tires. ‘The spine antennas should be removed and lights added as with the Hasegawa brother. The panel lines should be reseribed correctly and the cockpit interior can do with some attention. External stores are exactly the same as those in the Hasegawa kit which means, no correct belly tank on this scate. But then, seratchbuilders want teir share as welt. Revell decals are, as always, they allow you to make F-16s well-known nationalities. excellent and of the various block 15. You start by cutting the panels from the consoles and sanding the underside flat. After making new consoles from plasticard you can re-arrange the lay-out. You will find you have to make some new panels as well, but that is a piece of cake. Some instruments have to be re-arranged as well This is a more daring project, but with some patience it will turn out just fine and you will have a model that =.When you