Col. Mike Brill, from the 419th Fighter Wing at Hill AFB will set another record next week when he is expected to become the first F-16 pilot to break the 6,000 flying hours mark.">
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F-16 Fighting Falcon News

First F-16 pilot to reach 6000 flight hours

April 25, 2008 (by Asif Shamim) - Col. Mike Brill, from the 419th Fighter Wing at Hill AFB will set another record next week when he is expected to become the first F-16 pilot to break the 6,000 flying hours mark.

Lt Col. Mike Brill 'Brillo' most F-16 flying hours in the World. Photo taken at the 419th FW at Hill AFB. [USAF photo by TSgt. Michael Owens]

He is likely to break the threshold while flying a combat mission from Balad AB, Iraq next week. This will make him the most experienced F-16 pilot amongst the 24 countries which currently use this jet.

Eric Hehs, the "Code One" magazine editor for Lockheed-Martin, was quoted to have said "A 6,000-mile patch doesn't yet exist, since no one has ever logged that many hours in an F-16".

Brill has been deployed in Iraq since March 2008 and is due to come home in May of this year