Forum: F-16 Spotting & Photography

FWIW,
http://news.ifeng.com/mil/2/200905/0521 ... 82_2.shtml
has IMO a rare colour photo
http://img.ifeng.com/res/200905/0521_627280.jpg
of, in 1986, the USAF Thunderbirds F-16s at Nan Yuan AB, Bei Jing, Commie China.

The good old days, before 1989.06.04.

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http://www.tomamin.co.jp/2009t/t09092403.html

24 September 2009:
Six F-16s of USAF Thunderbirds will perform at Chitose AB, Hokkaidou, on 15 October. First ever Thunderbirds performance in Hokkaidou.
From 13 October, 140 pilots and staff will stay in Chitose City. Flight training on 14 October. Performance on 15 October.
Performance at Misawa AB, Aomori Prefecture, too.

Tomakomai City, Hokkaidou, was notified on 21 July, and requested the Thunderbirds to not fly over Tomakomai City.

Thunderbirds in Australia

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Anyone know what the T-birds did when the Andersen Airshow got cancelled? Did they go into the big shelter or did they evac out?

The Thunderbird never made it to Guam. The storm kept them from going. They will be making it up this week.

http://www.asagumo-news.com/news/200910 ... 102210.htm

October 2009:
Thunderbirds, USAF, at Chitose AB, Hamamatsu AB, Misawa AB.

Does somebody have the serials of the 7 Thunderbird F-16's that were in Korea? And which one stayed behind in Misawa?

http://club.mil.news.sina.com.cn/thread-293683-1-1.html

Photos dated 1987, of USAF Thunderbirds F-16s in Red China.

Great find Gamera.

Those were heady days. Reagan was cozying up to China and offering to put the APG-66 radar in the Chinese J-8 along with MIL-STD 1553B data bus, MFDs, navigations system and ejection seat. If memory serves, Grumman was the lead on that and they even displayed a prototype mock-up at Paris back in the 1980s. But then, Tiananmen happened in 1989 and everything went belly up.

It’s hard to believe that kind of cooperation today.

Actually, the Chicom PLA still flies some S-70 Black Hawks in the Si Chuan province and Xi Zhuang region, along with the usual Hips.
We sometimes see them in news vids after an earthquake or landslide.

Also, on 7 August 1983, a PLAAF test pilot, who was test-flying a PLAN J-7II modded with UK Marconi radar, flew this prototype to South Korea, and defected.

Good points Gamera. Always nice to get your insight from that part of the world.

I am assuming that the PLA S-70s are the commercial non-military variants, right? I suppose that would be as benign as Air China flying B777s.

AFAIK, not to upset Red China and Taiwan, the Black Hawks used by both sides are officially designated S-70, not HH/MH/UH-60, although the engines are mil spec, not civilian spec.

Forum: F-16 Spotting & Photography

Thunderbirds F-16s in Asia