Forum: F-16 News

Spangdahlem F-16s lead return to Incirlik

By Scott Schonauer
Courtesy of U.S. Air Force

The familiar roar of F-16 fighter jets is back at Incirlik Air Base in Turkey.

U.S. warplanes from Spangdahlem Air Base's 22nd Fighter Squadron are at the Turkish base as part of a new training deployment.

It is the first squadron to rotate in and out of the base since the Air Force stopped enforcing the no-fly zone nearly four years ago.

The base served as a launching point for fighter jets enforcing the no-fly area over northern Iraq between 1997 and the beginning of the Iraq war in 2003. Large cargo aircraft have since replaced those fighters.

About 250 airmen from the Germany-based squadron are in Adana to take advantage of the area's great flying conditions this time of year, said Lt. Col. David Youtsey, commander of the 39th Operations Squadron at Incirlik.

The airmen plan to stay at the base for the next three weeks. They will be replaced by its sister squadron, the 23rd Fighter Squadron, which plans to stay there the same length of time.

"The weather is really good this time of year," Youtsey said. "Obviously, that's the main reason for the guys at Spangdhalem to leave their home station. There's flying and training they need to stay proficient that they cannot get during the winter time months in Germany just due to the weather.

"Meteorologically speaking, we've got weather down here that helps them meet their training objectives."

Although Germany has had a warm winter this year, winter often is not kind to pilots who need time in the cockpit.

On Friday, Adana had unrestricted visibility, no clouds and temperatures in the upper 50s. In Spangdahlem, it was cloudy and temperatures were in the mid- to upper-40s.

"The weather at Incirlik was exactly what they were hoping for," Youtsey said.

It's not unusual for fighters to deploy to Incirlik for training. U.S. fighter jets regularly participate in the Turkish Anatolian Eagle exercise at Konya. But those numbers are a far cry from the days before the war.

Before U.S. forces invaded Iraq more than three years ago, as many as 50 U.S. and allied jets were stationed at the base at any time. The last no-fly mission was flown right before coalition forces entered Iraq in March 2003.

Since that time, the base has seen few if any fighter jets and the base decided to upgrade some of the facilities for the airmen coming for training. The Air Force upgraded the squadron operations center and refurbished other base facilities to accommodate the pilots and maintainers.

"The objective was to make it look as much like their home station squadron as possible so it's comfortable and meets all their needs," Youtsey said.

No other units are scheduled to travel to the base for training. But Youtsey said the hope is that other units in Europe or elsewhere could go to Turkey to hone skills in the future, adding that the training helps boost relations between the U.S. and Turkey.

Whit this personal viewpoint, you are not allone, falconfixer860261! The Turkish parliament really "eliminated" Gen. Tommy Franks pre-planned "Northern Front" for OIF. But at that time, Franks already had some other solutions. If I remember right, he talked about that in an exclusive interview for "Knight Ridder" (for details, I must go in my archives).

Fighter training in Turkey helps more than just pilots

by Airman 1st Class Tom Kennedy
Detachment 7, Air Force News Agency

2/8/2007 - INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey (AFNEWS) -- Fighting Falcons are flying over Turkey as Airmen of the 22nd and 23rd Fighter Squadrons from Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, conducting rotational deployment training.

Accompanying the fighter squadrons are members of several Spangdalhem AB units charged with keeping the F-16 Fighting Falcon flying.

Second Lt. Justin Hickey of the 22nd FS Aircraft Maintenance Unit said the deployment showed him the importance of the jobs of the ground crews.

"It takes every part of a machine to run properly," Lieutenant Hickey said. "Even though there are many people ... behind the scenes, they're working just as hard to make sure every jet gets in the air -- people like the crew chiefs, weapons Airmen, egress and fuels and all the people who play integral roles."

In addition to operations training, the deployment allowed many pilots to earn upgrades and gave other Airmen a chance to get accustomed to living and working in a deployed environment. The rotational squadron deployment wraps up in early March.

Rotational squadron deployment jets leave Incirlik

By 1st Lt. Yasemin Randall.
39th Air Base Wing Public Affairs.

3/22/2007 - INCIRLIK AIR BASE, Turkey (AFNEWS) -- People at Incirlik had not heard the sound of rotational squadron deployment F-16s taking off for more than 16 years. That all changed when the first Fighting Falcons arrived here in January from the 52nd Fighter Wing at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany.

Incirlik officials welcomed the 22nd and 23rd Fighter Squadrons. Turkish officials granted valuable access to the Konya Air Base bombing range. And, they also found beautiful weather.

"Since winters in Germany are usually marked by bad weather, low cloud ceilings, poor visibility and precipitation, Incirlik provided an alternative site with much better weather," said Maj. James Gump, 39th Operations Squadron chief of weapons and tactics. "The goal for the 52nd FW was to take advantage of this good weather and available bombing range, and hone each pilot's skills in a high-quality training environment."

The rotational squadron deployments at Incirlik began Jan. 3 with the arrival of the 22nd FS. The 22nd FS was replaced by the 23rd FS Feb. 2. By Feb. 24, all but two jets were back at Spangdahlem. A total of 652 sorties were flown between the two squadrons and rotation training was deemed successful.

"Both squadrons were able to take advantage of the weather, airspace and bombing range that Turkey has to offer," said Major Gump. "The leaders of both squadrons expressed their gratitude to Team Incirlik for its support, and were pleased with how much they were able to get accomplished."

The few remaining 52nd FW personnel stayed behind, awaiting parts to fix one of the two remaining jets. Once the aircraft was repaired, both jets were flown back to Spangdahlem by Major Gump and Lt. Col. David Youtsey, 39th FS commander.

"Although only one jet was awaiting parts for repair, the second jet was held behind, because normally single-seat fighters fly cross-country with a wingman," said Major Gump.