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F-16 Fighting Falcon News

8th FW F-16s go through intensive night-flying training

September 1, 2003 (by Stefaan Vanhastel) - The commander of Kunsan Air Base's 8th Operations Group is putting two squadrons of F-16 pilots on a six-month night-flying schedule for practice in the rigors of night combat flying. The 8th Fighter Wing's 35th Fighter Squadron and 80th Fighter Squadron will take part in the training from October to March.
Air Force Col. Kurt Neubauer, an F-16 pilot with more than 20 years of experience, decided on the training to make the F-16 pilots more proficient in the use of night-vision goggles. Though a major tactical advantage - the pilots can see targets and other objects in the dark - the goggles restrict the field of vision. Part of the challenge of flying with the goggles is the need to do two things almost at once: looking outside the plane for positional awareness and keeping an eye on the radar and aircraft instruments inside the plane.

The pilots will practice an array of standard combat-air missions, balancing their ground-attack mission - dropping bombs - with such air- to-air tasks as intercepting hostile aircraft. The training will involve the entire wing, including ground crews and support personnel which will focus mainly on night-safety practices.