[Photo] Six C-130 Hercules aircraft practice large formation airlift tactics and procedures March 3, 2013
Posted by David Cenciotti in : Military Aviation , 1 comment so farOn Feb. 21, 2013, a formation of six C-130 Hercules from Yokota Air Base, Japan participated in a mission whose aim was to practice large formation airlift tactics and procedures.
In the image below, the aircraft perform a so-called Elephant Walk, taxiing in sequence for the active runway.
The following photograph shows the Hercules airlifters of the 374th Airlift Wing leaving smoke trails in the skies over Yokota.
Image credit: U.S. Air Force
A Yokota based U.S. C-130 was tailed by Chinese J-7 and J-10 fighters as it reached the airspace close to the border between China and Japan on Jan. 10, 2013.
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How many F-16 fighter jets can you spot in this impressive Elephant Walk photo? January 3, 2013
Posted by David Cenciotti in : Military Aviation , 5commentsOn Dec. 14, 2012, Kunsan airbase, Republic of Korea, hosted the latest of a series of Elephant Walk exercise involving F-16 Fighting Falcons from the 35th and 80th Fighter Squadrons of the 8th Fighter Wing; the 4th Fighter Squadron of the 388th Expeditionary Fighter Wing at Hill Air Force Base, Utah; and the 38th Fighter Group of the ROK Air Force.
During Elephant Walk exercises military aircraft (usually fully armed) taxi in close formation or in sequence right before a minimum interval takeoff and, depending on the purpose of the training event they then either take off or taxi bak to the apron.
In April 2012, nearly 70 F-15E Strike Eagles took part to one of the largest Elephant Walk to date at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C.
Last year’s exercise at Kunsan involved about 60 U.S. F-16s and South Korea’s ROKAF KF-16s taxiing down the runway of the South Korean airbase in a collective “show of force” whose primary aim is to test squadron’s readiness to war time operations (and secondary one is probably to impress Pyongyang….).
Since the number of aircraft that took part to the latest Elephant Walk at Kunsan has not been disclosed the question is: how many F-16s can you spot in these photos?
Image credit: U.S. Air Force
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It was not a useless "show of force": this video shows that the nearly 70 F-15Es took off after Elephant Walk April 18, 2012
Posted by David Cenciotti in : Military Aviation , 1 comment so farSome readers of this blog sent me comments and emails after I published the article about the “insane” line up at Seymour Johnson AFB on Apr. 16. Although almost everyone was impressed by the amount of fighters (with inert armament) on the runway, someone thought it was nothing more than a “useless show of force” since aircraft (in their opinion) did not take off.
Actually, the main difference between the Kunsan airbase “Elephant Walk” (made of 60 U.S. and South Korea’s F-16s) and the one performed by nearly 70 F-15Es at Seymour Johnson AFB, N.C., is that (number of aircraft aside), in the first case, the aircraft were armed with live ordnance hence did not take off (they just taxied down the runway); in the the second one, the 4th FW launched about 70 sorties to virtually destroy 1,000 mock targets across the state!
Here’s a video showing the Strike Eagles taxiing down the runway and then take off in sequence.
Indeed “Mustang Mayhem 2012″ (that’s the name of the 4th FW exercise) was a show of force. But, just like Operation Chimichanga, it was also a way to validate procedures used for mass launches.
Once again: “train as you fight, fight as you train”.
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- Photo: nearly 70 F-15E Strike Eagles in largest Elephant Walk to date. (theaviationist.com)
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Photo: nearly 70 F-15E Strike Eagles in largest Elephant Walk to date. April 16, 2012
Posted by David Cenciotti in : Military Aviation , 7commentsNearly 70 F-15E Strike Eagles of the 4th Fighter Wing performed an “Elephant Walk” during a Turkey Shoot training mission on Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, N.C., on Apr. 16, 2012: a contingent larger than a mid-size European air force and a “show of force” even more impressive than the one organised at Kunsan air base on Mar. 6 to send a message a Kim Jong-un in anticipation of the (failed) ballistic missile test.
The wing, with aircrews assigned to the 333rd, 334th, 335th, and 336th Fighter Squadrons, generated about 70 sorties to destroy more than 1,000 targets on bombing ranges across the state, to commemorate the 4th’s victory over the Luftwaffe on Apr. 16, 1945.
The term Turkey Shoot dates back to a mission that took place Jun. 19, 1944 during WWII: on this day U.S. Navy aircraft carrier downed 373 Japanese planes with the loss of only 23 American planes and, according to the 4th FW historian Dr. Roy Heidicker, a Navy pilot who participated in this mission was attributed as saying “It was like a turkey shoot”.
While supporting the war effort the 4th FG destroyed more enemy aircraft than any group or wing in Air Force history and “We [the 4th FW] proudly carry on the legacy of the 4th FG’s victories, as well as those of the wing’s Korean, Vietnam, Gulf War efforts and believe it is critically important that current and future generations of Airmen understand and celebrate our history, so they can visualize what they will be capable of doing in the future,” Col. Patrick Doherty, 4th FW commander said in the press release published on the SJ website.
Image credit: U.S. Air Force
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- Sixty F-16s taxiing at Kunsan air base in one of the greatest show of force ever: that’s a record-breaking Elephant Walk! (theaviationist.com)
- F-15E Strike Eagle that destroyed a flying Iraqi Mi-24 reaches 10,000 logged flying hours. Over Afghanistan. (theaviationist.com)
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Sixty F-16s taxiing at Kunsan air base in one of the greatest show of force ever: that's a record-breaking Elephant Walk! March 6, 2012
Posted by David Cenciotti in : Military Aviation , 15commentsIf I was able to correctly translate what the Chosun website says, the ones below show 60 U.S. F-16s and South Korea’s ROKAF KF-16s taxiing down the runway at Kunsan airbase during an exercise.
This kind of collective display of capability and teamwork, with military aircraft taxiing in close formation right before a minimum interval takeoff, in what is referred to as an “Elephant Walk”, is often performed at airbases all around the world to prepare squadrons for war time operations: what’s important is to test crews capability to quickly and safely prepare fully armed aircraft for a mass launch.
However, even if all the wartime operational procedures are conducted, the aircraft don’t take flight and it’s a pity because I would be curious to see how they would sequence departures to achieve proper separation considered the take-off weight and wake turbulence.
Anyway, an interesting show of force, that will surely impress Pyongyang.
Image credit: bemil.chosun.com
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- You Have Never Seen So Many F-16s Lined Up In Your Life (gizmodo.com)
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