Four Hellenic Air Force Vipers made a fuel stop in Italy on their way to Poznan, Poland.
NATO Tiger Meet is an annual exercise that gathers squadrons sporting Tiger (or feline) emblems. The Exercise’s distinctive feature is that the planes that attend it usually get brand new, flamboyant tiger color schemes.
On May 12, 2018, four HAF F-16s belonging to the 335 Squadron from Araxos, wearing Tiger markings, visited Aviano Air Base, in northeastern Italy, on their way to NATO Tiger Meet 2018 in Poland.
The F-16C Block 52+ “003” about to land on May 12.
The F-16C Block 52+ “007”. Note: the pilot wears a Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing Sight helmet.
In this post you can find the photographs (taken by our contributor Claudio Tramontin) of the four aircraft, three F-16Cs (serialled 003, 007, 017) and one F-16D (023), about to land on runway 05 at Aviano: whilst the single seaters featured a quite simple tiger stripe on the upper side of the tail, the two-seater sported a special tiger livery that covered the CFTs (Conformal Fuel Tanks) as well as the external fuel tanks with the text Akir 1941 – Araxos 2018. In fact, the 335 Sqn is the oldest HAF squadron: it was established at Akir (RAF Aqir, Palestine, currently Tel Nof airbase, Israel), in 1941.
More specials will attend NTM2018 that we will cover in the next couple of weeks.
The F-16C “017” this pilot also wears a JHMCS helmet. All images: Claudio Tramontin.
The TF-2000A’s special livery was prepared to celebrate the 20th Gruppo’s 100th anniversary.
The Italian Air Force celebrated the 100th anniversary of four of its squadrons (20th, 21st, 22nd and 23rd Gruppo) at Istrana airbase, in northeastern Italy, on May 11, 2018.
The 20th Gruppo, the Typhoon OCU (Operational Conversion Unit), based at Grosseto and in charge of the training of all the Italian pilots destined to the Eurofighter fleet, presented a special colored two-seat Typhoon: designed by Silvano Mainini and Andrea Scomparin (who are also behind many other famous special colors including two of those presented last year) the TF-2000A MM55168/4-37″ sports the squadron’s black and yellow Lion on a blue background on the right hand side of the tail, the black cat chasing three green mice on a white background (typical of the 51° Stormo) on the left hand side. The aircraft ‘s upper side of the fuselage, the air brake and the canards are painted as well.
The Typhoon MM55168/4-37 left hand side. (Image: Alfonso Mino).
This two-seat Typhoon represents the very first Italian Typhoon trainer painted with a special color scheme since the type was introduced back in 2004.
The images of the aircraft in this post were taken by photographer Alfonso Mino.
This Nellis-Based F-15A Was Repainted in Time for Next Week’s Aviation Nation 2017 Airshow.
Public affairs and local Las Vegas news outlets have released a new video of an F-15A Eagle with a special set of markings honoring the victims of the largest mass shooting in U.S. history in nearby Las Vegas, Nevada on October 1, 2017. The tragic shooting claimed 58 lives.
The F-15A has what appears to be applique markings on the left side of the fuselage under the wing that reads “Vegas STRONG” in white against the air force grey tactical color. The markings under the right-side wing read “U.S. AIR FORCE”
The saying is an adaptation of a popular U.S. tagline that has been used in a U.S. Army (not Air Force) recruiting campaign called “ARMY STRONG” since 2006. The “Army Strong” tagline was originally developed by an advertising agency named McCann Worldgroup. It has since become a household phrase. The phrase was also adapted as “BOSTON STRONG” following the Boston Marathon bombing in April, 2013.
The left tail of the newly repainted F-15 wears an interpretation of the highly recognized Las Vegas sign memorializing the tragedy. It reads, “We Are VEGAS STRONG, October 1, 2017”.
The left hand side of the “Vegas Strong” special colored F-15.
The right-side tail wears a stylized graphic of the Air Force Memorial in Washington, D.C.
The right-side tail of the F-15C AF76-057
The F-15A will be on static display at the 2017 Aviation Nation Airshow at Nellis AFB on November 11 and 12. The Aviation Nation Airshow, one of the most unique airshows in the world showcasing the entire USAF arsenal in a setting that permits unparalleled aerial and static displays, will feature the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds flight demonstration team, a tactical air combat display, numerous static displays of aircraft, some of which can only be seen at Nellis AFB, and a Saturday flyover the B-2 Spirit stealth bomber from Whiteman AFB, Missouri.
TheAviationist.com will provide full coverage of Aviation Nation 2017 on this website.
A previous version of this article mistakenly reported the involved aircraft is an F-15C wheareas it is an F-15A.
Look at this Beautiful 70th Anniversary USAF F-16 from the Texas Air National Guard.
Special paint schemes on combat aircraft are common enough now that it is impossible to report on them all, but this beautiful F-16C (Block 30) from the 149th Fighter Wing of the Texas Air National Guard stands out for a few reasons.
This single seat F-16C, flown by USAF Colonel Timothy J. Madden, Commanding Officer of the 149th Fighter Wing, Texas Air National Guard, wears a new paint scheme for the upcoming 70th anniversary of the U.S. Air Force later this year on Sept. 18. The aircraft was first photographed at the U.S. Air National Guard Aircraft Paint Facility in Sioux City, Iowa on May 26, 2017.
Nose of the new special color.
The tail of the 149th FW “special”
The aircraft is painted to mimic the livery of a Republic P-47D Thunderbolt from 1944. Interestingly, this is well before the U.S. Air Force was started and U.S. combat aircraft flew under the Army Air Corps, then a part of the U.S. Army.
The 149th Fighter Wing holds a number of significant firsts in Air Force history including the first unit to perform midair refueling during a combat mission and the first Air National Guard unit to shoot down a MiG in combat. Both of these firsts happened during the Korean conflict.
The original P-47D’s that provided inspiration for the new heritage markings on the 149th FW F-16C. (Photo: US Army)
As with the P-47D Thunderbolt from 1944 it is patterned after, not only does this F-16C wear the bright yellow markings but also the striking black and white “invasion stripes” painted on all allied aircraft in the days just prior to the D-Day invasion of Europe on June 6, 1944. The black and white invasion stripes were a way for gunners both in the air and on the ground to avoid friendly fire incidents. In 2015 the Royal Air Force painted invasion stripes on a Typhoon based at RAF Coningsby to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings.
The special livery on this F-16C is likely to become popular with aviation photographers since it is highly visible in most lighting conditions, even overcast, and the distinctive mix of invasion stripes and yellow squadron regalia can be seen from any angle. No matter which flight attitude the aircraft is in, it remains highly recognizable.
This is not the first time a USAF F-16 has worn invasion stripes to commemorate a P-47 unit from WWII. Back in 2014, F-16 aircraft number 84-1264 was given an orange tail and invasion stripe heritage paint scheme to honor the 358th Fighter Group of WWII. The F-16’s modern unit, the 122nd Fighter Wing, traces its back to this unit in WWII. The original 358th FG flew P-47s and operated in Europe before and after D-Day.
GRISSOM AIR RESERVE BASE, Ind., — A specially painted F-16 from the 122nd Fighter Wing from the Indiana Air National Guard based out of Fort Wayne, Ind., pulls away from the boom following an aerial refueling with a Grissom KC-135R Stratotanker. The F-16 is designated as a ‘Heritage Bird’ and is painted to pay homage to the 122nd FW’s history. (U.S. Air Force photo/Tech. Sgt. Doug Hays)
While no official word has been seen about airshow appearances by this aircraft, it will hopefully be seen at airshows throughout the summer in Texas and around the region in celebration of the 70th anniversary of the U.S. Air Force.
An excellent clip shows the Special Color Tornado IDS rolled out last year by the Italian Air Force.
On Oct. 27, 2016 the RSV (Reparto Sperimentale Volo), the Italian Air Force Test Wing responsible for the development, testing and validation of all the flying “hardware” (aircraft, sensors, weapons, etc.) based at Pratica di Mare, near Rome, rolled out a Tornado IDS sporting a special color scheme.
The new livery applied to the “Tonka” serialled CSX 7041, celebrates the 60th anniversary of the 311° Gruppo (Squadron) the unit responsible of the aerial displays of all the ItAF aircraft at the airshows in Italy and abroad and one of the world’s most advanced aerospace testing and experimental centers.
The paint job was designed and applied by Drudi Performance, the company founded by Aldo Drudi, who designs helmets and leathers for Valentino Rossi and many other racers.
The aircraft, officially presented on Oct. 27, 2016 during a ceremony held at Pratica di Mare airbase, has since then become quite famous: a couple of scale models (including a die-cast version and the brand new 1/48 kit) have been produced by the Italian manufacturer of models Italeri.
The following video shows the making, roll-out and flying of the “311° Gruppo-special.”
