Air International 2021-04
J.Schoofs - Return of the Desert Falcon
Antonov Airlines flew two flights from Kleine-Brogel AB to Al-Azraq FOB with Antonov An-124-100s. UR-82029 picked up equipment on September 9, 2020, while UR-82073 did the same on September 20
On its port side, FA-70 is loaded with an AIM-120B AMRAAM at wing station 1, a GBU-54 Laser JDAM 500lb bomb at station 3 and a 1,400l drop tank at station 4. The GBU-38 JDAM 500lb bomb is an alternative to the GBU-54
The pilots of Belgian Air Component F-16AMs FA-87, FA-107, FA-77, FA-117 and FA-133 start their engines on the Florennes flight line on September 29, 2020
The latest addition to the Belgian Air Component’s weapon inventory is the 250lb GBU-39/B INS/GPS guided SDB I. Four of these weapons can be carried on a single BRU-61/A carriage attached to a PIDS+ pylon at wing stations 3 and 7
With its high-res CCD TV camera and its third-generation FLIR, the Sniper XR advanced targeting pod is carried at air intake station 5B
F-16AM FA-87 returned to Florennes Air Base three hours after departure. It accompanied the four other aircraft on their ferry flight to Jordan as a spare aircraft in case of malfunctions
The Tracer AN/ALE-40 countermeasures dispensing systems (CMDS) in the F-16 fuselage or the station 3 and 7 pylons can be loaded with magazines containing 30 chaff cartridges (on the left) or 15 flare cartridges (right)
F-16AM FA-132 carries a PIDS+ pylon under wing station 3. The stations 3 and 7 pylons of all 54 F-16s of the Belgian Air Component are being modified to this standard
F-16AM FA-133 departed runway 26R at Florennes Air Base at 11:05 local time, arriving at Al-Azraq in Jordan 4hr 20min and two air-to-air refuelling sessions later