report by Koen Wullus – Sebastien Mousty & Thierry letellier
The Dassault/Dornier Alpha Jet is a light attack jet and advanced jet trainer co-manufactured by Dassault Aviation of France and Dornier Flugzeugwerke of Germany. It was developed specifically to perform the trainer and light attack missions. Both the French Air Force and German Air Force procured the Alpha Jet in large numbers, the former principally as a trainer aircraft and the latter choosing to use it as a light attack platform. The Transall C-160 is a military transport aircraft, produced as a joint venture between France and Germany. “Transall” is an abbreviation of the manufacturing consortium Transporter Allianz, comprising the companies of MBB, Aerospatiale and VFW-Fokker. The C-160 is powered by a pair of two Rolls-Royce Tyne turboprop engines, which drives a pair of four-bladed Dowty Rotol propellers. The now C-160NG (Nouvelle Generation, New Generation) called aircraft has a fifth fuel tank in the middle of the wing above the fuselage, a refueling probe while the left side cargo door was removed. Beside these changes, French Air Force introduced the C-160G Gabriel, a version for electronic reconnaissance, easily to distinguish because of the antennas fitted to the aircraft.
The NH90 is a medium sized, twin-engine, multi-role military helicopter. It was developed and is manufactured by NHIndustries, which collaborates with and is owned by Eurocopter and AgustaWestland. There are two main variants, the Tactical Transport Helicopter (TTH) for Army use and the naval NATO Frigate Helicopter (NFH) The NH90 was developed in response to NATO requirements for a battlefield helicopter that was also capable of being operated in the naval environment. The first prototype had its maiden flight in December 1995; the type began entering service in 2007. The French Army intended to buy 68 NH90 but budget cuts in the April 2013. The F-16 Solo Display Team of the Belgian Air Force is based at Florennes Air Force base for the first year of a new 2 or 3 season cycle. The demo might seem spectacular to the general public, but in fact contains standard F-16 manoeuvres which are flown during practise sessions as operational missions.The only difference between real life operations and this demo is that these manoeuvres are flown in a smooth pattern and at very low altitude. Belgian Air Force F-16 Solo Display has revealed the name of its new demo pilot; the senior captain Stefan Darte ‘Vador’ will fly the Viper for the next three years.
The Nord Noratlas was a dedicated military transport aircraft, developed and manufactured by French aircraft manufacturer Nord Aviation. The Nord 2501 is powered by the SNECMA-built Bristol Hercules 738/9 engines and was introduced to service by the Armée de l’Air on 6 December 1953. During its service life with the Armée de l’Air, the Noratlas was initially predominantly operated in it cargo-carrying role but eight Nord Gabriels, which were used in the electronic warfare role. They were perhaps the most useful as well as being the longest serving aircraft. During 1989, the final Gabriel was finally phased out of operations with the Armée de l’Air. In the middle of the ‘70s, in order to confront the increasing threat represented by the development of submarines and surface vessels, the French Navy decided to put the new generation Atlantics into service. Two ATL 2 prototypes were made on the base of two Atlantics of the first production batch (numbers 42 and 69). They were modified to carry the different parts of the new weapons system and equipped with improvements planned for the production standard. The ATL2 made its first flight at Toulouse-Blagnac on May 8, 1981.
Regular event’s visitors should remember the French Ramex Delta Display and its superb performance with Mirage 2000N aircraft in 2012 and 2015. But its members now share their experience with the new team, so the Couteau Delta can be considered as Ramex’s direct ancessor with an ambition to take up the Ramex Delta legacy. The Couteau Delta tactical display, one of the French Air Force’s numerous demonstration teams, flies two examples of the Dassault Mirage 2000D strike aircraft. First flown in 1978, the Mirage 2000 has been in service with the Armée de l’Air since the early 1980s, in fighter and conventional strike versions as well as the nuclear-capable 2000N, which forms part of the backbone of France’s Forces Aériennes Stratégiques (Strategic Air Forces), and the 2000D, which performs conventional attack missions. It remains a highly manoeuvrable and effective combat aircraft, and has seen extensive operational use with the French Air Force in its different variants
Rafale Solo Display was developed In 2009; Dassault and FAF decide to only show the Rafale for any air presentation. Demonstrating the flying qualities of the Dassault Rafale and the French Air Force’s fighter pilots, the Rafale Solo Display performs at roughly 15 air shows per year, including various large international air shows abroad such as RIAT, MAKS, Dubai, India, and Malaysia. The Rafale aircraft, generally a Rafale C single-seater, and solo display pilots and supporting team members come from the Rafale squadrons of Base aérienne 113 Saint-Dizier. ” We have to support -3g to +10,5g during the display.
The Patrouille Acrobatique de France (French Acrobatic Patrol), also known as the Patrouille de France or PAF, is the precision aerobatic demonstration team of the French Air Force. Originating in 1931, it is the world’s oldest and one of the most skilled demonstration teams. In 1952, Squadron Leader Delachenal, a pilot from the 3rd combat division stationed at the airbase at Reims-Champagne, formed a team of four F-84 aircraft. During the mid sixties; the Ministry of Defence decided to create an official “Patrouille de l’École de l’air”. Its team of six Fouga Magister aircraft stationed once again at Salon-de-Provence. They were replaced by seven Alpha Jet, with an additional plane added in 1982. Globalairpower would like to thank FOSA and the communication office of BA-105 Evreux for their outstanding help and support during this show.
