The Solo Display Team is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Netherlands Air Force and consists of three elements. The F-16 Solo Display Team uses the fighter jet F-16, the PC-7 Solo Display Team flies the low-wing tandem-seat training aircraft Pilatus PC-7 and the Apache Solo Display Team uses the helicopter AH-64 Apache.
The Solo Display Team is the aerobatics display team of the Royal Netherlands Air Force and consists of three elements. The F-16 Solo Display Team uses the fighter jet F-16, the PC-7 Solo Display Team flies the low-wing tandem-seat training aircraft Pilatus PC-7 and the Apache Solo Display Team uses the helicopter AH-64 Apache.
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F-16 Solo Display Team[edit]
The F-16 Solo Display Team is currently based at Volkel Air Base in the Dutch province of North Brabant and consists of the pilot, two instructors and seven ground crew. The members of the team are always seconded from a squadron of the Royal Netherlands Air Force. The 2013 pilot, Kapitein (Flight Lieutenant) Stefan "Hitch" Hutten, flies with 312 Squadron.[1] All members are operational military personnel and, apart from their tasks with the demo team, they perform normal operational duties.
The Dutch F16 demo team moves to another squadron and/or base every two years, season 2007-2009 being the exception. From 2005 until 2009 the demo team was based at Volkel Air Base. In 2010 the team consisted of members of the operational squadrons from Leeuwarden Air Base. They took over the orange F-16, J-015. According to schedule, the team returned to Volkel Air Base early in 2012.[2]
The team was established in September 1979 with the first demonstration of an RNLAF F-16 during an air show at Twente Air Base (now Enschede Airport Twente). The team has since been seen at air shows in European countries and, in 2006, at Edwards Air Force Base in the United States, winning the prize for the best display team in the jet category at the air show held at Reims – Champagne Air Base in 2009.[3]
The team has no single colour scheme. The present orange colour scheme was unveiled in April 2009.[4]
The team have had no accidents.
Pilots[edit]
The following pilots have flown the F-16 for the Solo Display Team.[5][6]
| Year | Name | Based at | Aircraft |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1979 | Flt Lt (Kapitein) Willem "Snake" Sneek | Leeuwarden | J-213 |
| 1980–1983 | Flt Lt Gert "Barney" Booij | Leeuwarden | J-252 |
| 1983–1985 | Flt Lt Hans "Midas" Weber | Leeuwarden | J-252 |
| 1986 | Sqn Ldr (Majoor) Gert "Barney" Booij | Volkel | J-616 |
| 1987–1988 | Flt Lt Henri "Basco" Schevers | Volkel | J-864 |
| 1989–1990 | Fg Off (Eerste-Luitenant) Maarten "Puke" Pladet | Twenthe | J-058 and J-060 |
| 1991–1992 | Flt Lt Reindert "Dagger" Zwaart | Leeuwarden | J-226 and J-231 (1991), J-213 (1992) |
| 1993 | Flt Lt Gerhard "Garlic" Went | Volkel | J-193 and J-624 |
| 1994 | Flt Lt Peter "Fingers" Jansen | Twenthe | J-251 and J-253 |
| 1995–1996 | Flt Lt Ries "Champ" Kamperman | Volkel | J-001, J-003 and J-511 (stickers), J-508 (paint) |
| 1997–1998 | Flt Lt Patrick "Spout" Tuit | Leeuwarden | J-364 (1997), J-868, J-364 (1998), J-236 (85 years RNLAF) |
| 1999–2000 | Flt Lt Robert-Jan "Woods" Bosch. | Twenthe | J-509, J-511, J-138 and J-144 |
| 2001–2002 | Flt Lt Richard "Tomba" Buijs | Volkel | J-016 |
| 2003–2004 | Flt Lt Christian "Louis" van Gestel | Leeuwarden | J-016 (main), J-063 (spare) |
| 2005–2006 | Flt Lt Gert-Jan "Goofy" Vooren | Volkel | J-055 |
| 2007–2009 | Flt Lt Ralph "Sheik" Aarts | Volkel | J-055 (2007-2008), J-015 (2009) |
| 2010 - 2011 | Flt Lt Tobias "Hitec" Schutte | Leeuwarden | J-015 |
| 2012 - 2013 | Flt Lt Stefan "Stitch" Hutten | Volkel | J-015 |
PC-7 Solo Display Team[edit]
The PC-7 Solo Display Team is based at Woensdrecht Air Base in the Dutch province of North Brabant. It flies one of the thirteen single engine turbo trainer Pilatus PC-7 of the Royal Netherlands Air Force. The team consists of the pilot, two instructors and the ground crew. The PC-7 Solo Display Team has two aircraft at its disposal, unlike the F-16 Solo Display Team, one operational, the other functions as backup.
The team was established in 1995 and performs at air shows in Europe. The colour scheme used for the aircraft is predominantly black, with a single yellow line along the fuselage and the tail. The yellow line is repeated on the underside and the top of the wings.
The team have had no accidents.
The two Solo Display Teams sometimes perform together.
Currently (2008–2013) there is no PC-7 solo display active. All PC-7s and instructors are needed for training at the Elementary Flight School EMVO (Elementaire Militaire Vlieger Opleiding).
Apache Solo Display Team[edit]
The Apache Solo Display Team is based at Gilze-Rijen Air Base in the Dutch province of North Brabant and uses the four-blade, twin-engine attack helicopter AH-64D Apache. The team was formed in 2002 as a one-off to take part in the air show that was held that year at its airbase.[7] However, the team kept performing at airshows in the following years and, in July 2005, won the "Sir Douglas Bader Trophy" at the Royal International Air Tattoo which took place at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire, United Kingdom,[8] having performed the previous month at the air show held at their home base.
The Apache Solo Display Team was inactive between 2005 and 2009 due to operational deployments but began to carry out demo flights again in 2010, the first of which took place at RAF Fairford during the Royal International Tattoo in July.[9]
The current pilots are Sqn Ldr Roland Wally Blankenspoor and Flt Lt Harm Kaas Cazemier, supported by a crew composed of member from 299 Squadron and 301 Squadron.[10]
References[edit]
- ^ "Team Members - Display Pilot" (in Dutch). Royal Netherlands Air Force. Retrieved 11 January 2012.
- ^ "F-16 Demo Team: The Team". Royal Netherlands Air Force. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
- ^ "F-16 Solo Display Team steelt de show in Reims" (in Dutch). Ministerie van Defensie. 30 June 2009. Retrieved 20 March 2010.
- ^ "Luchtmacht onthult oranje showmodel F-16". nu.nl (in Dutch). 2 April 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2009.
- ^ "F-16 Demo Team: History". Royal Netherlands Air Force. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
- ^ "F-16 Demo Team: The Team". Royal Netherlands Air Force. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
- ^ "Apache demonstratieteam primeur op vliegbasis Gilze-Rijen" (in Dutch). Ministerie van Defensie. 5 July 2002. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
- ^ "Gilze-Rijen beste militair demonstratieteam" (in Dutch). Omroep Brabant. 20 July 2005. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
- ^ "Apache Solo Display Team: News" (in Dutch). Royal Netherlands Air Force. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
- ^ "Apache Solo Display Team: The Team". Royal Netherlands Air Force. Retrieved 9 April 2013.
External links[edit]
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Solo Display Team |
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