Flying the world's first CIVILIAN F-16
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- Äas pĆidĂĄn 15. 09. 2022
- Ride along for a flight in the first civilian F-16 with Hasard Lee as they fly in the aggressor role fighting against blue air.
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HASARD
F-35 fighter pilot, previously flew the F-16, including 82 combat missions. In 2016 selected as the Top Instructor Pilot of the Year for Shaw AFB. Mission commander and the only fighter pilot to fly two different types of jets into combat on the same day.
Approved and adheres to AFI 1-1, USAF Social Media Policy. Opinions in this video do not represent the United States Air Force, DOD, or any other organization - VÄda a technologie
That's Crazy, they actually got a hold of 2 of the F-16s that did that Iraq Nuke plant hit in the early 80's. Look up that mission, they flew fingertip for a long haul so close they showed on rader as one, and pretended to be a Jordanian Transport. Crazy mission, that Inspired both Iron Eagle 2, and Top Gun Maverick.
Operation Opera
That operation was legendary
One of the Israeli pilots participating in that operation was Ilan Ramon, who perished as a crew member of space shuttle Columbia on that fateful February morning in 2003.
Yea those Israel pilots are fearless
That raid is an amazing story.
29 privately owned F-16's
thats freaking amazing.
And more to come, they are buying most of the Netherlands their F16 fleet, already 3 of them delivered, 1 B and 2 C block 25s
In America you can own military hardware
Sure is. Wait til you hear a o the other company that got 48 FA-18s!
the military now prefers to "contract" out adversary air for training purposes as it is actually cheaper to do so than maintaining full-time squadron to do the same job.
My man literally running the Project Aces mercenary Air Force
These guys fly over my RV constantly. The first time I saw them I told my wife Israeli F-16s flew over. I immediately hopped on the internet and found out who was actually flying them. Amazing to have such historic aircraft in the air!
Didnât happen
Did your wife really care?
@@RokeJulianLockhart.s13ouq wives that love their husbands usually care regardless of if they themselves are interested in a subject. u should find btter people to be around lol
How did you just know that they are israeli when they are up in the air
Iâm just curious
Top Aces purchased the aircraft from the IDF. They still have the original paint schemes and plane numbers. And yes, my wife did think it was đ.
29 A/C= 10 flyers and 19 spare parts. Love what they are doing there. Great job on the maintenance team for keeping those things going without gov endless support and parts.
I'm sure they are charging the government appropriately for there services.
@@matthewmcnab322 think he means outside of their pay for services done, as in they don't get additional bonus outside of their contract.
The irony is that thereâs literally billions in F-parts sitting in machine shops shelves under as-needed contracts. Most will become offal because the brass and the senate cyclically waste the parts of which they already paid the majority of, to avoid relatively minor costs, screw over the machine shops, and pass the new 100X bill right back to Johnny Taxpayer. But hey, they made the fiscal budget work. Success
@@jessereeves3120 Iâm in the industry and know all too well! đ. Still cool they got some of these flying under civil air.
@@MacStrengthCo Absolutely still cool
These guys are legends for keeping the original paint job, those aircraft are pieces of history it would be a shame to have them altered physically.
Very much so.
Whistlin diesel has entered the chat
They will always be legendary even if they was pink with green polka dots! You might get razzed in the air from civilian atpâs, but youâre flying the only civilian owned 4th gen jets. Does this make top aces the largest private Air Force?
Iron Eagle paint job
lmao when the video started and I saw the paint job I was so confused cause it was 1:1 as Israeli F16s and I didn't think that we sold them to private/civilian contractors.
Huge props to all the guys on the ground being on point with all the assembly, disassembly, and maintenance keeping everyone up in the air.
always
They don't use props anymore. They use jet engines
@@darkgeneral0192 itâs a figure of speech. It doesnât literally mean props as propeller planes. Means huge, great job !
@@BigRed1200100 i know, i was joking
@@BigRed1200100 r/wooosh
My grandfather was responsible for the sale of these aircraft to Israel. He was VP of Contracting for General Dynamics, San Diego. His retirement photo is of an Israeli F-16 in formation with a Kfir, signed by his team. It's hanging on my wall at home now. Great video! You have a new sub!
Wow that's cool
kfirs are so cool too
i do belive this but i also dont
Cool story bro
Heâs one of the reason genocide is rampant out there
That shot at 0:31 with the drone fly through is absolutely amazing!
Thank you. i am that drone. I became sentient after flying through that F16 jet.
The experience was so awe inspiring it awoken my consciousness.
Good to meet you.
Please address me as...
...
...
Skynet
@@lillyanneserrelio2187 Skynet, you are one beautiful young lady! Best of luck to you!
Was it a drone, or was it a camera on a stick?
@@slickstretch6391 cinewhoop, AKA a tiny drone with enclosed propellers that is able to get into and around small spaces.
yeah it was lol thanks
I wish - and I can just never say it enough - to someday be able to fly as a passenger in an F-16. It's really just my number 1 dream/wish I always had and always will have. Amazing aircraft. The fact that there ARE privately owned F-16's makes that dream - potentially - come closer in reality. Some day I hope, some day...
You and me both
Yes
I hope you do, if you do take some videos for meâșïž
I thought there was a place in Pensacola u cld pay and go up for a ride??!!!!
@@philmahoney9527 thatâs an l39
Started to fly the Viper back in 81' - when I retired I had over 900+ hrs in the jet - looking at this video brings back a lot of memories - thanks for sharing!
When I buy one, I'll reach out to you to train me.
I bet you can do well in the dcs simulator with the right setup.
As a color blind man my dreams were to fly F-16s as a young boy until I found out color blindness is a no no as a pilot.
My grandfather was an engineer for Skunk Works and then Northrup during the 60's, 70's and 80's. The last project he worked on for 8 years was the B2 Spirit..
He has a complete catalog of aircraft he was a part of.
Thanks for your service and dedication to this wonderful country.
@@montanatony5838 Sorry about the color blindness - I know I was blessed to be able to fly fighters in the AF - you can be proud of your granddad for what he did - if it wasn't for folks like him I would never have had the opportunity to fly the best fighters in the world!
@@mathgasm8484 Math I'm old school - I will leave that DCS stuff to you younger folks like you who probably would "fly" rings around me đ
I actually worked most of these engines, if not all. When he said that they are a bit different itâs because of modifications that were done due to compressor stalls. I was the so-called expert for putting safety wires on the bottom bolts of the fan flange just above the gearbox- absolutely no room to maneuver! The closeups really bring back the memories. đ
same here
my brother worked on these engines back when he was in the Israeli Air Force, he also used to go straight into the intake and talked about how difficult it was to do anything there, my parents say that the smell of jet fuel is nostalgic from them since he would always come back home soaked in it hahah, I still have his patches from there, one from P&W themselves, and fun fact, I now serve in the base that these jets were sold from, you can still see some f-16 carcasses sitting in their flight lines waiting to be bought by other foreign comapnies/nations
I heard about this, wow. Kudos.
Imagine having the funds as a private company to buy 20+ F-16s. DEEP pockets in Aviation
I probably refueled one of those jets way back in the early 80's. The ferry pilot told me that it was going to Isreal; this was before the Iraqi nuclear plant raid. I was stationed at Offutt AFB in Nebraska from 1980-1983.
Nice to know this, I was served in 140 F16A/B squadron between 1992-95. đ
Salute you sir.
@@RanTausi Salute you sir, Falcon member.
@@t_sixtyfivex_wing8787 Many thanks to you !
I believe the 2-seat F-16 filmed here was actually used in the rescue of Col. Ted Masters, USAF (Ret) in 1986.
i understood that reference
Iron eagle!
Savage comment!
Filmed against Bilya... where's chappie when you need him?
How do you not yell out for Chappy while in the jet?
Man, there's just something about a clean F-16 that's not in Thunderbird livery ... also, the A model feels so beautifully raw and basic. Makes me almost wanna call it the "Fighting Falcon" again. ;-) Oh, and Hasard, you're just an absolute badass. The content you bring to us is top notch. I mean: casual in-flight interviews while on a training mission!? Come on!! Thank you for your service and for the invaluable insights into military aviation.
They say that if it looks right it is right, and the f16 absolutely nails it
I can't help but think about the forces on the 16 bolts that hold on each wing. The enginering to make that work at the forces these planes experence is insane.
Psh 16 bolts, I was so unsettled when I heard that.
If you think thatâs insane then check this out. The SR-71 Blackbirdâs engines are each held in place by a single bolt. Thatâs right the engines of the fastest aircraft in history are held in place by an i-bolt.
16 bolts on each wing, while the engine hangs on a roller skate and 2 pins, with a link to keep it centered. Amazing engineering that kept me gainfully employed for 37 years and over 4000 airplanes.
This was absolutely fascinating. I figured it was only a matter of time before civilian contractors would have F-16s (a logical choice). Nice to see it finally happening! How I miss flying that jet...
Nice that knock it off in Top Gun is real lingo
@@SupaMan2122 Sure is.
Thank you for your service! I wish to fly in the Air Force someday. Next year I will apply to the academy.
@@Skychickenpilot good luck
@@Skychickenpilot keep your nose clean, respect your enlisted members, dont be a douche, and make em tell you no!
It got me so emotional as an Iranian. We could be close allies with Israel and US, but that devastating damn revolution brought our country to pure hell until now.
Thanks Hasard for sharing us the best moments we can ever imagine of flight
And whos fault is it for the conditions that caused the revolution?
As an American, we'd love to be allies with a modern, peaceful Iran. Hope you guys eventually throw the crazies out, and get to live freely.
These comments didn't age wellđ
I thought the President said Americans can't buy machine guns? Turns out we can buy stuff way better than machine guns.
I fly the F16C in DCS World. Of all the aircraft available, this is my fave by far. The flexibility, the performance, everything about it is so well thought out and well executed. I can go from hitting an enemy tank with a Maverick to blowing a fighter out of the sky with a Sidewinder. It does both equally well. This guy is living my dream
I grew up next to Williams AFB, worked there for a few years in HS...I worked for HRL near the flight line. I later became a private pilot but not because of the base but because my mother was a private pilot. I don't even recognise it now...but I'm glad I was a part of it.
hey me too! It was called Williams-gateway by the time I came around though! That place really exploded from farmland into suburbia after we moved away in 05 or so...
@@MobiusOne6 it's much worse now sorry to say... we had a small farm and had to leave when it became so "city"...
Fantastic stuff here. The history, dedication and passion for all these men is legendary. And kudos the the maintainers who literally keep em flying.
After that guy who procured a harrier, this tops it. Plus 29 units!? That's freaking amazing and insanely costly.
I saw the civilian Harrier at an airshow (Oceana NAS I think), he had a fully functional jet and I saw it fly. I heard that he p!ssed the RAF off something awful. One of the agreements to buy it was that he wasn't supposed to rebuild it and certainly not fly it.
Doing something like this has to be great for a lot of guys (and gals) that worked on of flew F-16's in the military and can get a civilian job doing the same thing. This is a great way to keep people working and doing something they love. I live in AZ and have actually flown a Cessna to Gateway Field (where this was filmed) and now I can't wait to do it again. I would LOVE an opportunity to experience something like this.
F-16 is still the most beautiful fighter since the P-51 Mustang.
I'm guessing that the flight line manager worked on 16s in the air force and now he's working on them in civy street. Awesome job, he must be loving it.
That was very cool! Thank you for sharing this experience!
These F-16s have so much history. Some have taken down Syrian Migs, Some took part in the attack on the Iraqi nuclear reactor site and some are movie stars from Iron Eagle...
29 privately owned F16s. That is the coolest thing! I am from the Netherlands. And though we operate modern F16's where as TopAces only has a a few modernized jets. The Netherlands Airforce operates 40 F16s. TopAces has only 11 fewer jets than our airforce does. That is amazing!
Youâre kind a glossing over the 28 F-35s, with more to be delivered.
My god I had this dream as a kid. I'm glad someone is actually able to make it happen. Well done and thanks for sharing it.
Come a long way from the F-5 Aggressors I flew against in the 80âs. Great video. Thanks for giving me a look back at my old base of Williams AFB. HUD, 22nd TFS, Bitburg AB, Germany, The Last of the Red Hot Fighter Squadrons.
Saw 4 of these guys get off loaded from an An-124 at gateway a year ago. love seeing them, didn't know how unique Top Aces was!!!
Thanks for this video. I learned so much today. Being a drone pilot, I also appreciated the cinewhoop footage captured around the aircraft in the hangar!
You donât have to say youâre a drone pilot, it says it in your name.
Drone pilots want everyone to know theyâre a drone pilot because they pilot drones.
Gayest title out there.
@@lucaschudleigh7193 đ€Ł
Kudos to you guys for keeping the paint.
These are obviously built with incredible quality to fly like new 40 years later, amazing!
F-16 flew in Operation Opera 42 years ago and is still flying strong! These pilots were in grad school or not born at all in 81. I've flown right seat on Aluminum Overcast the EAA's B-17 for a couple years with Ken W of Belvidere, IL and I think of stuff like this as I was born in 1971 flying airplanes that flew during WWII
Thatâs so gnarly, the F16 is probably the most modern fighter jet owned by a civilian thatâs a real dream
People have owned harriers
One mig 29 in the states to
This was awesome to watch. Had a smile on my face all the way through
These jets are historically awesome. Hope they stay around for years to come.
Thank you so much to give us insights to these operations! It was so interesting to watch!
Greetings out of switzerland
Awesome video! Those FPV shots in the hangar did as much as the cockpit footage to tell the story, if not more.
Wow, it is crazy to think that some of those jets have been involved in very serious events.
It's amazing how fantastic the F-16 is.
When I was in college in the early eighties
, I worked near Carswell Air Force Base and General Dynamics so every Saturday 20 B-52's would take off from Carswell and f-16s were always in the area after production they would fly the f-16s out six at a time
Oh man. This is giving me all the feels. Itâs been 9 years since Iâve heard radio calls with all the static like that. Wow! Brings me right back.
That drone work! Loved seeing this type of stuff. Production value is awesomeâŠnice job. Keep these coming!
Yeah nice cinewoop piloting, I was waiting for it to go "outside" in an active airport... had my email to the FAA ready. (teasing) Probably a good call to cut it at the end there. ;)
@@rhadiem why even joke about that? FAA are already trying to kill off the hobby as it is.
Seems like a a pretty awesome gig to have. Was a kid when the first top gun movie came out and dreamed of being a fighter pilot. Life took a different path but itâs amazing to be able to live vicariously through CZcams videos like this. Thanks for providing this kind of content.
Iâd totally love to know if these jets were involved with the filming of the first two Iron Eagle movies! So sick!!!
This was utterly fascinating, and really exciting to see. Thank you for it !
All those jets and pilots came thru Hill AFB in 79-81. 388TFW 421st TFS BLACK WIDOWS! 16thTTFS and 34th TTFS were the training squadrons, later on Luke AFB got more of the training duties. Hill AFB was the Depot Base. I was there when we had F-4's still on the tarmac and we transitioned to F-16's. 4th and 421st were the first operational combat ready squadrons in the USAF. F-16 Falcon Fixers!
Former "B" shop'r here. Was at Hillfield from '80 to '83. Always enjoy seeing her fly.
Thank you for the great content and bringing us along on your journey, I'm envious of the job you do, it was the path I wanted to pursue in the Canadian air force, but the goal I never achieved. Keep up the great content, many of us appreciate being able to ride along.
I live minutes away from this airport and had no idea they did this out there! I see F-18's, C-130's, even V-22's but didn't know there was a company doing this out of PHX/Mesa Gateway! So freakin cool!
Sounds like their fleet has an amazing history!
Wow!! The history in that small fleet of vipers!! Definitely one of the coolest videos you've ever done! More please!!!
Drone camera footage on point.
Best freaking JOB ever! How much fun is that!. Lots of responsibility, goodtimes, and helping your Nation. Well done!
Happy to see those birds still flying.
Im honestly amazed at the moment, as someone who is active USAF and works on the E3 I had no idea there was a private company doing red air. Cant help but wonder if I've run into these guys in the past during training sorties.
Top Aces was started by a bunch of retired RCAF jockeys. They also currently provide red air for the RCAF with Alpha Jets and red air for the German airforce with A4N Skyhawks
My father was the Air Force chief systems engineer on the F-16 at Wright-Patterson AFB when the Falcon (Viper) came to life. I'll have to make sure he sees this video. He's 90 now but still sharp as a tack!
Wow you got some legendary airframes there. Not only Mig Killers but also 2 from the raid!
All this military jargon his so good to hear. I miss it sometimes.
Thanks for bringing this experience to us! This is motivating to keep pushing hard to become a fighter pilot myself one day! Thank you!
This is definitely going into my bucket list!!! Way to go!!!!!!
It's Allright bro.... I'm in Taiwan right now la. ^_^. Keep on the great videos. You could also try on the Skywalk on a propeller plane too ^ ^
This was fricken awesome to watch. Great video, mix of action and interview. Love it.
I would love to take a tour of that facility, keeping our warfighters sharp. Keep working on your craft guys!
When you take DCS too serious...on a 'serious' note: this is AWESOME!
Here in israel we have a fleet of f16 that are grounded because there is no use to them, and its sad to see them fade and rust and decay in storage and this video made me soo happy cuz i can see that couple of them are not in the boneyard anymore and found some useđ
Sell them
I hear ukraine might be in the market for some F-16's fairly soon...
Can you hold one for me? I'm coming to pick it up.
@@warhorse03826 Ukraine needs to kick the corrupt CIA off their land first before improving their situation.
in Cuba same happens with MiG29k
Damn imagine owning two combat aces! Keep those babies safe.
and..... I'm subscribed now. F-16 has been my favorite aircraft since I was a kid. I had a few models and they all got played with till they fell apart. Keep the F-16 content coming!
@hasardlee you have an impersonator trying to scam people.
Awesome video, Hasard! Having lived in đźđ± while these were in service, its cool to see them again, in the đșđž. If these planes could talk... what a journey.
This is so cool! I was watching a f16 on Flightradar24 from Mesa Gateway and was like why is there a f16 flying over here with a transponder on? Cool to see these and hopefully will fly over my house đ
Dream job!
The drone shots at the end of the aircraft in hanger was cool, great flying to the drone flyer
Maybe some day they will open ride alongs to the public. That would be the dream!
Somewhere, Doug Masters is getting nostalgic.
Bet that felt funny sitting in a civilian F-16. I know he said they upgraded a lot of the systems, but did it still seem like an older fighter inside?
I'd love to see a video about scrambling. How does that process work and how quickly can you actually get up in the air when surprised?
amazing content hasard! Thx for this video and thanks to top aces!
I have a friend who works at Tactical Air, and works on the F-5ATs they have.
I don't know if it's possible to do so without joining the military, but I want to work for ATAC or Draken International as a maintainer.
I sure as hell would enjoy working on Kfirs and Skyhawks
I'm sure you could with airframe specific experience and an A&P ticket.
I worked for ATAC for several years. No A&P needed. I worked on their Hawker Hunters. I did have 26 years experience on Vipers though.
I always love the adversary liveries.
@Gregory Franklin Mb, thank you for the correction đ, my opinions still stands the paints are cool.
Drone footage in the hanger looks great.
FINALLY! Been wanting an F-16 for yard work for ages.
Interesting to see A and B models flying with the old instrument panels that don't have MFDs in them. I'd expect that it'd be important to upgrade them to have at least one MFD for situational awareness reasons. Check with Lockheed-Martin, they may have more advanced systems that are being pulled out of F-16s that are going to be going through the F-16V upgrade process.
I also was like, that looks like an A model. Thats why they are being sold. Israel probably keeps their C models and is only replacing the A models by the F35. Any info on that?
@@johnconnor7022 The modified jets DO have an MFD. The old radar/EO display (between the knees) is removed and replaced with an MFD. The MFD is used to manage the more modern systems on the jet like the new radar, and a helmet-mounted display..... though the HMD is not worn on this flight (not sure this is actually one of the modified jets). They briefly talk about the new integrated avionics at about 7:45.
Such times we live in. Outstanding.
That's pretty badass! I've always loved the F16.
No doubt my dad help build those F-16's. My dad worked for General Dynamics at the main assembly plaint in the 70's and into the 80's then in '83 GD transferred him to Edwards AFB doing r&d for avionic systems for future F-16 models, my dad retired in 2006.
We still buildin' them!
Well, we work on them at Plant 4 but Greenville is building the new ones right now! The V or, block 70, is the "new and improved". The tech in the F-16 seems so rudimentary compared to the F-35. It's amazing how good the F-16 still is til this day.
Curious what did he merge with in the fight? Amazing how these aircraft from the 70âs -80âs are maintained and still withstand all the stress of combat maneuvers! Great job.
I might be wrong but I think he said they were training with US F-35s.
Fantastic video! Great editing and super informative!
This F-16's are amazing piece of history
The Antanov that shipped those F16s over is gone now đ„
Thank you for this video! I would absolutely love to work for Top Aces, but issues at home prevent that. I actually work at the "boneyard" at DM in Tucson. OLD F-16s are constantly arriving here for retirement, but going straight to the QF side. We can get parts at, almost, the flick of a finger. Makes me curious on how Top Aces will keep these flying. We actually have a bunch of F-16s ready for the QF conversion, just sitting around collecting dust.
Love the FPV Drone Footage of the hangar!
Mesa Gateway Airport, The former Williams Air Force Base. I spent several years there as a T-38A crew chief for pilot training.
You used the giant Antonov? It's crazy to think it's gone now.
Those (300) Israeli F-16s have a history. F-16s A and B were first had been sold to the Imperial Iranian Air Force( Iran was allied of the U.S, but after revolution79 in Iran, the new regime's anti-U.S policy cancelled them all unilaterally. Later they were sent to Israel and operated there until their retirement.
Hey I see my little hometown on the map! I remember seeing and hearing jets flying over and seeing flares every now and again.
EPIC drone work in this video.
RIP the An225, you were very respected.
While I share the sentiment, the Antonov in this video was an An-124.
@@ImpendingJoker oh thought it was the 225 looked similar.
Awesome that theyâre privately owned F16s! Wondering if Israel might have anymore for sale?
P.S. I know the FAA has balked at civilianâs owning supersonic aircraft in the past. I remember watching an AARP video, of all things, about an older retiree gentleman who got geared up and approved to fly a Harrier jump jet that was being restored to fly in airshows. A big part of that video was about how the FAA was all over every aspect of how the Harrier was operated and making sure that every rule and specification was followed to a tee.
The fun police trying to bog down people trying to fly? Color me surprised...
I think they sold them 4 more jets earlier this year
I literally live like RIGHT near luke and man I love seeing and hearing the planes over my head on the 303 everyday!
so cool that this ended up out there for us to witness. i read about this, im a huge jet nerd, and thought it was super cool that maybe by the time i'm retired if i play my cards right i could possibly fly one someday.
My daughter has been in the Airforce for just about a year now. Shes currently stationed in Kadena Japan doing repair work on the jet engines for the F16s and F15s. I just had to share this video with her as I thought shed get a kick out of it.
Also Id like to say thank you for your service.