The afterburner and the smoke trails really highlight the high-AOA maneuvers performed by the Belgian Air Force F-16 Dream Viper.
Filmed on Sep. 11, 2022 by our friend Dafydd Phillips, the cool video in this post shows the “Dream Viper,” the special painted F-16AM belonging to the Belgian Air Force F-16 Solo Display Team, performing in the evening sky of Sunset Airshow 2022 at Sanicole.
“A drive out to Sanicole air show in Belgium bagged some very dramatic vapor patterns. The evening sunset show looked a hit or miss with torrential rain and a thunder storm around us. Several displays got cancelled but I managed that of Belgian Air Force Solo F-16 Falcon in its stunning livery,” Phillips says.
Noteworthy the afterburner and the smoke trails really highlight the high-AOA maneuvers performed by the Dream Viper.
As we have already explained the F-16’s design was created by Aviation Commander Steven “Vrieske” De Vries (who is also the Dream Viper demonstration pilot and the 19th F-16 demonstration pilot since 1979 for the Belgian Air Force) with the graphic contribution of Nico De Boeck. The fantastic painting is from the painters section of the Kleine-Brogel Air Base.
After a period of technical inspections and detailed painting, the aircraft with the tail number FA-87 and named “Dream Viper” had been unveiled on Thursday, Jun. 9, 2022 to colleagues, guests, media and aviation enthusiasts under the approving eye of the Air Component Commander, the Major General Aviator Thierry Dupont.
During the demo Vrieske shows the enormous power of the F-16, but where this demo differs greatly from others, is in the amount of manoeuvers with negative G-forces, something that fighter aircraft like the F-16 don’t usually perform in abundance. The highlight of the demo is in fact the Negative loop.
The International Sanicole Airshow is a household name in Belgium as one of the most awarded airshows in Europe. An airshow with a rich history since 1977.
Photo credit: Dafydd Phillips
