My Belgian Air Force career

a photo tour narrated by Philip Avonds

I have also compiled a few pilot stories from my career. These can be read here.

Pilot training

Initial military training

18 October 1976: my first day in the Air Force

I'm the fifth from the left...

uniform of the early days: blue battle dress

SF-260 Marchetti at the elementary flying school

Elementary Pilot Training on Siai Marchetti SF-260

1977-1978

125 flying hours / first solo flight: May 5th, 1977 with ST-09

celebrating first solo on SF-260

"on the beach of Goetsenhoven, there we find as prom the best, 76B..."

posing at home in flying suit

Fouga Magister at the advanced training school

Advanced Pilot Training on Fouga Magister CM-170 in 1978

also later 1982-1984 and 2003

150 flying hours / first solo flight: February 28th, 1978 with MT-16

(anecdotic note: I made 4 flights with tailnumber MT-48, the subject of my scale Fouga Magister model)

Lockheed T-33 at the transition flying school

Graduation on Lockheed T-33A

1978-1979

90 flying hours / first solo flight: September 19th, 1978 with FT-36

I received my Air Force pilot wings on March 1st, 1979.

76B promotion at wings parade March 1st, 1979. This was also the day of the official presentation of the Belgian Air Force Alpha Jet (seen at the back on top photo and on next photo)

official presentation of the Alpha Jet in Belgium (1979)

extracts from VOX magazine of March 15th, 1979 (in Dutch)

44 years later and the hangar of our wings parade can still be found on the Brustem airfield (near Sint-Truiden)

Operational pilot career

Flying fast jets: my little boys' dream!

After pilot training, I was very happy to be assigned to Kleine Brogel to start my operational pilot career on the Lockheed F-104G Starfighter.

Back to the parking place after my first solo on TF-104G (tail number FC-08)...

...doing the shutdown checks...

...and receiving congratulations from the F-104 instructor pilots, from left to right: Swa Aerts, Marc Van Huysse and Tony Muls

May 22nd, 1979

Note that the first solo was performed in a TF-104G with empty back seat. The reason was that there was a slight difference in "feel" between singleseater and twoseater (due to the CG being more forward on the singleseater). My first singleseater flight was performed the next day.

After the traditional "shower" from the fire truck, posing in front of the aircraft and drinking a well deserved beer together with my chase pilot Armand Van Reydt

Some 40 years later, I find my first solo aircraft on display at the open air museum of Savigny (France)...

First operational tour: 31 "Tiger" Squadron in Kleine Brogel

Lockheed F-104G Starfighter

1979-1983

645 flying hours

F-16 Fighting Falcon

CO Alex Peelaers congratulates me after my first solo on F-16A (tail number FA-61)

July 8th, 1983

Second operational tour: 31 "Tiger" Squadron in Kleine Brogel

General Dynamics F-16A

1983-1984

160 flying hours

Helicopters: a whole new ballgame

Unfortunately, medical reasons brought my fighter pilot career to a halt. I had to choose between transport or helicopter. The latter became my choice for the simple reason that the location would give me better aeromodelling opportunities...