MILITARY DARK FALCON
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n late 2017, Force Aérienne Belge (FAB
or Belgian Air Force) senior o cers
selected a new display pilot for the F-16
solo demonstration team. The role has
a three-year tenure to allow the display
routine to evolve over that time and for the
pilot to be thoroughly familiar with the display.
For the 2018, 2019 and 2020 seasons Senior
Captain Stefan ‘Vador’ Darte will present a
new display routine at events across Europe.
He is an experienced F-16 pilot with almost
3,000 hours on the type accrued through
fl ights both in Europe and when deployed
to overseas locations in support of several
operations over the last 20 years. His main
role is a Fighter Weapons Instructor with the
FAB’s 1 Squadron. Based at Florennes Air Base
in the south of Belgium, the team is booked
for 15 air shows and many other events across
ten di erent countries this year.New design
In addition to being allowed to sequence his
own display routine to show o the capabilities
of the aircraft, Vador was also allowed to present
proposals for a new paint scheme for the
display jet. For this, he turned to a highly creative
and experienced graphic designer, Nicolas
Deboeck, and Johan Wolfs who had experience
of transferring computer-based designs onto
aircraft to maximise their impact. After several
trial designs, the team settled on a bold scheme,
named Dark Falcon, in recognition of the 40th
anniversary of the introduction of the F-16 into
Belgian service. The dynamic, eye-catching
design uses only three colours; black, white and
grey, to deliver a visual impact that accentuates
the sleek lines of the aircraft. Design lines around
the airframe mimic airfl ow lines and the paths
of vortices generated by the aircraft during the
routine’s manoeuvres.A noteworthy feature of
the new design is inclusion of
an all-black radome – a fi rst
in Belgian service. The design team were
unsure whether this would be allowed, but
after the pilot and Captain Kurt Verwilligen of
the FAB’s public relations team spent some
time lobbying senior o cers, a spare radome
requiring repaint was located and permission
was given by the FAB High Command for the
scheme to go ahead.
The biggest challenge faced by Johan and
Nicolas was to produce a spectacular design
in the three colours specifi ed by the pilot that
made the aircraft look fast and dynamic and
that stands out enough to please spectators
and photographers alike. The fi nal design
had to ensure the theme of international
cooperation could be clearly conveyed. In
addition, the scheme had to have the pilot’sDark Dark Dark
FalconFalconFalcon
Graham Platt met with
members of this year’s
Belgian Air Force F-16
solo demonstration team
at Florennes Air Base